Illinois lawmakers will head back to Springfield the first week in January to try and come up with some type of pension reform, something they failed to do back in August.
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn says the the state's pension liability now stands at $96 billion and counting.
"We can't fill in a pension hole of 80, 100 billion. We have to stop the bleeding", said State Rep. Rich Morthland of Cordova.
"Now the chickens are coming home to roost and Illinois has to face the difficult decisions and do something, because if we don't, it's going to be over. Lights out.'', the lame duck Republican said.
Legislators have been called back for a lame duck special session January 3rd. A special session in August went nowhere.
"There clearly is a window of opportunity. Now the question is, will our leaders have the fortitude to do the right thing"", Morthland said.
He said instead of a super majority, any vote on pension reform in January would need a simple majority to move forward.
"It makes it easier to pass tough bills'', he said.