The mayor suggested the media give more specific examples of how the system gets strained - the healthy 52-year-old state trooper who can retire with full benefits at such a young age or the township official with a cushy job collecting benefits after just 20 years or the lawmaker who becomes eligible for a pension after only eight years in office. So today we bring you one of those examples to illustrate how the system is broken: Former House Speaker Michael Madigan, after 50 years as a member of the Illinois House and a contributor into one of the state’s five pension funds, the General Assembly Retirement System, will receive an annual pension of around $85,117, about 85% of his final salary.