public pensions – CORPaTH

16 03, 2018

A Case Against Cuts to Public Pensions
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A Case Against Cuts to Public Pensions

Pension Funding

A Case Against Cuts to Public Pensions

CORPaTH2018-03-16T10:15:08-07:00March 16th, 2018|Categories: Pension Funding|Tags: pension cuts, public pensions|

Dave Low is the chairman of Californians for Retirement Security, a coalition of public employee unions that was founded about 15 years ago to defend workers against calls for pension cuts. Today, with retirement costs ballooning, the pressure is sure to rise. While the California Legislature and leading candidates for governor have carefully avoided any substantive discussion on pensions, cities are struggling. Rising retiree costs have forced many cities and school districts to divert more of today’s budgets to [...]

21 12, 2017

Pension Reform Comes In Many Shapes And Sizes
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Pension Reform Comes In Many Shapes And Sizes

Pension Reform

Pension Reform Comes In Many Shapes And Sizes

CORPaTH2017-12-21T10:10:48-08:00December 21st, 2017|Categories: Pension Reform|Tags: public pensions|

Albert Einstein once said we cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them. Unfortunately, when it comes to the nation’s struggling public pensions, now more than $1 trillion in debt, that’s exactly what’s been happening. For years, state and local policymakers have been trying to keep their heads above water, while ignoring the coming pension debt tsunami. That is until recently. Over the past year, three states have made the tough decision to tackle [...]

20 07, 2017

‘Dismantling’ Public Pensions Could Cost Economy $3.3 Trillion
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‘Dismantling’ Public Pensions Could Cost Economy $3.3 Trillion

Pension Funding

‘Dismantling’ Public Pensions Could Cost Economy $3.3 Trillion

CORPaTH2017-07-20T17:08:39-07:00July 20th, 2017|Categories: Pension Funding|Tags: public pensions|

The “dismantling” of public pension funds by policymakers who push defined contribution plans as a replacement could set off severe effects for the economy, including lower growth and greater income inequality. That’s the conclusion from a new study by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems, a trade association representing more than 500 U.S. and Canadian funds, which estimates the economy “will suffer severe setbacks” by 2025 if defined benefit public pensions are dismantled at its current pace. [...]

13 07, 2016

Public pension plans better for retirees’ needs, report says
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Public pension plans better for retirees’ needs, report says

Defined Benefit Plans

Public pension plans better for retirees’ needs, report says

CORPaTH2016-07-13T20:57:22-07:00July 13th, 2016|Categories: Defined Benefit Plans|Tags: public pensions|

As workers worry increasingly about having enough money to see them through retirement in reasonable comfort without running out, as well as wanting to be able to move their retirement plans from job to job, a report from the National Institute on Retirement Securitytouts public defined benefit pension plans as meeting both those needs. The study was based on a survey of 89 public pension plans to determine plan types, employee contribution rates, vesting requirements, interest rates paid on withdrawn employee contributions, refunds of [...]

17 03, 2015

Meet the real villain in the public pension crisis

CORPaTH2015-03-17T22:30:08-07:00March 17th, 2015|Categories: Pension Reform|Tags: pension crisis, public pensions, tennessee|

Over the last year, the city of Memphis, Tennessee, has been bleeding firefighters and police officers. Two hundred and fifty of them quit, others retired, and replacements are becoming more difficult to attract. This past July, just over half the city’s police force took a sick day in protest. Their complaint? A December decision by the City Council to partially move public employee’s pensions to a hybrid system that includes 401(k)-style accounts for workers with 7.5 years of tenure or less. [...]

19 05, 2014

Cuts to Detroit Pensions Set Dangerous Precedent

CORPaTH2014-05-19T16:41:47-07:00May 19th, 2014|Categories: Pension Funding|Tags: bankruptcy, Detroit, erisa, public pensions|

Detroit’s bankruptcy, the largest municipal case in U.S. history, has attracted wide media commentary as an example of the country’s “unsustainable” public pension obligations. But it’s time to train a magnifying glass on the substance of the bankruptcy itself, particularly with regard to how it will affect workers and their retirements — in Detroit and around the country. Traditional legal interpretations of pensions have viewed their obligations as sacrosanct, especially once the passage of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of [...]