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Don’t redirect pension funds

Lawmakers should be wary about lowering pension debt payments

… million out of the state’s pension debt payments and spend it … should be careful. Underfunded pension debts have a long history … part of the state-managed pension and retiree health insurance … pay for their employees’ pensions, and the state pays out pension checks to employees when they …

Pension debt payments save taxpayers on the state’s largest creditors

State promised $35 billion more in retirement benefits than what’s been set aside

… are supposed to prefund the pension benefits that employees earn. … sets aside money into the pension system to ensure that they can afford the pensions that school workers earn. … for the total value of all pensions earned by employees in just … increase payments against the pension system’s debt. While good …

Don’t redirect pension funds

Lawmakers should be wary about lowering pension debt payments

… million out of the state’s pension debt payments and spend it … should be careful. Underfunded pension debts have a long history … part of the state-managed pension and retiree health insurance … pay for their employees’ pensions, and the state pays out pension checks to employees when they …

How to Control the Pension Debt

The costs of pension liabilities have grown out of control

… as I watch the government pension scandal across the country. Pensions provide retirees with a decent … six states, they say, total pension liabilities have grown beyond … for them. This means that pension debt is growing faster than … matter with this trend. If pension obligations grow a lot from …

Lansing’s $402M pension problem could become ours

City’s unfunded pension debt continues to grow, even with state help

The city of Lansing pays pensions to 1,790 former employees, but it lacks a fully funded pension system. If the city fails to fully fund its pension obligations, the burden will … Mackinac Center. Lansing’s net pension liability was $402,497,602 … fire and police department pension system and $164 million in …

Governor Granholm Called to Underfund Pensions 6 Years Before Company Bankruptcy

There is no natural constituency for properly funding pensions

… of pressure to underfund pensions, and the promises that guarantee … employees with defined benefit pension plans, they are required to … bankruptcy, the employee pension plan was terminated and taken over by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. … criticized federal rules governing pensions and called for weakening …

Taking the Pension Task Force to Task

Governments should stop generating new pension debt

… ere is a well-established pension funding principle that was … cover the full costs of the pension benefits earned by their employees that year. This prevents pension debt from growing out of control. … fundamental challenge for financing pension systems. To keep them from … burden on future taxpayers, pension managers need to accurately …

Why Michigan Pension Reform Matters

Michigan now a national leader on fixing pension problems

… of the 2017 public school pension reform is a transformational … state officials to promise pension benefits to new school employees … participants in the state’s school pension system. It covers 189,761 … from this system. But the pension fund is underfunded. The state … has saved to pay for their pensions and the amount the system’s …

How to Control the Pension Debt

The costs of pension liabilities have grown out of control

… as I watch the government pension scandal across the country. Pensions provide retirees with a decent … all but six states, total pension liabilities have grown beyond … pay for them. It means that pension debt grows faster than the … matter with this trend. If pension obligations grow a lot from …

Unions Fight their Members’ Interests on Pensions

Containing and curing pension underfunding benefits retirees, workers and taxpayers

… forgotten when it comes to pensions. In the Lansing State Journal, … the billions in debt these pension systems have incurred. The failure to adequately fund pensions has drained taxpayer resources, … of Michigan’s government pension systems have set aside enough to pay for the pension promises they have made. The …

Schoolchildren, Teachers, Taxpayers Harmed When Pension Managers Assume Too Much

The realities of Michigan's $26.5 billion pension liability

… retirement system to base annual pension contributions on an assumption … means contributions into the pension fund will be insufficient … to pay. Michigan’s school pension system has put taxpayers on … last year. Several state pension officials quoted in a recent … year to adequately fund the pension system. Failing to reach assumed …

State Policies Created School Pension Pain

The only real solution is to close public pensions to new employees

Pension costs are forcing tough choices on Michigan’s school … policies will be. To pay for pension benefits, the state assesses … its payroll to the school pension system, while the employees, … annual responsibility for pensions. It also announced that it … districts to cover a portion of pension benefits. Currently, that’s …

Fixing Michigan's Local Pension Problems

West Michigan Policy Forum holds panel discussion on pensions

… notes that in 2001 the city's pension fund was overfunded. This … Norton Shores, the city's pension problems went mostly ignored … sixth from the bottom in pension funding. Worse, the city had … health care. Combined with pensions, those obligations exceeded … panel discussion on municipal pensions. Menzel said that the Michigan …

Michigan Counties on the Verge of Pension Crisis

Lansing State Journal publishes op-ed on local pension debt

… counties are drowning in pension debt and it’s time for their … about the ballooning unfunded pension liabilities municipalities … unable to address unfunded pension liabilities, retirees are … paid $405 million to county pension plans across the state. Using Ingham County’s $125 million pension funding gap as an example, …

New Bill Fixes a Pension Problem, Leaves Major Problem Untouched

Boosted pensions aren't the main cause of underfunding

… boost their taxpayer-funded pension benefits. The bill could can … runaway costs of an underfunded pension system. The problem with public pensions in Michigan is not how generous … they earn credit towards a pension that they will collect when … employer puts money into a pension fund. This ensures that the …

Pension Underfunding Has a Cause — But it is Not Smaller Workforces

Pensions do not operate like Social Security

… costs of defined benefit pension systems are meant to be paid as pension credits are earned by employees. … lack of understanding of how pension funding actually works leads … This is because government pension funds do not, in fact, operate … Security. When a worker earns a pension, his or her employer is supposed …

Alleged ‘Transition Costs’ Avoidable In Detroit

Shouldn't be used as a roadblock to pension reform

… requirement that the city close its pension systems to new members — is … that have reformed their pension systems show. Transition … to catch up on underfunded pensions. Detroit does not have enough money saved in its pension system to pay for the benefits … other governments have made pension reforms without making this …

Teacher retirement bill is a step backward

Legislators risk further pension underfunding

… a 401(k)-style plan to a pension option. This change will put … at further risk of deeper pension debt. Lawmakers should not … has saved to pay for the pension benefits of public school … is required to pay for the pensions earned by employees as they … decide how much to save for pensions. They typically choose methods …

Seven Ann Arbor Retirees Getting Six-Figure Pensions

The highest pension was for $126,216 to former fire chief who worked 25 years

… are currently collecting pensions that exceed $100,000 a year, … records from the city-run pension system. The highest payout … of service. The average pension payout from Ann Arbor’s retirement … in 2003 receives an annual pension of $43,000. Gretchen Virlee-Wagner … Virlee-Wagner now collects an annual pension of $68,036. The New York …

Use Better Assumptions to Pay for Pensions

Lawmakers should pay close attention to state pension systems

… to contribute money to the pension system during each employee’s … retirements of the people who get pensions. A well-funded pension system has enough money to … in the system to pay their pensions. What employees earn for … long they will collect a pension. Likewise, how much the state …

$1 Billion of Tax Money Thrown Into a Growing Deficit

Michigan increased pension funding and it’s still not enough

… into the school employee pension fund. But the extra state … determines the amount of money the pension system needs each year based … much the state still owes in pension debt. This is different from … supposed to pay for the school pension system has increased with … annual costs of running the pension system — it does nothing to …

Media Misinterpreting Detroit Pension Bill

Legislation doesn't address pension underfunding

… city and unions could negotiate for pension or hybrid plans as long as the city … determine a city's obligation to fund pension benefits, payments are split into … do not calculate the value of the pensions earned by each employee individually, … to the system in general. If the pension funds develop an unfunded liability, …

Lawmakers Want to Be More Careful With Pension Funds

… Legislature to require state pension administrators to be more careful with the pension systems they oversee and to … important assumptions built into pensions is the guess at how much … as much money today to pay pensions in the future. If investments … approach. Much of the current pension debt exists because administrators …

Largest Local Governments in Michigan Carry $5.5B in Pension Debt

New Mackinac Center update looks at pension liabilities of the 100 largest municipalities

… map showing the fiscal health of pension systems in Michigan’s largest … progressed in funding their pension systems. The interactive map … changes in the fiscal health of pension systems. Based on this most … data, the total unfunded pension liability across Michigan’s … between the costs of the pensions municipalities have promised …

Use Michigan's Budget Surplus to Pay Back Teacher Pension Debt

Current interest on pension debt costs $2.3 billion per year

… state-run school employee pension system. Because the state … unfunded liabilities in the pension system. These liabilities … money. Paying down these pension debts will benefit current … investments in the school pension plan, that makes it some of … system from generating new pension debt. More realistic assumptions …

Mackinac Center Research Topic of Council Meeting

Local news covers pension problems in Norton Shores

One Michigan city’s unfunded pension liability was the subject of a city council meeting this week after … — his city must begin to address its unfunded pension liability to avoid severe cuts to services, major … Confidential explaining that Michigan’s local government pensions have less than 65 percent of the funds they need …

What You Owe for Pensions

Michigan governments hold $3,800 per person in pension debt

… public entities that offer pensions to former and current employees. … enough money to pay for the pensions promised to employees and … unlike that of other open pension systems, is trending down … Our study of Michigan’s pension systems, at all layers of government, show a hard truth: Pension systems don’t get funded – …

The Lose-Lose Situation in Pension Funding

Pension underfunding, not defined contributions, is the problem

… give them control over their own retirement. Pension plans in governments are expensive yet are not … contribution plans. Most of the money going into pension funds is not to pay for the benefits being earned … and paying for them later has created a hole in pension systems across the state. This is the real lose-lose …

Michigan's Underfunded Pensions: A Tale of Two Counties

Wayne County governments have dug a $3.4 billion pension hole

… $4.2 billion in unfunded pension benefits to their employees, … communities run a defined benefit pension plan for their employees, … closed its defined benefit pensions to new hires, instead giving … retirement accounts. The legacy pension system that serves county … date is well-funded. The pension systems of most cities in …

How Does Your City Weigh Out?

Pension health should be important to local governments and the taxpayers

… comes to the health of their pension systems. If they defer paying … now owe $5.57 billion in pension debt. The weight of this liability …     Fiscal health in a pension system, much like a person’s … Failing to properly fund a pension system puts at risk the fates … municipalities must make pension funding a priority. They should …

Union Should Secure the Retirement of Their Members

New op-ed discusses Teamster pension problems in Washington Examiner

One of the largest union pension plans is on the brink of insolvency, … Teamsters’ Central States Pension Fund is underfunded by at … taxpayers to bailout their failed pension system. Teamsters helped manage [their members’ pensions] to the brink of insolvency … adding in the locals. In pension plans like the Teamsters, …

Constitutional Pension Reform, 50 Years On

… the state's school employee pension fund was revised upward to … Michigan state government’s pension fund for public school employees … constitutionally protecting public pensions, and it is time to acknowledge … state and local government pensions. As the chairman of the … extremely difficult. Any public [pension] system that is set up should …

Michigan Lawmakers Make Progress on Pension Debts

But taxpayers still owe more than $50 billion to state-run pension systems

… e’s a problem with public pensions in this country, but it’s … taxpayers have racked up in pension systems. This has been bad … assume that way to solve pension problems is to get more people … But government employee pensions operate differently. Instead … how much they put in the pension system based on projections …

State Government Up to Its Eyeballs in Pension Debt

Unfunded pension liabilities dwarf state’s other borrowing

… around the country — and pensions are exhibit No. 1. Michigan … their employees far more in pension benefits than can be supported … nonetheless. The state-run school pension system is largest pension system in Michigan. Lawmakers … employees $67.7 billion in pension benefits, but set aside and …

March 3, 2015, MichiganVotes Weekly Roll Call

Pension debt, double-dipping, film subsidies

… 86, Authorize more local pension debt: Passed 38 to 0 in the … term debt to cover unfunded pension liabilities, but only if they … traditional “defined benefit” pension system to new employees. The … health insurance, which unlike pensions is not a legal obligation. … certain subjects and collect pension checks alongside his or her …

Pension FAQs

Why are pensions underfunded? There are two ways that pensions can be underfunded: (1) employers … and (2) assumptions about pension funding do not match experience. … state deposited into the pension fund $2.2 billion less than … required contributions. Pensions have protections in the state …

2018 School Pension Underfunding Expense Enough To Fix The Roads

Decades of officials shortchanging pensions cost taxpayers $2.1 billion last year

… closed) defined benefit school pension system. The amount almost … repairs. The state-run school pension fund is $32.7 billion short … available to meet its promised pension payouts to teachers. The state … over the coming decades, the pension fund will earn annual returns … amount contributed to the pension fund. (The different rates …

Michigan’s Pension Bureaucrats Mislead Policymakers and the Public

Office of Retirement Services tries to derail pension reform

… Manager 989-698-1914 Midland — Pension managers who oversee Michigan’s school pension system testified Wednesday … Michigan’s school employee pension system, which carries $26.7 … keep Michigan from making pension promises to future teachers … “best practices” of public pension finance. ORS’s claims are …

Pension 'Transition Costs' Remain a Myth

Package of bills would finally close school employee pension plan

… state-run school employee pension system and offering new employees … shows that the rules for pension accounting only guide how pensions are reported and do not mandate a pension funding policy. In any case, newly adopted pension accounting rules should clear …

Why Some Teachers Prefer a 401(k) Over a Pension

Michigan legislators debate fix to pension system underfunded by $26 billion

… that kept open the teacher pension system but began allowing … 401(k) instead of the old pension system, according to a FOIA … from concerns about future pension cuts and underfunding to wanting … reasons. One of which … [is] the pension program is underfunded and … employees do not “vest” in the pension system until they have worked …

Union Workers Would be Better Off With a 401(k)

Union pensions in poor shape

… value of defined-benefit pensions, but a new survey of multi-employer pension programs shows that union pension plans in particular are more … consequence of this underfunding is pension failures, and workers who … haul. In a defined-benefit pension, workers are guaranteed a …

Defined-Contribution Plans Help State Credit

Michigan's credit rating could increase after pension reform

… reform the state’s underfunded pension system. The latest argument … Michigan’s school employee pension program to a defined-contribution … instead of defined-benefit pensions can improve a state’s credit … instead of defined-benefit pensions. In 1998 the state’s credit … fiscal health, but improved pension funding was cited as one of …

Better Pension Assumptions Protect Taxpayers

Pension bills would take government retirement funds seriously

… trouble is by underfunding pensions. And states have dived into … and $6 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities, depending on … debt. The state employee pension system carries $6 billion in underfunded pensions. The school system carries … required governments to fund pensions as they are earned. When …

Michigan Legislature Set to End Union Schemes

Special ‘release time’ and pension spiking arrangements unfair to taxpayers

… their private release time or pensions. House Bill 279 would “prohibit … of collecting a government pension.” At least the past three … their taxpayer-guaranteed pension. In these arrangements, the … receives a taxpayer-provided pension that is higher than it would … have given him an estimated pension for less than $8,000 per year. …

Unions for Underfunding

Claims of AFSCME aside, an underfunded pension plan benefits from closing it, not keeping it open

… at estimating the costs of pension plans, they wouldn’t be underfunded … complaining about. The state’s pension fund managers have manipulated … would not make the legacy pension plan more expensive. Instead, … unfunded liabilities of the pension plan, regardless of when or … putting more money into the pension system. Doing so would secure …

Pension Officials Mislead Lawmakers

Bureaucrats attempt to scuttle pension reform with inaccurate and irrelevant information

… massively unfunded school pension system to new enrollees, ORS … testified that closing the pension system would require huge, … year would close the current pension system to new enrollees and … so-called best practices of pension financing that are entirely … unfunded liabilities in the pension system for 33 of the past …

Why Are Michigan House Republicans Continuing These Union Scams?

New Legislature should take up pension spiking, release time in 2017

… Bill 279 dealt with union pension spiking schemes, in which … inflate their taxpayer-funded pensions. In at least one instance, … approximately $8,000 annual pension into one worth over $100,000. … Michigan’s $26.7 billion pension liability. The Michigan Senate … these people with health and pension benefits. Districts pay other …

A Solution to Local Government Debt

Pension and retiree health care liabilities are in crisis and the time to act is now

… on average, despite a decade-long recession. And though there are some cities which have seen real declines in revenue, the skyrocketing cost of pension and retiree health care liabilities dwarfs these revenue problems. Take the city of Lansing as an example. Over the past decade, if property tax …

Michigan lawmakers are likely to keep taxing pensions

Raising the tax deduction for seniors is different from eliminating the pension tax, but don’t expect lawmakers to explain that

… campaign pledges to repeal the pension tax, Michigan legislators are likely to keep taxing pensions next year. Michiganders should … lawmakers will not repeal the pension tax is that there is no pension tax. There is a state personal … senior income. Calling this a “pension tax” is a simpler and more …

If Michigan Officials Believed School Pensions ‘Vital’ They Would Have Paid for Them

Defined benefit pensions could work just fine for both employers … employees. But government pensions have a major problem: They … Michigan’s largest government pension system, the one for school … dollar of those promises. The pension fund, then, is $29.1 billion … employee earns benefits in a pension system, the employer is supposed …

Contaminated Water Dominates Flint Headlines, But Pension Earthquake Looms

Pension payments increase 50 percent in five years

… future: A $285 million unfunded pension liability is consuming ever … costs. To put the burden of pension obligations into perspective, … the risks to traditional pensions, even for a government body … reckoning on public employee pensions plans.” The city of Flint … employees four different pension systems. By far the most popular …

Teacher Pension Fund’s Good Earnings Last Year Not Good Enough

Still $16 billion short of amount needed to meet pension promises to school employees

… Iris Salters receives state pension benefits worth $190,600 a … earnings used to calculate her pension include the $186,000 annual … such arrangements, and their pension spiking came at the expense … underfunded public school pension system. The school employee pension system had net earnings of …

Detroit Was Just the Beginning: The Crisis of City Pension Systems in Michigan

Local government pensions are less than 65 percent funded

… waiting too long to reform pensions. Retirees took a $1.3 billion hit to their pensions because of a mismanaged and … they will need to pay the pensions of future retirees. Even … instead of a defined benefit pension plan. Of the remaining six … offered a defined benefit pension plan to its employees. Since …

April 17, 2015, MichiganVotes Weekly Roll Call

Auto insurance, double-dipping pensions, investor guarantees

… or November. Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” Senate Bill 12, Allow pension double-dipping by “retired” Attorney General employees: Passed 37 to 0 … the Senate To allow a retired state employee to simultaneously collect pension benefits and a paycheck for work performed as an Attorney General consultant …

Democrats Selectively Considering Pension Benefits In Education Funding

Pensions once 'earned in the classrooms' now excluded from funding equation by Democrats

… to cover their retirement costs. He said the pensions were earned by teachers with "a lifetime of hard … teacher's overall compensation, which includes pension benefits, most certainly is a classroom expense, … Record, MEA Complains About 'Insufficient Funds' Pension Costs Mean Tighter Budgets For Taxpayers, Classrooms …

How States Are Fixing Pension Problems – And Michigan Can Too

Issues and Ideas Forum

… several attempts at reforms, public pensions in Michigan continue to strain budgets … state level. The school employee pension system, for instance, has a whopping … Michigan can fix these perennial pension problems will be the topic of this … Dan Liljenquist, who spearheaded pension reforms in Utah while he served as …

Dear Teachers: Here's Why Your Salary Isn't Higher

It's the pension costs

Here's how rising pension expenses are affecting just one Michigan school district. It’s the same story at all the other districts as well.

Teacher Pension System Hole Getting Deeper

State falls $290 million short on school pension funding in 2012 after GOP left old system largely in place

… unfunded school employee pension promises. Due to years of … therefore future contributions. Pension liability was reduced by approximately … contribution. ~~~~~ See also: Pension Study Consultants Have History Defending Expensive Pension Plans House GOP Hides Behind … Verge of Giving MEA Huge Pension Win The State Is Already …

State Pension Plans Are Unsustainable

Funding liabilities would cost $5,400 per capita

… million balloon payment to its pension systems in 2024, which is … plan. New hiring, delayed pension cuts, and longer life expectancies … financial statements for pension plans covering Michigan’s … employers have attacked their pension funding challenges by moving … found that this move reduced pension costs by $167 million and …

Center Analyst on Pension Reform

… City today, discussing his recent study on how to reform the public school employees' retirement system. You can read more about public-employee pension reform here and here.

Pension Costs Are Crowding Out Public Safety

Michigan is losing cops to retiree costs

… why this is, but here’s one theory: Pension underfunding is crowding out government … state saved only 63 percent of what pensions are expected to cost. And while the … sector averages. Local government pension systems are underfunded as well. … other words, Michigan is trading pension costs for fewer police officers on …

Misdiagnosing the Cause of Pension Problems

Neither revenue sharing nor suburb-dwellers caused underfunding

… up massively underfunded pension plans. Who is to blame for … accurate understanding of pension funding shows exactly why, … well as what to do about pensions. At Michigan Radio, John … Stephen Henderson argues that pension woes are the result of a state … assertions are incorrect. Pension underfunding is generated …

Center Pension Study Cited

An Op-Ed in the Orange County Register about public-sector pension reform in California cites a recent Mackinac Center study that found switching state employees hired after 1997 from a defined-benefit retirement system to a defined-contribution system has saved Michigan taxpayers as much as $4 billion …

Teachers Union Head Gets Annual $92,000 Pension Bonus, Courtesy of Taxpayers

Scheme let top union officials get school pensions based on six-figure union salaries

… years, his annual school pension would have been an estimated … salary in the public school pension calculations. The MEA reimbursed … contributions to the school employee pension system on behalf of Cook. … Cook begin collecting an annual pension of $103,227 for the rest of … the six-figure government pension in September, according to …

Lawmakers Want to Be More Careful With Pension Funds

Taxpayers now owe more to pensioners than the lenders

… Legislature to require state pension administrators to be more careful with the pension systems they oversee and to … important assumptions built into pensions is the guess at how much … much money today to pay for pensions to be paid out in the future. … approach. Much of the current pension debt exists because administrators …

Charter Schools Are Not to Blame for Pension Woes

The way to catch up on underfunding is not to rope more people in

Government pension systems around Michigan are a mess, by and … the public school employee pension system. It is need of reform, … officials do not understand how pension systems work and believe the … charters get to avoid the school pension system. Education officials … school employees into the pension system, the underfunding problem …

The Real Problem with Government Pensions

Hint: It's not markets or greedy workers

… e high cost of government pension plans are often dismissed … retirement benefits. To keep pension costs from draining resources … levels should address the pension underfunding crisis in 2016. … employees is the largest pension program in Michigan, and it … decades of inadequately funded pension systems. It is yet another …

State on Required Payments for School Employees' Pension: 'The Check is in the Mail'

Michigan underfunding pension fund by $2.2 billion over past 10 years

… shortfalls in the school employee pension system. Nevertheless, only … required contribution" that the pension system's own accountants say … Budget-Killing School Employees' Pension Up in the Air 10 Facts About Pension Systems in Michigan Close … Stretch Dollars Further Pension Costs Mean Tighter Budgets …

Don’t Blame Employees for Pension Underfunding

Liabilities caused by wrong assumptions

… for underfunded government pension systems. When concerns are … the basic problems faced by pension systems. In 2010, Michigan’s school employee pension system was underfunded by … Michigan’s school employee pension system was underfunded by … underlying assumptions about the pension fund's projected investment …

Wright on the Beckman Show

MEA president earning taxpayer-funded pension.

… the Mackinac Center’s investigation of the MEA President Steve Cook’s pension. Steve Cook appears to be earning a taxpayer-funded pension as an “employee” of the Lansing School District, despite not performing …

Michigan Education Digest

School choice, DPS debt, teacher pensions

The latest version of Michigan Education Digest is now available. Items include anti-school choice legislation, teacher pensions and school district consolidation.

Pension Predictions Fall Short

Defined-benefit plans don't get funded, they get underfunded

The school pension system is in dire need of reform. It owes … out of the defined-benefit pension business entirely. Back in … the time: defined-benefit pension plans don’t get funded, they … Underfunding the school employee pension system does a disservice to … system at www.mackinac.org/pension

State Officials Caused Michigan's Pension Crisis

No accident that school pension system is underwater

… underfunded school employee pension system in 2016. That represented … properly fund Michigan’s school pension system are causing problems … manages state and school pension systems; it has consistently … unfunded promises in the school pension system. In the coming weeks, … past 42 years, the school pension fund has not held enough assets …

Michigan Company Billed $465,774 For Teamsters Pension After Laying Off Its Last Unionized Trucker

Severely underfunded private-sector union pension plans are hurting companies

… costs to get out of union pension funds, those guys are cheap. … bail out the Teamsters union pension fund. "We got the bill and … Teamsters Central States Pension Fund sent the bill to Fastdecks. … We ceased paying into the pension fund at that time because … withdrawing from these union pension funds is skyrocketing. Pension …

The Debate Over School Spending

Teacher pension costs really are part of classroom spending

… the current defined benefit pension system and toward a 401(k)-type … why: Michigan's teacher pension system has billions in unfunded … public employees got their pensions. So what has happened since? … extra spending on teacher pensions and continue with the drumbeat … becomes obvious why having a pension system is so dangerous. Those …

Faulty assumptions led to $2.3 billion catch-up on Michigan school pensions

Michigan has a history of underfunding the system but might now make extra debt payments

… underfunding public employee pensions. Generous retirement promises, … Center for Public Policy. Pension liabilities are non-dischargeable, … state's failure to fund the pension plan fully. Most of the underfunding … occasion the state even used the pension system to bail out a bad deal … most recent increase in the pension debt is the result of better …

June 7, 2013, MichiganVotes.org Weekly Vote Report

Votes on National Guard pensions, hunting licenses

… "No" House Bill 4664, Allow pension double-dipping by some “retired” … to simultaneously collect pension benefits and a regular paycheck … retire and begin collecting pension checks as young as age 51 … 175, Undo National Guard pension reform: Passed 91 to 14 in … eliminated "defined benefit" pensions for future state Adjutant …

February 6, 2015, MichiganVotes Weekly Roll Call

Pension double dipping, concealed pistol rules, more.

… for a permit. Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” Senate Bill 12, Allow pension double-dipping by some “retired” state employees: Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate To allow a retired state employee to simultaneously collect pension benefits and a regular paycheck for work performed as an Attorney General …

September 26, 2014, MichiganVotes Weekly Report

Pensions, hunting drones, automatic pay hikes & more

… "No" Senate Bill 922, Authorize more local “pension obligation bonds”: Passed 107 to 1 in the House … governments to borrow money to cover unfunded employee pension liabilities, but only if they have closed their traditional “defined benefit” pension system to new employees. Who Voted "Yes" and …

How Bad Investment Rate Projections Cause Pension Underfunding

Municipal discount rate assumptions prove to be costly

… $5.4 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. The liabilities … the money need to pay for pensions. In Flint, the city’s defined benefit pension system is only 47 percent … Grand Rapids defined benefit pension system is 97 percent funded … taxpayers were on the hook for no pension debt because the employees …

The Good News About the Budget

Pension fix, unspent revenue are bright spots

… money over the long term. The budget includes $2.3 billion to pay down pension system debt. Lawmakers accidentally made school employees the state’s largest creditors, and that’s bad for teachers and taxpayers alike. Paying off pension system debts will protect pensioners and save money on interest. The governor …

Hathaway Pension: First Check Due Before Sentencing

Despite pleading guilty to bank fraud, Diane Hathaway to collect nearly $100K pension

… income thanks to her first pension check from the state of Michigan … have received additional pension checks by that time. Although … amount of Hathaway's annual pension has yet to be confirmed. She … said Wednesday, regarding Hathaway's pension. "It will need to be finalized … Still Collect Six-Figure Pension

Michigan's Pension Crisis Means Tax Hikes and Cutting Cops

Analysis of Michigan cities shows they are paying for more retirees than workers

… modify their defined benefit pension plans. Walker warned, though, … close their defined benefit pension system to newly hired employees, … discussed the merits of closing pension systems to new employees, … Care Act and eliminating pension abuses such as pension spiking.

Facing Possible Jail Time, Disgraced Justice Can Still Collect Pension

Estimates place former Supreme Court Justice Diane Hathaway's annual pension at nearly $100K

… expect to get a hefty state pension. It's been estimated that Hathaway's annual state pension would come to $98,766. In … system. So would Hathaway's pension eligibility change if she … changes her ability to get her pension. If she were convicted, the … many consider a lavish state pension warrants review by legislators. …

What Do You Owe?

Cities across Michigan have $5.6 billion in pension debt

… with debt in their employee pension systems. The Mackinac Center … level; the state’s two largest pension programs owe tens of billions … continues to accrue. Tracking pension debt is not about blaming … Detroit. The harmful results of pension underfunding don’t have to … on education goes into the pension system. And some cities there …

This Week in Fiscal Policy News

Tax reform proposals and state pension underfunding

… Forum met Monday and more than 400 of its members — comprised of business leaders — voted on its top policy priorities. The top vote-getter was pension reform. Moving government employees to a defined contribution program (similar to a 401k program in the private sector) from a defined benefit one …

Critics of Growth Projections in House Road Plan Should Be Unnerved by Pension Underfunding

… spending: the grossly underfunded school employee pension system. The state is supposed to contribute $1.9 … year to begin catching up on $25.8 of unfunded pension liabilities. The long term plan is to increase … funding, they should be tearing their hair out over pension underfunding, which is a far greater fiscal threat …

MEA President Inflating Public Pension with $200K Salary While Working for Private Union

Lansing School District keeps Steve Cook in public employee pension system

… remain a member of the state’s pension system for school employees … union. This lets him accrue pension benefits based on his $201,613 … underfunded public school employees pension system. The Lansing School … an underfunded government pension system, leveraging his six-figure salary to garner a much higher pension payout. A public school employee’s …

Supreme Court Justice's Problems Not Likely to Affect Generous Pension

With 20 years of judicial service, Justice Diane Hathaway could get $100K a year pension

… probably look forward to a pension that may be just shy of $100,000 … down, she is eligible for a state pension. According to the Office of … have the details yet on her pension," Department of Technology, … a Supreme Court Justice’s pension is straight-forward. To determine how much of a pension Hathaway can expect, the state …

Detroit Bailout Bill Leaves Taxpayers On The Hook For New Pension Underfunding

Committee version guts original pension reform bill; full House could vote today

… Detroit's defined benefit pension system and shifted new employees … the city to leave open its pension plan and rack up liabilities … the city underfunded the pensions it promised its employees," … Detroit Bailout and Meaningful Pension Reform How Michigan Can Fix Its Pension Problems Pension Costs Mean …

Pension Reform Failure Cost Michigan Taxpayers $6 Billion or More

It harms current employees and retirees as well

… promised workers in the school pension fund and what the state has … The cost of underfunding pensions to school budgets is massive: … salary for a year. Using pension officials’ own assumptions … payroll. When the cost of pensions earned by employees in the … payroll. When these same pension officials lobby against closing …

WSJ: Pension Reform 'Transition Cost' Claim More Bogus than Ever

… against reforming government pension systems recently became even … teachers unions and state pension bureaucrats to scuttle a transformational school pension reform bill that had passed … Biggs writes: But the public-pension industry—government unions … actuarial consultants employed by pension-plan managers—claims that …

Closing Pensions for State Employees in 1990s Saved Michigan Millions Today

Study highlights savings from defined-contribution reform

… close the state employee pension system to new members. A new … Michigan as it considers further pension reforms. The state employee … members $6.2 billion more in pension benefits than it has saved. … because the state closed the pension system. But the Reason authors … needed contributions. The pension fund’s investments also produced …

Retiree Who's Becoming Face Of 'Pension Tax' is Collecting Generously

Former teacher and union head likely receiving over $51K in pension payments alone

… repealing tax exemptions for some pensions. But James Pearson, a 66-year-old … enough compensation from a pension and Social Security alone … protesters complaining about the pension tax, being quoted by the Lansing … experience would have an annual pension of $35,910. If that teacher … would increase that annual pension to $38,304. The average Social …

Teachers Work in the Classroom

And pensions are employee compensation

… it went to shore up the underfunded teachers’ pension fund. There’s no doubt that more money is needed to keep the pension fund solvent, but that means not much of that … going to the classroom.” ForTheRecord says: Pensions are part of the compensation package for teachers …

Lost in Transition

A Pension and the Public Trust

… state’s public school employee pension system to new workers. Their … one day, depending on the pension fund’s investments, but it … wages grow). Now consider pension reform. Currently, state taxpayers, … government, are saving to provide pensions to every public school employee. … $22 billion debt for existing pensions and immediately spend more …

71 Percent Of New School Employees Choose 401(k) Over Pension

Employees themselves now on the hook for pension underfunding

… traditional defined benefit pension and a 401(k) defined contribution … fact that defined benefit pensions have long been the rule in … lawmakers to close the old school pension system to new hires as of … added a big catch to the pension option they included in a … adopted because years of past pension underfunding has put a significant …

'Steve Cook' Bill Would Prevent Private Union Employees from Spiking State Pension

MEA president is basing public pension on $200K union salary

… payroll for years as part of a “pension spiking” scheme. Last week … annually to the state-run school pension system on behalf of union … Cook collect a much larger pension from the school retirement … aimed at prohibiting such pension spiking deals, and would also … President Inflating Public Pension With $200K Salary While Working …

Not Too Late to Close the Pension System

… feeling: underfunded school pensions, which are constitutional … unfunded liabilities for pension benefits. Clamping down on … the primary problem of the pension system. This year’s gimmick … out of the budget to make pension contributions instead of distributing … In the upcoming year, most pension payments will cost 22.9 percent …