The U.S. does not have a pension crisis and although there may be some areas where we can consolidate government services and save taxpayers money. These items are the main reasons for the “pensions crisis” (1) Politicians playing games with pensions and taxpayer money (2) For-profit health insurance (3) Using outdated, arbitrary laws like appraisal caps and revenue caps that have corporate loopholes (4) Tax-Increment Financing (5) No Individual Income Tax on earnings over $500,000 (6) Moody’s [for-profit] evaluations of pension liabilities and their greed to turn them into 401k’s (7) 2001 and 2008 Recessions (8) Lack of medicaid expansion
We do not support changing defined-benefit pensions to 401k because (1) Transitioning from defined-benefit to 401k is very expensive for taxpayers (2) Many communities and small business owners nationwide are dependent on retirees and their pensions for economic development. (3) Changing defined benefit pensions to 401k would require increasing public employee pay to match the private sector, this does not solve city budgets.
Solutions:
- Close appraisal loopholes for property tax
- Create a municipal and/or state Public Bank
- Close the billions of dollars in sales tax loopholes
- Reform or ban capital appreciation bonds in the state of Texas
- Repeal TABOR
- Reform Tax-Increment Financing
WSJ – Pensions Drop Annual Targets After Financial Crisis
Putting [Houston] Pensions In Perspective
The Impact of Moody’s Proposed Changes in Analyzing Government Pension Data
EPI – Will Switching Government Workers to Account-type Plans Save Taxpayers Money?
CPPP – Who Pays Taxes in Texas?
Retirement Plan Choices for Public Employees and Employers
FORBES – Why Defined-Benefit Plans Are Safer Investments for State Governments and Workers
FORBES – Pension Plans Beat 401(k) Savers Silly — Here’s Why
Dispatch – Defined-benefit pensions are better on cost, return
Why 401(k)s Shouldn’t Replace Pensions
Boston Globe – Massachusetts public pensions are stingiest in the country
Saving Public Defined Benefit Plans
Towers Watson – Defined Benefit Plans Outperform Defined Contribution Plans Again
Houston Chronicle – City suit against firefighter pension is a waste
Rolling Stone – All across America, Wall Street is grabbing money meant for public workers
Houston Chronicle – City pension representatives: ‘The sky is not falling’
Moody’s Accused of ‘Manipulating’ Pension Data
Susan Combs Throws Cold Water on Texas Public Pensions “Crisis”
Houston Firefighters Pension Fund Among The Strongest In The Nation
A Change in Calculation on Unfunded Liabilities, or Change of Heart?
Reuters – Moody’s flawed estimate on public pension liabilities
Houston Chronicle – Lump – sum HFD retirement pay strains city budget
Be very cautious about making pension changes
Financial Security Scorecard: A State-by-State Analysis of Economic Pressures Facing Future Retirees
Pension Spending Supports 6.2 Million Jobs, $943 Billion in Economic Input
CPPP – Employees Retirement System and Teacher Retirement System
Info graphic: The Real Reason You Have So Much Debt (It’s Not Crazy Spending)
“Don’t Owe. Won’t Pay.” Everything You’ve Been Told About Debt Is Wrong
Chicago Business – Here’s one public pension that survived the 2008 crisis
Telegraph – Ten countries with the world’s best pension systems
2011 Agreement Between the Houston Police Officers’ Pension System and the City of Houston
Philadelphia vs. Detroit – Pension Funding Isn’t The Whole Story
Detroit Free Press – Analysis shows Detroit pension funds in better shape than Orr says
Detroit’s Pension Is Actually Well-Funded, So What’s All the Fuss?
The real size of Detroit’s pension funding gap
Business Insider – MAPS: Here’s Where State Pension Systems Are In The Most Trouble
Robert Reich – Detroit, and the Bankruptcy of America’s Social Contract
Demos – The Detroit Bankruptcy
Daily Kos – The other Detroit pension fraud
Detroit Free Press – How Detroit came to betray its retirees
Detroit Free Press – Susan Tompor: Don’t blame pensioners for Detroit’s fiscal crisis
CFA Institute – Public Pension Funding Ratios Still Tumbling (Digest Summary)
Think Progress – Meet The Hedge Fund Wiz Kid Who’s Shrinking America’s Pensions
Reuters – MuniLand In Detroit, were Orr’s pension estimates in ‘good faith’?
Alternet – The Real Story Behind the Detroit Pensions Fight and What it Means to America’s Future
QZ – What’s the deal with Detroit’s mysteriously trebling pension obligations?
Market Watch – Detroit is pension reform’s whipping boy
Benefits Pro – Other cities have larger underfunded pension plans than Detroit
How Are Pensions Protected State-by-State?
Alaska Dispatch News – Here’s who got Alaska into this public employee retirement mess
Juneau Empire – Gov. signs pension changes into law
Truth Out – Public Pension Reform Is Without Legal and Moral Justification
New York Times – Wall Street Fees Wipe Out $2.5 Billion in New York City Pension Gains
Big box tax dodgers? Municipalities want to curb “dark store” property tax challenges
Wisconsin Supreme Court rules Milwaukee can’t require workers to live in city
Bloomberg – Venture Capital Is Worst-Performing Asset for Calpers
Pew – Despite Risks, State and Local Governments Turn to Pension Obligation Bonds
joemcelligott.com 