Archives: Pension Reform / Articles
Archives: Pension Reform / Articles (page 3)
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Chicago Pension Obligation Bonds, a Strategy or Gamble?
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration is exploring the possibility of issuing billions of dollars of pension obligation bonds and investing the proceeds in order to reduce the city’s $28…
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Converting from Defined Benefit to Defined Contribution: The “Free” Money Pays Down Unfunded Liabilities and Pays Dividends to Taxpayers
Implementing a DC system delivers immediate payroll savings for the new plan’s participants. Using these savings to shore up the unfunded liabilities from the preexisting DB plans will ensure that past promises made are kept. At the same time, the new DC plan participants rest assured that each and every paycheck, funds are being deposited into an account belonging to them. Taxpayers win as the escalation in retirement overhead costs level off and eventually realize the full benefit of the savings.
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Governor Walker’s State of the State: “Getting positive things done for the people of Wisconsin”
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker delivered his 8th State of the State address in Madison, highlighting his “ambitious agenda” for the 2018 legislative session. Major areas of focus include education,…
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Trouble in Paradise: Hawaii Governor Ige Acknowledges Livability Concerns
The governor took note of several pressing concerns—energy, affordable housing, education, and income growth. However, many of his solutions threaten to aggravate the underlying problems.
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Illinois State of the State: “We cannot tax and borrow our way into prosperity”
Governor Bruce Rauner focused largely on the financial stress plaguing Illinois during his 2018 State of the State Address and Budget Address. The Land of Lincoln is one…
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New Jersey Inauguration: Governor Murphy Claims the Moral High Ground in Bid to Expand Government
Governor Murphy failed to recognize that those on the other side of the aisle may share the same ultimate policy outcome goals—justice, fairness, and growth—albeit with far different policy preferences. This threatens to block pragmatic bipartisan progress on numerous pressing issues.
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Governor Malloy Redefines “Fair”
In his final state of the state address, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy sidestepped the majority of the fiscal and economic issues plaguing the state in favor of paying lip service…
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The Williams Report
Budget National: S&P finds tariffs could hurt state, city budgets Alabama: The Alabama Senate delivers a general fund budget to the governor’s office. Alaska: To avert shutdown…
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Converting Pension Plans from Defined Benefit (DB) to Defined Contribution (DC): The Myths and the Messaging Part 3
The information monopoly possessed by Defined Benefit (DB) plan actuaries creates an enormous information imbalance in the discussion over how to transition from a DB to a Defined Contribution (DC)…
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Colorado State of the State: Hickenlooper’s Pursuit of Taxes
The governor is right that “by almost any measure, we’ve become one of the best places for business in America.” But expanding crony capitalism and increasing the tax burden make maintaining this coveted status more difficult. Following five consecutive years in the top 10 for economic outlook in Rich States, Poor States, Colorado dropped to 16th in 2013 and has failed to fully recover. A sharpened focus on regulatory reform and pension reform are required to guarantee continued success in the Centennial State.
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The Williams Report
Budget Alabama: The Alabama Senate passed a $2 billion dollar general fund budget. The increase is due primarily to $51 million dollars of additional appropriations to the Department of…
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California State of the State: A High Speed Train of Taxes and Spending
California Governor Jerry Brown boldly championed an unabashedly liberal agenda throughout his 16th—and final—State of the State address. The governor declared, “California is prospering,” a stark turnaround from the economic…
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The Williams Report
Budget Alaska: Gov. Bill Walker aims to reduce state spending by 1.7 percent, eliminating over 200 positions. Arizona: Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey released his…
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Michigan State of the State: A Comeback Story
Fortune is changing in the state of Michigan following decades of extreme economic adversity, from the rapid downturn in the auto industry to the downward population spiral in Detroit. Governor…
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Kentucky State of the State: Governor Bevin Commits to Tax and Pension Reform
Kentucky had an eventful legislative session last year after the state house switched party control for the first time since 1921, resulting in a Republican trifecta. During…
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Converting Pension Plans from Defined Benefit to Defined Contribution: The Myths and the Messaging Part 2
In part one, I discussed how policymakers can successfully message the issue of transition costs by pointing out some of the moral dilemmas created by defined benefit…
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The Williams Report
Budget National: States in For Fiscal Crises Without Reining in of Irresponsible Spending. California: Despite Warnings of Recession, Gov. Brown’s Budget Proposal Massively Hikes…
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Converting Pension Plans from Defined Benefit to Defined Contribution: The Myths and the Messaging Part 1
Welcome to part one in a series on how to successfully explain the conversion of public pension plans from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) to legislators and the…
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Williams Report: Holiday Recap
Budget Connecticut: Official projects Connecticut budget deficit at $224 million Kentucky: Governor Matt Bevin is ordering most state agencies to cut their budgets by 1.3% to cover budget gap.
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Pensions, Incentives and Mismanagement
The most recent edition of Unaccountable, Unaffordable, the ALEC Center for State Fiscal Reform uncovered a disturbing trend in pension management. States that are…