Pension news in Calif. goes from bad to worse
By Dale Kasler, Sacramento Bee
California’s big public pension funds are already short tens of billions of dollars. An organization of accountants is about to make the picture look even worse.
A proposed change to pension accounting standards could give more ammunition to conservatives seeking to reduce pension benefits for public sector workers. Gov. Jerry Brown is expected to issue a wide-ranging proposal to overhaul pensions sometime soon.
As Brown and the Legislature prepare to wrestle over pension costs, an organization that sets the industry standards for how government finances are reported, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, is proposing new rules for calculating pension fund liabilities – the amount of money such funds owe retirees.
The proposal wouldn’t have much effect on CalPERS, the nation’s largest public pension fund. But it would have an enormous impact on the second largest public fund, CalSTRS.
The California State Teachers’ Retirement System already faces a funding gap of $56 billion – the difference between the money it expects to have on hand over the next 30 years and what it will need to pay out in benefits during the same period.
If only the pensions were the whole problem –
The question needs to be gov. employees RETIREMENT benefits – Pensions are only about half the problem there are also other contract benefits that Gov employees get and FEW others.
For example the Report from the El Dorado County auditor shows a $264 million dollar unfunded “Pension” liability as of June 2010 but IN ADDITION there are other unfunded commitments that Make El Dorado counties total unfunded ’employee benefit’ liabilities (mostly retirement related) closer $500 million dollars.
that’s ruffly $2700 owed by each and every one of the residents – Including the babies – Everyone.
That doesn’t include the GASB reporting requirement changes discussed in this article – so its really well over half a billion dollars just for El Dorado county alone.
Email the auditor, Joe Harn, he is very responsive – he’ll send you the 2 page extract from his report.
do the math – you won’t even need a calculator.
FYI – many of the changes that are proposed under GASB have been in effect under FASB – the accounting rules that businesses have to follow – for the past TWENTY FIVE YEARS –
From my point of view … that means that for 25 yrs the accountants on GASB and pension investment industrie have allowed the government to LIE to citizens about the true costs, at least lie from the perspective of the private sector requirements.
Once you see the truth you will probably want to move out of State – This issue is at the heart of all that is going wrong.
“All men are created equal” – except for the effect of the lies of the accounting standards which in effect make most men indentured servants to the government class.
There is a good reason to revolt –
Government bureaucrats and politicians have messed up so badly that this situation is not only unsustainable, but may also be actually unrepairable.
The few who remain relatively intact are the government employees whose pensions and benefits remain locked in per the ridiculous contracts that were agreed to by these foolish bureaucrats and politicians, although for only as long as enough taxpayers remain that can still be bled.