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Pension 'Smoothing' Option Flops in New York

"A recent survey by the [New York state] Association of School Business Officials found that less than 10 percent of respondents planned to use the option, which allows for slightly lower payments in the short term but could cost more in the long run.... 'The reasons for not participating range from "postponing the inevitable" and "shifts burden onto the backs of future taxpayers" to "not a very fiscally sound way to operate" and "district does not want to push current costs onto future years,"' said Michael Borges, the association's executive director[.]"

Medicare for All Is a Smart Decision for Business World

Excerpt: The universal health care movement seeks a practical way to solve the health care needs of all Americans. Because the business of America is business, and with apologies to the Letterman staff, here are the top five reasons the business community should care about expanding the federal Medicare program for seniors and those who are disabled to provide Medicare for All[.]

Upstate Teamsters (Local 294) Gets Reprieve from Pension Cuts

"Earlier in April, the agency sent back the Upstate Teamster's blueprint to regain solvency. The agency offered several suggestions, including an updating of the fund's actuarial mortality tables. Federal officials also wanted the fund operators to make a more optimistic assumption about their annual rate of return, which was pegged at 6.75 percent for the next decade."

Beware of Calls by CEOs for Social Security Cutbacks

"While America's CEOs have been fretting about the fiscal cliff, millions of American workers face a financial disaster that gets much less media attention. There's a half-trillion-dollar deficit in the nation's worker retirement benefits. The Great Recession, which decimated retirement assets, played a big role in building this lesser-known cliff. They siphoned pension assets for profit-boosting purposes. When the pension deficits started to balloon, many corporations responded by slashing benefit programs.... And the same CEOs who have contributed to rampant retirement insecurity are now calling for cuts to these benefits."

55/25 Bill Would Allow New York State/Local Workers to Retire at Age 55 After 25 Years of Service

Excerpt: Instead of the 55/25 option, public employees could receive an additional month of pension credits for each year of employment. They would have to choose one or the other, however, and the window for the early retirements would be closed at the end of September.'

Health Insurers Seeking Major Rate Increases in New York for 2023

"Health insurers serving individuals and companies in the state are requesting increases as high as 30 percent in some cases, although the weighted average is 18.7 percent for individuals and 16.5 percent for the so-called small group employer market that includes companies under 100 people."

Public Pension Politics Must Change

"Notwithstanding that nearly all opinion surveys indicate overwhelming support for reductions in public employee retiree benefits, pensions in New York are guaranteed in the state constitution. A pension is a contract between government and an employee that becomes effective on the first day of employment. Thereafter that contract cannot be diminished or impaired. That is why so-called pension reform in New York always is geared to new hires. New pension tiers such as those enacted in 2009 and 2011 may save billions of dollars as their proponents claim, but those savings will not be realized for decades."