Municipal pension bills drop $116M across N.J.
Municipal pension bills across New Jersey are going down by $116 million this year thanks to an expected reduction in local government payrolls and downward pressure on wage growth.
Gov. Chris Christie made the announcement today, hailing it as further evidence that his 2011 pension overhaul is delivering relief to taxpayers.
“Our willingness to make the tough choices and achieve progress on meaningful reforms in a bipartisan way is continuing to deliver millions in long-term, sustainable property tax relief for our middle-class families,” Christie said in a statement. (Renshaw, The Star-Ledger)
https://www.nj.com/politics/
Those …”historic, bipartisan pension reforms signed into law in June 2011″ … are but a VERY minor down-payment on REAL MATERIAL needed financial reforms at least 10 times as great in savings. Between the ALREADY ACCRUED and UNDERFUNDED pension and retiree healthcare benefit promises for PAST service, NJ is in the hole RIGHT NOW to the tune of $150 Billion (that’s Billion). That’s money we are supposed to have in hand TODAY (so it can go grow to pay out much larger benefit promises in the future). Saving a few hundred Million is tenth-ths of pennies for each dollar of savings needed.
The fist step is CLEARLY to STOP digging the hole deeper (every day) by allowing continued accrual for FUTURE service based on pensions formulas and benefit promises that are magnitudes too generous (multiples greater than what comparable Private Sector workers get from their employers) and unnecessary to attract and retain a qualified workforce. We must immediately hard freeze the current defined Benefit Plans granted all State and Local Public Sector workers in NJ … INCLUDING police and judges…. ZERO future growth.
They should be replaced with Defined Contribution (401K-style) Plans with a taxpayer match of 2-4% of pay which is typical of what Private Sector employers grant their employees. With “cash pay” in the Public Sector no less than that of comparable Private Sector jobs (per the US Gov’t BLS), there is NO JUSTIFICATION for providing greater pensions and better benefits …. on the Taxpayers’ dime.
The financial rape of the Taxpayers by Public Sector Unions & workers must end and the self-serving, vote-selling, contribution-soliciting politicians who allowed it to happen should be voted out of office, civilly held accountable, and criminally charged (bribery ? conspiracy?) if at all possible.
ok start with the police and fire dept’s first. they bin over paid for years in the village. what a joke.you have police after 6 years making big money. and for what. this is not ny city. and to top it all they are so cheep it make me sick. and very lazy to. unless it’s over time. then you see the real scam. work o t and sleep time at reg pay time. hummm. I see it from my window on the av.