The Defined Benefit

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  • Corporate giveaways and the funding of public pensions
    public pensions

    One of the major news stories last week was Amazon’s announcement that they are abandoning their plans to locate part of HQ2 in New York City. Facing pressure from local politicians and concerned citizens over a variety of issues, including…

  • Did You Know That Presidents Receive a Pension?

    Yesterday, people across the United States celebrated Presidents’ Day. Many had the day off from work thanks to the federal holiday, which is officially Washington’s Birthday, not Presidents’ Day. Many others undoubtedly took advantage of the numerous sales offered for…

  • Pension Changes in Utah Hurt Public Safety
    Utah pension changes

    In the immediate aftermath of the Great Recession and facing pressure from anti-pension ideologues, a number of cities and states passed harmful changes to public pensions. Now those cities and states are beginning to face the consequences of these changes.…

  • The Funding Levels of Pension Plans Continue to Improve
    public pension plans

    Public pension plans continue to improve their funding levels. This is the big takeaway from the latest plan survey by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems (NCPERS). Each year NCPERS, a trade association representing more than 500 state…

  • The Reason Foundation is Still Attacking Pensions
    California rule protects pensions

    Many state legislatures have been meeting for a month now. We’re already seeing legislation that would impact public pensions in both positive and negative ways. One group that has been actively attacking pensions is the Reason Foundation. Employees of the…

  • Wyoming Retirees Need a Cost of Living Adjustment
    Wyoming-NPPC-Pensions

    Retired public employees in Wyoming have not received a cost of living adjustment (COLA) in over a decade. COLAs are necessary to adjust for inflation. The price of almost everything, including food, medicine, and rent, tends to increase over time.…

  • Attacks on Pensions Are Still Happening Again and Again
    Attacks on pensions

    Tomorrow is Groundhog Day. This is also the time of the year when many state legislatures are beginning their sessions and legislators are introducing bills – some of which attack pensions. To commemorate these two occasions, we are re-posting this…

  • Public Pensions Greatly Benefit Rural Areas
    public pensions

    We’ve been talking a lot this month about the economic benefits of public pensions at both the state and national levels. Through the investment activities of the pension fund and the spending of pension benefits by retirees, public pension plans…

  • Latinos and Retirement Insecurity: a Closer Look
    retirement insecurity

    Last week we wrote about the many ways race and ethnicity affect retirement savings. Today, we want to focus more closely on the challenges many Latinos face in saving for retirement. Despite being the fastest-growing demographic group in the United…

  • Race Impacts Earnings, Wealth, and Retirement Security
    retirement security

    It should come as little surprise that the amount a worker earns during their career has a direct impact on the amount they can save for retirement. The higher the earnings, the greater the retirement savings. The same is true…

  • How Public Pensions Benefit State Economies
    public pensions

    Last week we wrote about the new Pensionomics report from the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS). The report examines how public pensions benefit the national economy by supporting local jobs and stimulating economic activity. The Pensionomics report also contains…

  • Public Pensions Continue to Support Local Economies
    public pensions

    The National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) released the most recent update of their Pensionomics report this month. Released every two years, Pensionomics assesses the impact that public pensions have on local, state, and national economies. This year’s report finds…