NCPERS News Clips

8/17/2010

News Clips for August 17th, 2010

• Longevity Concerns High Among Retirement Savers
  Half of employees (52%) believe they are behind in their retirement savings and a nearly equal number of workers (53%) are very concerned about outliving their retirement money, according to MetLife's 8th Annual Employee Benefits Trends Study.
• Arbitrator backs Aurora fire department union on a new pension plan
  An arbitrator has sided with Aurora's fire department union on a new contract proposal regarding how the city pays pensions to firefighters.
• Pension check may not be in the mail
  Illinois public employees who think the state constitution guarantees that they'll get all their pension benefits may have another think coming.
• States test whether public pension benefits given can be taken away
  State legislators are beginning to challenge one of the ironclad tenets of public pension policy: that states cannot legally reduce pension benefits for current and future retirees.
• Wayne County retirees cheer as pensions stay intact
  Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano says sinking tax revenues and a $266-million deficit mean the county can't afford to keep giving its retirees a 13th pension check each year.
• 'Overpaid' Pensions Being Seized
  Mr. Yore, 73 years old, received a letter earlier this year saying the pension he had been receiving in retirement was too large. The pension would be cut by two-thirds, to $967 a month, the letter said--and he had to repay $100,000.
• Majority of Firms Expect to Lose Grandfathered Status under Health Reform
  A new survey by Hewitt Associates finds almost all U.S. companies expect they will not preserve much of their existing group health plans under the grandfather provision of the new health reform law.