NCPERS News Clips

October 22, 2013

News Clips for October 22nd, 2013

National News

• NCPERS Blog Post
  Twitter 101
• ALEC promotes changes in pensions as part of 2014 legislative focus
  For the last decade, one of the key groups influencing legislative initiatives in Missouri, and many other states with a strong conservative presence, has been the American Legislative Exchange Council, more commonly known as ALEC.
• How to Pay Millions and Lag Behind the Market
  Today’s low-interest-rate environment has made the hunt for investment income tougher than ever. Many overseers of public pension funds, desperate to bolster returns and meet ballooning retiree obligations, have turned from traditional investments like stocks and bonds to hedge funds and private equity.
• Private Equity's Baby Boom Dilemma
  Pension fund investment in private equity is likely to drop as the baby boom retires. Some in the industry are looking to retail investors to make up for the expected short fall, but sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors from emerging markets are a more logical source of new money.

State News

• Union report blasts Treasurer Raimondo's pension overhaul; investment strategy
  The analyst hired by Rhode Island’s largest public employees’ union released a scathing report Thursday that questions the 2011 overhaul of the state’s pension system and accuses Treasurer Gina Raimondo of having a cozy relationship with out-of-state hedge fund managers.
• 5 Calif. mayors introduce pension reform proposal
  Five California mayors have submitted a proposed ballot initiative that they say could fix the skyrocketing cost of public employees' retirement plans.
• Detroit Judge Questions Pension Claims by Critics of Bankruptcy
  A federal judge questioned whether pension rights for Detroit’s municipal workers can be guaranteed by Michigan’s constitution, as claimed by current and retired employees seeking to have the city’s $18 billion bankruptcy case thrown out.
• Pew Center analyst describes city's pension crisis
  (Florida) The Pew Center has volunteered to help the city of Jacksonville resolve its pension crisis.
• Pension deal remains elusive
  (Illinois) Politics still has upper hand as conference committee works out plan
• Drop plan to privatize public workers' annuities, panel urges
  (Indiana) A legislative pension oversight committee has urged the state pension system to reverse course on plans to privatize annuity savings accounts.
• Report: Iowa's state debt ranks 2nd-best nationally; Nebraska is No. 1
  Barron’s financial weekly says Iowa stacks up better than 48 other states in the management of it tax-supported debt and unfunded public employee pensions.

Canadian News

• It's Only Fair
  In many ways the Canadian Union of Public Employees is a much different union than it was 50 years ago, as evident from the photos from our founding convention. The delegates who gathered in Winnipeg to form CUPE were mostly middle aged, mostly male, and overwhelmingly white.
• Pension shift puts decades of progress at risk
  We find ourselves in the midst of a timely pension reform debate: Some advocate for Canada Pension Plan enhancements; federal and provincial governments are moving toward enabling Pooled Registered Pension Plans (PRPPs) for employees who are not members of RPPs; and a number of provinces are introducing significant reforms to their public-sector plans. Missing from this debate is a full understanding of the Canadian pension system and, in particular, the value and importance of the defined benefit model within that system.
• New analysis confirms that defined benefit pensions provide significant benefits to Canadian economy
  Canadian retirees with defined benefit (DB) pensions are far less likely than other retirees to collect the government's Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), shows a study on the economic impact of DB pension plans.

Opinion

• California’s pension ‘crisis’ hype whipped up by billionaires with agenda: Guest commentary
  By starting the political process of placing a measure on the November 2014 statewide ballot, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed has rekindled a debate over breaking the retirement promises made to public employees — a debate that had rightly begun to die down in California.
• Statewide retirement savings plan is worth a look, despite the finance industry's opposition
  Democrats, AARP, labor groups and some small businesses want to explore a rather novel idea -- a statewide retirement saving plan for Oregon workers, about half of whom lack such accounts.