Murphy Addressing New Jersey

Chris Christie devoted quite a bit of time to the state of the state pension in his state of the state addresses. Phil Murphy is giving his first one today at 2 pm and you can watch it here with my comments below:
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Bailout Bill: Pretext and Truth

As reported, the Rehabilitation of Multiemployers Act would establish the Pension Rehabilitation Administration (PRA) within the Department of the Treasury authorized to issue bonds to finance loans to “critical and declining” status multiemployer pension plans, to plans that have suspended benefits, and to some recently insolvent plans currently receiving financial assistance from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp (PBGC). Here is the official summary but to see the real impetus you need to go to a few pages from the text:

Fossil-Fueled Front Group

That is how the Institute for Pension Fund Integrity (IPFI) has been labeled as they produce white papers supporting the positions of their backers including one that came out this week on The Impact of Political Decisions on Public Pensions which looks to drive home the point that “pension funds would lose millions of dollars if they divest from fossil fuels”, thus harming participants. They cite studies done in New York City, Colorado, and California but ignore a few things:

Butch Lewis Act Re-Introduced

According to an email blast from the Road Carriers Local 707 Welfare and Pension Funds:

Bramnick on Generosity of NJ Benefits

Jon Bramnick happens to be my representative in the New Jersey Assembly and he is concerned about the public pension crisis we have here:
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But he completely misses the point about the generosity of employee benefits as being the root cause of the crisis.

United Mine Workers Update (3)

Update 1: 4/29/17

Update 2: 5/8/18

On Thursday, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) “introduced the American Miners Act of 2019, legislation that would secure pensions and healthcare benefits for our nation’s retired coal miners – including 500 Virginians affected by the recent bankruptcy of a Colorado-based mining company” by, in part, transferring money “to the 1974 Pension Plan to prevent its insolvency.” Where will the money come from?

Miscellany: Pensions, Movies, and EA Meetings

Some tidbits starting with a clip from a movie (guess which in the comment section) that hearkens back to an age when pensions meant security.