"LOOK FOR THE UNION LIABLE"

Gilt-Edged Pensions
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NYC socked away $20,000 per employee last year for pension benefits. Since 2000 its pension funding bill has risen ninefold, from $615 million to $5.6 billion in 2008.

Despite its huge contributions, New York City's five pension plans had only 74% of what actuaries said a year ago they need to pay future benefits. The recent financial meltdown lopped another 30% off the funds' value. If markets fail to roar back, taxpayers will have to save the day. After all, public pension benefits are enshrined in law. Don't you wish your 401(k) was?

The recent market meltdown erased $1 trillion from municipal pension funds. That has left the average public plan 35% underfunded. With benefits inexorably rising, the shortfall will balloon to 41% by 2013 if stocks and bonds stay at current levels, representing an unfunded liability of roughly $1.7 trillion.

That's a lot less than Social Security's $11 trillion unfunded liability. But the feds have lots of wiggle room to lessen their burden by, say, raising the age at which you become eligible to draw benefits. Most public employees' benefits, by contrast, are set in stone.

Cops and firemen initially were granted early retirement because their work was physically demanding and they tended to die young. These days they live as long as everyone else, but early retirement lives on for an ever expanding pool of public workers. So do liberal disability rules.

The medical reality, says the American Heart Association, is that a fireman gets heart disease from diet, lack of exercise or genes, not from dashing into burning buildings.

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THOUSAND POINTS OF RIGHT

Fire Unions had 8 long years to take advantage of their cozy relationship with Bloomy and Protect Firefighters' Futures, but they refused to listen to Former Active Firefighters, who knew what was really necessary for the future of Active Members and their families... COLA ENHANCEMENT ! Period ! jg