Illinois pensioners are facing a haunting reality this Halloween: pension funds are suffering from a 50% under funding burden that is weighing heavily on local and state government budgets. Bond Buyer reports in just one-year public pension liabilities grew by over $17 billion between fiscal year 2015 to 2016.

Illinois published a report by the Public Pension Division of the Illinois Department of Insurance that provides a comprehensive analysis of the 671 public pension funds in the state. The results … Read More

Funding for local, state, and federal public pension plans are in a downward trend, creating billions of dollars in outstanding liabilities. Pensions & Investments recently released reported on the top 100 public pension plans, in which the findings are alarming. Even as contributions increase, the funding gap is also seeing year-over-year increases. As the executive vice president and the director of capital markets research at Callan Associates Inc., Jay V. Kloepfer said, “It’s not enough contributions. That’s it. There … Read More

A recent study published by the respected Chairman of J.P. Morgan’s Market and Investment Strategy, Michael Cembalest, evaluates the current pension-funding deficit across the U.S. State and local governments are trending towards inadequate funding for pensions obligations. However, this kick-the-can approach is running out of road and someone needs to pick up the tab. Pension fund forecasts are misguided by over realisticreturns that create a wide gap between assumption and reality leaving pensions and taxpayers to pay the burden of … Read More

Author and syndicated columnist Dr. Glenn Mollette recently opined on the state of the U.S. pension system where he accurately described the country’s mounting pension funding struggles. Without adequate pension fund returns, the instability of our pension system forces our nation’s retirees back into the workforce. Dr. Mollette described the aging workforce in entry-level positions to get a paycheck in order to make due. This sad reality for some seniors becomes commonplace when pension funds are not adequately funded. It … Read More

Pension plans are a guaranteed promise to retirees that dedicate to a career in public service. Many individuals and families depend on these pension plans as means for retirement. For theses thousands of individuals and families relying on the public service package, it is unsettling to find the majority of state pension plans are not adequately funded. In 2016, Kentucky funding ratio is at 30.9 percent with a total pension liability of $243.6 billion. The widening gap in pension … Read More

A hidden deficit exists in most state budgets. This large, and almost always, overlooked gap in our budget goes without much criticism from our local elected officials due to a lack of leadership in dealing with the bloating dilemma. The problem? Outstanding pension liabilities. Rather than fixing the problem, politicians prefer a “kick the can down the road” approach to dealing with the unfunded pension liabilities. It is past due that we forget this practice and begin to protect the … Read More