On PA pensions, plenty of ideas but none catching fire with lawmakers
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — There is little disagreement that Pennsylvania’s $47 billion-and-growing public pension debt represents a serious threat to the financial future of the...
View ArticleNJ prosecutor disobeys law; repo cop gets disability pay
PROSECUTOR AND THE BEAR: Mercer County prosecutor Joseph Bocchini Jr., left, and Joe Derrico, the “disabled” Hamilton cop turned roughhousing repo man on reality TV. NJ prosecutor disobeys law; TV...
View ArticleFor PA municipalities, it’s about seeking change, not dollars
By Melissa Daniels | PA Independent HARRISBURG — Across Pennsylvania, times are tough for local governments. About 41 percent of the state’s population live in a municipality facing some kind fiscal...
View ArticleNJ assembly bill aims to end double dips by retired school chiefs
END IT:Assemblyman Ralph Caputo, D-Essex, Is pushing a bill to stop retired school administrators from double-dipping by collecting both pensions and salaries from post-retirement school jobs. By...
View ArticlePA Week in Review: Budget-making in a broke city
By PA Independent HARRISBURG — In a capital city teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, and the first city in the nation to be charged by the federal Securities and Exchange Commission with misleading...
View ArticlePolice union says Dem proposal on collective bargaining is retaliation
By M.D. Kittle | Wisconsin Reporter MADISON – “Sour grapes.” That’s how Jim Palmer, executive director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association sums up a proposal that would bring cops and...
View ArticleUnions say no changes needed as $47 billion unfunded liability grows
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – For the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the big picture is also the bottom line. The nuts and bolts of pension reform are a complicated mix, which...
View ArticleFuture credit-rating downgrades among unseen costs of PA pension crisis
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — When looking at Pennsylvania’s pension crisis, some of the problems are obvious — like $47 billion that is owed to current workers and retirees. Other costs...
View ArticlePension reforms ready to move, even as state plans underfund
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – It’s the last of Gov. Tom Corbett’s three major policy initiatives to leave the starting blocks, but reforms to the state’s public pension systems will...
View ArticlePA senators aim to put all new state workers in 401(k) plan
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – A pared version of a Republican-backed public pension overhaul would move most newly hired state workers and public school employees into a defined...
View ArticleIn Pennsylvania, Corbett’s window for major policy win is closing
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – He might see it as the end of the first quarter, but time is quickly running out – if it hasn’t already – on Gov. Tom Corbett. Last weekend’s collapse of...
View ArticlePA Week in Review: Budget season postmortems highlight a tough week gov.
By PA Independent Staff HARRISBURG — The fallout from the state budget continues this week, as lawmakers take heat for failing to deliver several major policy objectives. And Gov. Tom Corbett has...
View ArticleSanta Fe cries foul after Moody’s considers credit downgrade for pension debt
IS IT REALLY THAT BAD?: The Moody’s ratings service has serious questions about four New Mexico communities. By Rob Nikolewski │ New Mexico Watchdog SANTA FE – One of Wall Street’s highly-regarded bond...
View ArticleVRS won’t talk, will respond to FOIA requests over Star Scientific
NO: The Virginia Retirement System has denied Watchdog.org an interview with Director Robert Shultze over investments in Star Scientific. By Kathryn Watson | Watchdog.org, Virginia Bureau ALEXANDRIA —...
View ArticleNine sputtering cities may follow rusted, busted Detroit
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Detroit might have captured national headlines by declaring bankruptcy, but it is not the first — and probably not the last — city to face financial...
View ArticleDetroit bailout would be bad news for creditors and taxpayers, economist says
BAILOUT DEBATE: The shuttered Metropolitan Building in Detroit is a symbol of the city’s past glory. Now a debate over the city’s bankrupt status includes arguments over a federal bailout. By Rob...
View ArticleGov. Chrisitie’s fraud squad should start with Guadagno case
By Mark Lagerkvist │ New Jersey Watchdog New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s new pension fraud squad won’t need to look far to find their first case. They could start by examining a $245,000 pension abuse...
View ArticlePA Week in Review: Corbett fighting through more hard times
By PA Independent Staff HARRISBURG — With the Legislature gone for the summer and no major campaigns in the state this year, Gov. Tom Corbett is at the center of the show in Harrisburg — whether he...
View ArticlePhilly’s school funding crisis driven by pensions, and it’s only going to get...
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — As the Philadelphia School District scrambles to come up with enough cash to open for students in September, a new report suggests the city’s school funding...
View ArticleTop senator: Axe pensions for private lobbyists
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — A small group of private-sector employees, including a few lobbyists, are eligible for taxpayer-funded pensions in Pennsylvania. Thanks to a decades-old...
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