By James E. Spiotto The U.S. Supreme Court and virtually all state courts have recognized what the Rhode Island Supreme Court recently reaffirmed: insurmountable, unaffordable government contractual obligations for public pensions must be capable of reasonable and...
Public Pensions
An Update on Comparisons of Key Economic and Debt Factors: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
By James E. Spiotto This is Part 2 in a 4-part article series on the Post-Fiscal Crisis State and the next fiscal crisis considerations. The information and charts come from a presentation given at the Government Finance Research Center's conference entitled "Ready or...
City Public Pensions Plans– Those That Go It Alone vs. Those that Share the Liability With Other Governments
Funding Ratios for City Government Multi-Employer Plans Don’t Get the Attention that Goes to Single Employer Plans Breakdown by Pension Plan Type While most government watchdogs focus heavily on single employer public pension plans accountable only to a single city, ...
Embracing Shared Risk and Chapter 9 to Create Sustainable Public Pensions
Unsustainable and Unaffordable Public Pensions Cannot be Solved by Raising Taxes or the Passage of Time, but There are Some Practical Solutions W. Gordon Hamlin, Jr.; Mary Pat Campbell; Andrew M. Silton; and James E. Spiotto To date, no American state or local...
City of Houston Pension Obligation Bonds – $1 Billion – MuniNet Featured Bond Issue
Featured Municipal Bond Issue, Week of December 18, 2017: The City of Houston Pension Obligation Bonds – $1 Billion This week’s featured bond comes from the State of Texas. The City of Houston is issuing $1 billion in pension obligation bonds the week of December 18,...
Overcoming Economic Downturns and Fiscal Distress Part V: Business Development and Balanced Budgets
In Part V of ‘Overcoming Economic Downturns and Fiscal Distress’, James Spiotto Discusses the Benefits of Economic Stimulus and Business Development, and a Case Study in Upside Chicago Part IV of this series focused on addressing legacy costs, most notably...
Overcoming Economic Downturns and Fiscal Distress Part IV: The Need to Successfully Address Public Pensions
In Part IV of ‘Overcoming Economic Downturns and Fiscal Distress’, James Spiotto Discusses the Need to Successfully Address Legacy Costs, So That Funding of Essential Services and Needed Infrastructure Improvement Become the Solution Part III of this series focused on...
Survey Says – Number One Issue for State and Local Governments: Hiring and Retaining Staff
Hiring Trend Continues, as Do Struggles With Turnover The Center for State and Local Government Excellence, an organization dedicated to research on state and local government employee compensation, health care, retirement, and other benefits, carried out their...
Brookings Institution’s 6th Annual Municipal Finance Conference | MuniNet Featured Conference
Conference Hosted by Brookings Institution, Others, Puts Spotlight on Municipal Finance in D.C. The Brookings Institution is going to be putting municipal finance front and center for two days, on Monday, July 17 and Tuesday, July 18 in Washington, D.C. The 6th annual...
Public Pensions: Contributions Up, Investment Earnings Down in 2016
Annual Census of State and Local Public Pensions Shows Discouraging Investment Returns, Declining Assets The U.S. Census Bureau has released its 2016 Annual Survey of Public Pensions, which provides a comprehensive look at the financial activity of the nation's state...