Reports and Studies continued

Displaying Matches 7 thru 21 of 111 Found.  BACK NEXT

Cypen & Cypen Newsletter: Municipal Bankruptcy
More than fifteen years have passed since the 1994 bankruptcy filing by Orange County, California, so municipality bankruptcy has not been at the fore. However, with the recent bankruptcy of Vallejo, California (see C&C Newsletters for September 11, 2008, Item 13; March 19, 2009, Item 1; July 9, 2009, Item 5 and September 10, 2009, Item 8), the issue has reemerged. Besides, in contract negotiations, many municipalities are playing the “B” card, either expressly or by implication. . . . more

Social Security and the Age of Retirement
The last century has seen large increases in life expectancy for both men and women. A man born in 1899 could expect to live 51.0 years, but a man born fifty years later could expect to live to age 72.9. Similarly, women born in 1899 could expect to live 57.8 years while those born a century later could expect to live to age 84.8. . . . more

EBRI Notes: Examination of Elderly Income, Short-term Impact of COBRA
In 2008, Social Security was the largest source of income for those currently age 65 and older, accounting for 39.8 percent of their income on average. Pension and annuities income was 19.7 percent, income from assets 13.0 percent, and income from earnings was 25.6 percent. Nearly all individuals (89.2 percent ) age 65 and over were receiving income from Social Security in 2008, while 55.3 percent received income from assets, 35.4 percent received income from pensions and annuities, and 20.4 percent received income from earnings. . . . more

Analysis of Joshua Rauh’s Paper “Are State Public Pensions Sustainable?”
In his paper “Are State Public Pensions Sustainable?,” Northwestern University Assistant Professor Joshua D. Rauh concludes that “many state systems will run out of money in 10‐20 years if some attempt is not made to improve the funding of liabilities that have already accrued.” We disagree with his analysis for the following reasons: . . . more

Are State Public Pensions Sustainable? Why the Federal Government Should Worry About State Pension Liabilities
This paper analyzes the flow of state pension benefit payments relative to asset levels and contributions. Assuming future state contributions fund the full present value of new benefits, many state systems will run out of money in 10-20 years if some attempt is not made to improve the funding of liabilities that have already been accrued. The expected shortfalls raise the possibility that the federal government will be faced with a decision as to whether to bail out states driven to insolvency by their pension programs. . . . more

Does Staying Healthy Reduce Your Lifetime Health Care Costs?
Medical and long-term care costs represent a substantial uninsured risk for most retired households. A recent brief from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College reported new findings on average lifetime health care costs at selected ages and on the distribution of those costs. This second brief explores the relationship between health care costs and health status. That is, it considers whether current good health is a predictor of low health care costs over one’s remaining lifetime. If so, healthy households could set aside less for health care expenditures than the unhealthy, and households that stay healthy could release for general consumption money that they had previously set aside for health care costs. . . . more

Going For Broke: Reforming California’s Public Employee Pension Systems
CalPERS, CalSTRS, and UCRS1 together administer the pensions of approximately 2.6 million Californians. Between June 2008 and June 2009, these three public pension funds lost a combined $109.7 billion in portfolio value (see Table 1). The ability of these three funds to meet their future obligations has significant implications for the fiscal health of the state and public employers, the effective underwriters of many public pensions. . . . more

The Benefits of State and Local Government Employees
State and local workers are, on average, about four years older than private-sector workers and half have a four-year college-degree or more, compared to less than 30 percent in the private sector. Once these differences in age and education are factored in, state and local public workers earn less, not more, than their private-sector counterparts. But what about benefits? . . . more

The Wage Penalty for State and Local Government Employees
When state and local government employees are compared to private-sector workers with similar characteristics, state and local workers actually earn 4 percent less, on average, than their private-sector counterparts. This paper examines the wage penalty for working in the state-and-local sector. . . . more

Out of Balance? Comparing Public and Private Sector Compensation Over 20 Years
Employees of state & local government earn an average of 11% and 12% less, respectively, than comparable private sector employees. An analysis spanning two decades shows the pay gap between public and private sector employees has widened in recent years. . . . more

Profits on Citigroup Stock: Can They Be the Basis for Financing Stimulus?
Last month the government announced plans to sell the stock it obtained in November of 2008 as part of its bailout package of Citigroup. The media jumped on the fact that, at the stock’s current market value, the government stands to earn an $8 billion profit on this stock. This profit was widely touted as evidence of the success of the bailout. In reality, the government’s profit on Citigroup stock was primarily the result of its own willingness to back up Citigroup. The increase in Citigroup’s stock price was largely driven by investors’ realization that the government would not let Citigroup fail. . . . more

The Funding Of State and Local Pensions: 2009-2013
The financial crisis reduced the value of equities in state and local defined benefit pensions and hurt the funding status of these plans. The impact will become evident only over time, however, because actuaries in the public sector tend to smooth both gains and losses, typically over a five–year period. The first year for which the crisis will have a meaningful impact on reported funding status is fiscal 2009, since in most cases the fiscal 2008 books were closed before the market collapsed. After 2009, the funding picture will continue to deteriorate to the extent that years of low equity values replace earlier years of high values. The current and future funding status of state and local pensions is crucially important, as state and local governments are facing a perfect storm: the decline in funding has occurred just as the recession has cut into state and local tax revenues and increased the demand for government services. Finding additional funds to make up for market losses will be extremely difficult. . . . more

Health-Insurance Coverage Rates for US Workers, 1979-2008
We analyze annual data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) on health-insurance coverage rates for workers age 18 to 64 over the period 1979 to 2008. We first review key changes to CPS methodology over the period and then propose and implement adjustments that put historical coverage estimates on a basis that is broadly consistent with current estimates. . . . more

NASRA Issue Brief: Public Pension Plan Investment Return Assumptions
The issue of the investment return assumption used by public pension plans has been the focus recently of increasing attention. This brief explains the role this assumption plays in pension finance, how it is developed, and compares this assumption with public funds’ actual experience. . . . more

NASRA, NCTR ISSUE STATEMENT ON PEW RETIREMENT REPORT
Pew Study Touts Responsible States’ Pension Funding, Finding 84% of Future Costs Have Been “Socked Away;” But, Coupling Pensions and Retiree Healthcare Financing is Confusing . . . more

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