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Senate Rolls Out Pension Revamp, Draws Heat From Cops
February 17, 2011
The Senate rolled out its push to revamp city and state pension plans, drawing immediate pushback from the state’s largest law enforcement union.
New employees in both systems would be required to join 401(k)-style investment plans with the legislation clearly aimed at phasing-out traditional pension plans.
Base salary – no overtime or other compensation – would be used to determine an employee’s pension benefits, under both city and state plans, according to the two bills (SB 1128, 1130) filed late Tuesday by Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Margate, chairman of the Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee, which has been holding hearings on the pension overhaul.
The legislation is expected to be reviewed Friday during a workshop by Ring’s committee slated to span four hours.
Ring’s bill affecting the huge Florida Retirement System (FRS), would require still-to-be-determined contributions from the plan’s 655,000 government employees, mostly county school district members.
State analysts have said 5-percent employee contributions would save $1.3 billion, helping lawmakers patch a budget shortfall topping $3.6 billion. The level of funding also would come close to the $1.4 billion property-tax cut Gov. Rick Scott has promised over the next two years.
Scott has offered his own proposal to revamp the Florida Retirement System, including at least some of the provisions outlined by Ring. In another cost cutting measure, both Scott and Ring would bar employees hired after July 1 from joining the state’s lucrative Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP).
The House hasn’t unveiled legislation yet, although House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, and other leaders have called for overhauling public pensions to reduce the growing financial liability faced by the cash-strapped state and cities.
Matt Puckett, of the Florida Police Benevolent Association, which campaigned against Scott last fall, said a 5 percent contribution is “way too high for workers who haven’t seen any pay raise” since 2006.
Further, he said proposed changes to city police and fire pension funds are unnecessary. “These are local problems that can be fixed locally,” Puckett said.
The legislation eases requirements on municipalities that dollars accumulated under the insurance premium tax be used solely to cover enhanced pension benefits, a provision sought by the Florida League of Cities. Instead, the municipal pension bill (SB 1128) would allow cities to deploy this money to ease liabilities in city pension plans.
The legislation also would create a task force that could result in stricter standards for police and fire officers seeking disability payments as part of their pensions.
Kraig Conn, lobbyist for the Florida League of Cities, said the league “supports the direction” of Ring’s municipal pension bill. He predicted, though, there would be resistance from cities to the requirement that new hires go into 401(k) plans and not be covered by traditional pensions.
By John Kennedy
The News Service of Florida
Comments
12 Responses to “Senate Rolls Out Pension Revamp, Draws Heat From Cops”
we see this every day the tax breaks for the companies to set up business and in a perfect world hire local people. its only a matter of time the pensions will go to the wayside for in favor of the 401K. its the same in alabama. I feel for our young newly hired people. They will ask what was a pension.
Kathy…you need to lighten up on Old Sobber. He is certain that anyone to the left of Adolf Hitler is a liberal. May I suggest just ignoring him if you want to have reasonable debate and discourse. There are a number of people on this forum who are interested in debating the issues
I used to be a staunch conservative but all I see form the Right today is hatred and meanness. I truly do not want to be associated with them any longer.They are not interested in discussion. They are not interested in cooperation. The conservatives are bringing this great nation down with lies and deceit.
If we are going to succeed as a nation and a people, we need to talk to one another and listen to one another. Benjamin Franklin said “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately”. That’s what our conservative brethren have lost sight of in their rush to secure their own wealth.
Don’t believe the Conservative Con.
You got to love the Old Soldier, he has it down pat, if your possibly a liberal you lie, cheat and what ever. Only conservative republicans tell the truth. Apparently why Boehner felt we should spend $35,000,000,000 to build a new unneeded plane engine in his home state of Ohio. Calling some names and defaming them because they may have a different opinion isn’t cause for this behavior. I suppose it takes all kinds to make up this world. Military retirees are the most indoctrinated. No individual minds. Lets see how the old soldier feels when his “entitlements are taken away”.
REGARDING:
“Corporations do not have to pay sales tax when purchasing anything for their business.”
If something is purchased for resale, the sales tax is paid upon final sale.
Imagine it were not so. Imagine buying a fence. The fence company would pay sales tax to the steel mills, then the local fence company would pay sales tax on the fence materials the fence company (fabric, top rail, line posts, terminal posts, tie wires, tension cable, tension bars, J bolts, etcetera etcetera etcetera) sells them. Then the purchaser pays sales tax on the final product.
This is only assuming a three sale sequence, but just imagine how much you would have jacked up the final price if you tagged just five percent onto the cost at each step. Nearly 15.8 percent sales tax total.
Now assume 7.5 percent at each step yields over 24 percent sales tax cumulative (since you would be paying tax on the previous tax on the previous tax…..).
It would be interesting but most would consider it unreasonable.
David for reasonable taxation–if at all
REGARDING:
“Make the corporations pay the same amount of tax as the rest of us. Problem solved. No more free ride for the corporations.”
Truth be told, no matter how much income tax corporations “pay,” the fact is that they simply collect it from their customers. That makes it a hidden tax, people don’t realize they are paying. They think the corporation is paying. Since they don’t think they are paying, they figure it’s okay to spend it, not realizing it’s still coming out of their own pockets.
David for truth in taxation
I have a simple plan. After it’s all said and done I pay about 12% of my annual income in federal income taxes.
When I purchase something I pay 7.5%
Corporations do not have to pay sales tax when purchasing anything for their business.
Many corporations not only do not pay federal income taxes, but they actual get federal and state “rebates”.
Finally, the simple plan. Make the corporations pay the same amount of tax as the rest of us. Problem solved. No more free ride for the corporations.
No more corporate welfare. I’m sick of it.
They make you pay when you earn it, pay when you spend it, they make you save some of it and they make you pay when you die and leave it and then your inheritors will also have to pay, and it just goes on and on and on.
How do they sleep at night?
REGARDING:
“Pam Bondi needs to file a lawsuit against the state for forcing employees to pay into a 401k plan it is the same as forcing people to pay into the health care plan ”
Good or bad, it isn’t the same. One is a limitation on the power of the Federal Government, the other is a limitation on the power of the State Government. It usually doesn’t seem that way, but in intrastate affairs, the state government is far more powerful than the Federal Government.
So the real matter to address, is one of whether or not something is a good idea and of convincing legislators of whatever you decide.
David knowing the state Senate isn’t the US Senate
remember the Redford and Newman film in which they were outlaws. There’s about to be a fight and Paul Newman says something about establishing the rules, the other guy starts to say there ain’t no rules…, when Newman hits him and ends the fight
Not that people are necessarily cheating when they see things differently and present it in a viewpoint with which you disagree. But, even if they did, Paul Newman would understand.
David remembering Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
(finally even remembering the name)
Liberals are so misinformed, and willfully ignorant. They distort, lie, and if they can’t win, they cheat.
Okay RIck Scott, a masters or bachelor prepared employee for the State earning $35,000 is suppose to pay $9,992 toward their health insurance per year plus put another 5% of their already small salary into retirement. Thats about $10,167, then tax of about $2695 is taken out. Equaling some $12862 per year. That leaves about $517 a week to live on. You went to college for 4 to 6 years, now you will really pay for it. Too bad Florida State employees already rank in the lowest paid of all employees now you will rank last in the nation. What a goal.
You elected him now you live with him. No one will be safe.
Pam Bondi needs to file a lawsuit against the state for forcing employees to pay into a 401k plan it is the same as forcing people to pay into the health care plan Obama has put into place 401k should be employees choice not the states. And they keep saying make things more like the private sector well thats fine match private sector pay and you want have to work 30 years before you make a decent living working a state or county job…