Michigan Senate panel votes to close school pensions to new members
Source: Lansing State Journal, and Detroit Free Press
LANSING The Republican-controlled Senate Appropriations Committee voted 9-8 Wednesday to close the school retirement system to new members, despite expert testimony from the administration of Gov. Rick Snyder and others that the move will cost billions.
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The committee, over the objections of school employees, took up the legislation during the lame duck session to force new hires into a 401(k) style pension plan, instead of the blended pension and 401(k) system they can use now, known as the hybrid system.
Democrats denounced the legislation, noting that while MPSERS has an unfunded actuarial liability pegged at about $26.7 billion, the hybrid system has no unfunded liability.
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The move is backed by the Michigan Freedom Fund, which is bankrolled in part by the influential Republican DeVos family of western Michigan, and Amway President Doug DeVos spoke of the need to tackle public pension issues at the West Michigan Policy Forum in September. Americans For Prosperity, a conservative group funded in part by the Koch brothers, also pushed for the legislation.
Read more: http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/11/30/senate-tackle-school-employee-pensions-today/94656622/
Thanks to DUer TexasTowelie for posting this in the Michigan forum. I thought the interest might be national because of the backing of the family of Betsy DeVos, Trump's pick for Education Secretary. She will be no friend to public education (or educators).
= new reply since forum marked as read
