Tag: John Bury

Most New Jerseyans Are Fiscal Dullards

Mary Pat Campbell
Most New Jerseyans Are Fiscal Dullards

Excerpt:

That is what the Murphy administration has to believe for them to send out this piece of gripka:

….

treating $10.19 billion in Biden relief money as if it will never have to be repaid (one way or another).

Keep in mind when reading just this one excerpt below that $6.9 billion represents about six months worth of payments out of a pension system that is still accruing benefits at record levels and as of June 30, 2020 reported unfunded liabilities under GASB of $128 billion.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 2 July 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

Restoring Politician Pension Pork

Mary Pat Campbell
Restoring Politician Pension Pork

Excerpt:

Jobs as judges, prosecutors, and municipal business administrators are the crock of gold at the end of a politician’s rainbow here and with bailouts, unlimited debt, and an apathetic tax base ripe for plucking politicians have an opportunity to sweeten the pots. According to politicoNJ that is exactly what they are planning on doing with five bills (one already enacted).

A4313: transfers Administrative Law Judges from the Defined Contribution Retirement Program to the Public Employees’ Retirement System. The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) estimates that this bill will lead to annual State cost increases resulting from the transfer of Administrative Law Judges from the Defined Contribution Retirement Program to the Public Employees’ Retirement System. The first-year cost could approximate $2million.In subsequent fiscal years, the annual State cost will grow as a function of increases in judges’ salaries and other economic factors. The bill may also make Administrative Law Judges eligible for healthcare benefit sat retirement that are not available in the Defined Contribution Retirement Program.

….

S3197: Clarifies eligibility for deferred retirement for certain judges in JRS. PoliticoNJ guessed at who could benefit:

The bill appears to have been written with Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone in mind, as she otherwise would have to leave the prosecutor’s position when she reaches the mandatory judicial retirement age of 70 in 2024 in order to collect her judicial pension. It also could potentially apply to Judge William Daniel, whom Murphy nominated last week as the next Union County prosecutor.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 19 June 2021

Publication Site: burypensions

How Stupid are Credit Rating Agencies?

Mary Pat Campbell
How Stupid are Credit Rating Agencies?

Excerpt:

Yes, unfunded liabilities as of June 30, 2020 are “more than $60 billion”. Much more ($128 billion under GASB68 and and $94 billion using understated valuation liabilities). But, setting that aside , how is Sweeney planning on reducing that massive debt?

Simple: lower pension payments…..

Clearly, we need to do everything we can to cut the cost of our annual pension payments at both the state and local levels in order to continue to guarantee the retirement payments our retirees have earned and to reduce the unfunded liability that is such a burden to taxpayers.

That is why we have developed legislation to enable our state and local pension systems to add revenue-generating assets like water and sewage treatment systems, High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes, parking facilities and real estate to provide new, diversified sources of revenue for their investment portfolios.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 17 June 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ PFRS Asset Move

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ PFRS Asset Move

Graphic:

Excerpt:

The New Jersey Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS) was supposed to get their assets to invest three years ago but the process seems only to be starting now with an RFQ for Class Counsel that the PFRS board sent out yesterday.

Here is how much is involved.

From the latest Division of Investment report there is about $89 billion to split up.

From the latest actuarial reports for the system PFRS is allocated about one-third of the market value of assets:

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 15 June 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

What NJ Tells Creditors On Benefits

Mary Pat Campbell
What NJ Tells Creditors On Benefits

Graphic:

Excerpt:

According to the EMMA website New Jersey borrowed another $400 million last week for which they had to provide an Official Statement which included 20 pages on the situation with public pensions and benefits. Excerpts follow.

…..

The contribution of the Lottery Enterprise is valued as of June 30, 2020 at $12.569 billion, based on a 30-year straight line amortization. However, the first reevaluation of the value of the Lottery Enterprise required by LECA has not yet been performed. If the contribution of the Lottery Enterprise were not taken into consideration in calculating the funded ratio of the Pension Plans, the funded ratio of the Pension Plans as of June 30, 2020 would have been 37.6% instead of 49.8%. (page I-60)

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 3 May 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ Taxpayers To Be Byrned Again

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ Taxpayers To Be Byrned Again

Excerpt:

The state income tax eventually failed to stem the rise in the highest property taxes in the country since it was based on providing money to hundreds of de facto fiefdoms with no oversight. Ms. Egea goes on to speculate that Governor Murphy, with an even more pressing need for revenue, has another new tax in mind:

….

In 1976, New Jersey voters passed a constitutional amendment that dedicated the entire income tax to the Property Tax Relief Fund and lower property taxes in 1997 did help Brendan Byrne get reelected. There is no time for that this year so expect the massive debt and structural budget deficit to be the excuse for this new tax that should be hitting in 2022.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 26 April 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ Pension CAFR

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ Pension CAFR

Graphic:

Excerpt:

The Comprehensive Audited Financial Statement Report (CAFR) for the State of New Jersey, Division of Pensions and Benefits, as of June 30, 2020 appeared on the state website this month which means the actuarial reports should be out soon.

But, for now, some CAFR excerpts:

Financial Highlights Fiduciary Funds –Pension Trust Funds and Other Postemployment Benefit (OPEB) Plan (page 3)

Fiduciary net position decreased by $2.4 billion as a result of this year’s operations from $87.3 billion to $84.9 billion.

Additions for the year are $10.2 billion, which are comprised of member, employer, nonemployer, and employer specific and other pension contributions of $8.9 billion and net investment income of $1.3 billion.

Deductions for the year are $12.7 billion, which are comprised of benefits, refund payments, and transfers of $12.6 billion and administrative expenses of $62.0 million.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 21 April 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ Localities Meeting Pension Obligations

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ Localities Meeting Pension Obligations

Graphic:

Excerpt:

I am researching what counties been paying into the New Jersey Retirement System for their Public Employees (PERS) and Police and Fire Personnel (PFRS) since Union County has been budgeting more than they were billed but the 2021 budgets for 7 of the 21 counties are not out yet so that project is on hold.

But in going over the history of what Union County has been sending to PERS and PFRS since 2005 (which presumably would be in line with other localities) there have been some politically motivated swings but, bottom line, Union County’s ‘fair share’ is now defined as 25 times more than what it was in 2005 for PERS and 8 times more for PFRS.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 20 April 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ Pension Palaver

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ Pension Palaver

Excerpt:

Public employees and their unions are certainly to blame for allowing promises made to not be fully funded,

Those contributions that public employees make are negotiated at levels they have input into (nothing to do with funding benefits honestly); and

What worthwhile programs for New Jerseyans did those tens of billions of dollars in missed payments fund and, if that money was invested wisely, shouldn’t New Jerseyans be reaping some benefits around now? If the money was not invested wisely then why begrudge not having more of it to waste?

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 11 April 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

Multiemployer Pensions: Will the Recent Bailout Destroy Pensions (in the Long Run)?

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://marypatcampbell.substack.com/p/multiemployer-pensions-will-the-recent

Graphic:

Excerpt:

I think it unlikely that Congress, at least this Congress, will pass any MEP reforms. The bill allowing for MEP benefit cuts passed under Obama, during his second term – with a Republican House and a Democratic Senate.

There may eventually be MEP reforms, but with a big cash injection into Central States Teamsters, the reckoning day has been pushed off.

The real crisis was Central States Teamsters going under. It would have taken down the PBGC. The puny plans like Warehouse Employees Union Local No. 730 Pension Trust (total liability amount: $474,757,777) are drops in the bucket compared with Central States (total liability amount: $56,790,308,499).

Author(s): Mary Pat Campbell

Publication Date: 5 April 2021

Publication Site: STUMP at substack

Error or Craft?

Mary Pat Campbell
Error or Craft?

Excerpt:

Since I can’t find where they define time-weighting the best I can do is assume that the 3.04% rate of return for June 30, 2015 was mistakenly augmented to 3.41% which was enough to drop the rate of return below the 6.36% barrier.

If anyone has anything else, please share.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 30 March 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions

NJ Local Pension Bills

Mary Pat Campbell
NJ Local Pension Bills

Excerpt:

Annual pension contributions from local employers in New Jersey come due next week based on the June 30, 2019 actuarial valuations. The state website only has the breakdown in pdf format but it was easy enough to export the numbers into excel for the PERS and PFRS plans.

Many local employers are also drafting their 2021 budgets so it was interesting to see what one of them (Union County) allocated as pensions costs for 2021.

Author(s): John Bury

Publication Date: 25 March 2021

Publication Site: Burypensions