Tag: Providence

Providence Voters Approve of $515 Million in Pension Obligation Bonds

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.ai-cio.com/news/providence-voters-approve-of-515-million-in-pension-obligation-bonds/

Excerpt:

The city of Providence’s pension fund, which is among the most underfunded in the country, just got one step closer to approving $515 million in pension obligation bonds. A majority of voters cast ballots in favor of the mayor’s proposal to issue $515 million in bonds in a non-binding referendum. While the results do not give Mayor Jorge Elorza the authority to issue the bonds, they do help build his case to the state, whose approval he needs to issue the bonds.

…..

Pension obligation bonds are essentially loans that the pension takes out with a fixed interest rate. The hope is that investment returns exceed the interest rate on the bonds, thus allowing the pension fund to increase its funded ratio. However, a recession or investment downturn could lead to the pension losing money on the bonds. Such was the case in Puerto Rico when it issued pension obligation bonds in 2008. While a total collapse like what occurred in Puerto Rico is unlikely to happen in Providence, according to experts,

Public pensions have more than doubled their borrowing this past year, according to S&P Global. In 2020, the S&P rated $3 billion in public pension bond issuances. In contrast, the S&P rated $6.3 billion in public pension bond issuances between January 1 and September 15, 2021. However, as interest rates begin to rise again, bond issuances will likely decrease again.  

Author(s): Anna Gordon

Publication Date: 9 June 2022

Publication Site: ai-CIO

Fewer than 4000 people just approved boosting Providence Rhode Island liabilities by $515 million

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://marypatcampbell.substack.com/p/fewer-than-4000-people-just-approved?s=w

Graphic:

Excerpt:

Yes, for over five years now, they’ve been contribution more than 50% of payroll to the pension plan as the full contribution to the pensions.

In the past, they mostly contributed the full requirement, though in some years they didn’t. The requirement used to be less than 50%, but when you short the fund, and when you underperform on investments (which we will see in a bit), that’s expected, right?

So let’s see how the funded ratio has been doing — for all these full payments, the funded ratio must be healthy, correct? [if you didn’t read my excerpts above]

Author(s): Mary Pat Campbell

Publication Date: 10 June 2022

Publication Site: STUMP at substack

Providence voters back $515m pension bond in low-turnout election

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/06/07/metro/providence-voters-back-515m-pension-bond-low-turnout-election/

Excerpt:

Fewer than 3,600 city voters on Tuesday backed Mayor Jorge Elorza’s proposal to borrow $515 million to shore up Providence’s ailing pension fund, according to unofficial results from the Board of Canvassers.

But even fewer voted against the bond.

In a special election that saw just 4 percent of the Providence’s 124,000 registered voters participate, the $515 million pension obligation bond won approval by a wide margin, with 70 percent supporting the proposal.

The plan still needs to be approved by the state Senate, but Tuesday’s vote dramatically increased the likelihood that Providence will be allowed to borrow $515 million and deposit the proceeds into the retirement system to invest.

Elorza has said the infusion of cash from the bond will allow the city to stabilize its pension fund, which has just 26 percent of the $1.6 billion it needs to pay current and future retirees over the next several decades, according to the city’s financial records.

Publication Date: 7 June 2022

Publication Site: Boston Globe

Providence Pension Working Group

Mary Pat Campbell

Link:https://www.providenceri.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/PVDPensionWorkingGroup_Jan312022.pdf

Graphic:

Excerpt:

Decisions made more than 30 years ago drive challenges. The seeds of the City’s
pension problems were sown more than three decades ago when the City promised
unsustainable benefit increases to members of the retirement system without
funding the associated annual Actuarily Determined Contribution (ADC).2


The severity of the situation makes Providence an outlier. The City of Providence’s
Employee Retirement System (ERS) is among the lowest funded pension plans in
the nation. Since 1991, the City’s unfunded pension liability increased by more than
$1 billion. In addition to the pension liabilities, and over and above the pension
shortfall, the City’s retiree health benefits are underfunded by approximately $1.1
billion.3
The unfunded liability of the ERS drives costs to City that outpace revenue
growth, limiting investments in other priorities. As of June 30, 2020, the ERS was
only 22.2 percent funded.4 Total pension liabilities equated to $8,518 per resident –
of which $6,629 is not funded.5 In the last twenty years, the City’s unfunded liability
per capita increased by $4,000 per resident.

Publication Date: January 2022

Publication Site: Providence RI

Providence needs $500M bond to fix pension shortfall, report states

Mary Pat Campbell

Link:https://www.bizjournals.com/rhodeisland/news/2022/02/01/providence-needs-500m-bond-to-fix-pension-shortfa.html

Excerpt:

A coalition of civic leaders is recommending that Providence issue a $500 million bond to address the city’s massive unfunded pension obligation.

“Doing nothing is simply not an option,” the Pension Working Group wrote in a 27-page report issued Monday. The group of public officials, working with business and nonprofit leaders, released its recommendations after six months spent studying the city’s staggering pension liability problem.

Providence’s pension plan is funded at 22%, making it one of the weakest employee retirement systems in the nation. Since 1991, the city’s unfunded liability has grown by more than $1 billion, and that doesn’t include a $1.1 billion shortfall in retiree health benefits.

“Current and future retiree liabilities are unsustainable,” the report states.

Author(s): Mary Serreze

Publication Date: 1 Feb 2021

Publication Site: Providence Business First

Elorza’s pension proposal relies on a risky approach and an adviser linked with 38 Studios

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://thepublicsradio.org/article/why-elorzas-latest-proposed-pension-fix-faces-a-lot-of-questions-

Excerpt:

Providence’s pension crisis has its roots in the late 1980s. That’s when the city’s Retirement Board approved unusually generous compounded cost of living adjustments for more than 2,500 city workers and retirees. Decades later, that move helps explain why there’s a $1.2 billion gap between the pension balance and the amount owed to current and future retirees.

The pension crisis has defied attempted solutions for years. Providence officials say the city has just 22% of the money needed to meet its long-term pension obligations. And the amount of the city budget consumed by the pension is growing 5 percent a year, to about $93 million currently. Without a change, that annual payment will rise to $227 million by 2040.

Mayor Jorge Elorza said these pension costs are unsustainable.

“It’s only a matter of time before they continue to squeeze everything else out of our budget, so that we’re cutting deeper and deeper into the bone,” he said during a recent news conference.

Elorza’s plan involves selling $704 million in pension obligation bonds. The idea is that these bonds could generate enough of a return to boost the pension system’s funding to more than 60 percent.

Author(s): Ian Donnis

Publication Date: 1 June 2021

Publication Site: The Public’s Radio

McKee weighs in on teachers’ contract talks, pension obligation bond

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/local/2021/06/01/mckee-takes-stance-pension-obligation-bond-teachers-contract-talks/7494717002/

Excerpt:

Governor Dan McKee on Tuesday weighed in on two critical issues facing Providence: shakeups in contract negotiations with the teachers union and Mayor Jorge Elorza’s plan for a pension obligation bond to throw the city a financial lifeline.

….

On Elorza’s idea for a $704-million pension obligation bond to address the city’s unfunded pension liability, McKee raised skepticism, suggesting the plan is risky and that the timing isn’t right.

“I think it’s rolling the dice,” he said. “And again, I’ll reflect back to the time I was a mayor. I made sure that there was actuaries that supported any decision made in our local pensions including the police pension. I haven’t seen any actuaries that I would rely on. I’m not sure there’s time right now between now and the end of session to do that in a way that I would feel comfortable with.”

Author(s): Amy Russo

Publication Date: 1 June 2021

Publication Site: The Providence Journal

Providence is ready to roll the dice on a pension bond

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FINewsArticle?id=202105211039SM______BNDBUYER_00000179-8608-ddb0-adf9-ff4cb4b00001_110.1

Excerpt:

Red flags waved as Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza proposed issuing $704 million in pension obligation bonds to deal with a pestering unfunded liability problem in Rhode Island’s capital city.

The amount exceeds the city’s annual operating budget. Bond markets often frown on such borrowing and sentiment among state officials who must sign off is uncertain. Skeptics also call the city’s fiscal management track record shaky, while memories linger of a fiasco in Woonsocket, which tried a similar move nearly 20 years ago.

Author(s): Paul Burton

Publication Date: 21 May 2021

Publication Site: Fidelity Fixed Income