Public Pensions: The Coming Financial Crisis in PA

While Pennsylvanians were up in arms over the pay raise, the ongoing public-sector pension scandal and coming financial crisis should make taxpayers even more irate.

The promise of defined benefits to public sector employees is the biggest boondoogle being perpetrated on the people of Pennsylvania. Read today's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review editorial and this story.

Here's just one nugget to show you just how BIG this problem is going to be in future years. According to an internal study done by the Joint State Government Commission in February 2004, the taxpayers' liability will jump from $855M in 2005-06 to $5.3B in 2012-13. And that's IF the investments of PSERS/SERS realizes an 8.5% annual return.

How are these public pension boards doing? Just check out this article in yesterday's Patriot-News.