Actuarial shortfalls in public employee pension plans have become a trillion-dollar issue nationwide. The move to require larger contributions by employees or to curb benefits, require later retirement ages and reduce annual COLAS among other steps to close the gap hasn’t surfaced to a great degree in Arkansas yet. I suspect it will.
Sympathy from the public, most of whom do not have defined benefit pensions and who’ll see reduced public services as money is shifted to shore up public pensions, would seem to be scant, judging by this column in today’s Times.
Advertisement