The Time for Pension Reform is Now

Over the past month, Michigan and Pennsylvania lawmakers joined a handful of other states in passing meaningful pension reform. It’s high time for the rest of the nation to follow their lead.

Unfunded pension liabilities today are pushing many cities close to bankruptcy; state pension plans are similarly in dubious fiscal health.

State public pension funds are now underfunded by nearly $5.6 trillion, according to Unaccountable and Unaffordable 2016, recently published by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). This represents a$900 billion increase from a comprehensive report by State Budget Solutions in 2014. The combined price tag for all unfunded public pension liabilities in the United States is $17,427 for every man, woman and child.