INDIANAPOLIS —
A new report commissioned by school-choice advocates says Indiana's pension fund for retired teachers is woefully under-funded and among the most financially vulnerable in the nation.
The national study, released by the Foundation for Educational Choice and the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, found that teacher pension liabilities for all 50 states total almost $1 trillion, nearly three times the cost of what state officials have on their balance sheets.
Indiana, according to the report, has significantly underestimated the cost of paying the lifetime benefits guaranteed by law to the state's retired schoolteachers and is one of the nation's five most under-funded
teacher pension programs. West Virginia is cited as the most under-funded.
A spokeswoman for the Indiana State Teachers' Retirement Fund declined comment but the study backers say the report's finding are ominous for taxpayers and lawmakers alike.
"States are already caving under the pressures of the recession and this is bad news for governors and state legislatures," said Robert Enlow, president and CEO of the Indianapolis-based Foundation for Educational Choice. "Every dollar in the red ink column for pensions is one less dollar that is used to educate children."
The Indiana State Teachers Association, a defender of guaranteed pensions for its members, also declined comment on the report. Critics of similar reports questioning the viability of public pension funds say such
findings are an attack on pension plans for public employees and motivated by politics. Enlow, who heads an organization devoted to advocating for school choice and changes in how schools are funded by taxpayers,
dismisses that criticism.
"This isn't a right-wing problem or a left-wing problem," Enlow said. "It's a financial problem."
Earlier this year, the Pew Center on the States issued a report that raised questions about Indiana's public employee pensions. The study found that Indiana is one of 19 states that failed to set enough money aside to pay for future retiree health care and benefits obligations. The Pew Center study said Indiana fell short by more than $442 million.
In the 18-page report released by Enlow's organization, titled "Underfunded Teacher Pension Plans: It's Worse Than You Think," says the nation's teacher pension funds report their liabilities at $332 billion.
But using what the report calls "private sector-style discounting," the liability is closer to $933 billion, the report says.
Enlow said the report was released in part to compel states to adopt laws that would force them to "honestly account" for the costs of meeting their future obligations under pension funds. He said that under current laws, state pension funds can lowball the amount needed to meet future pension obligations based on higher-than-expected returns on the performance of stock investments.
Also included in the findings:
- California has the largest unfunded teacher pension liability: almost $100 billion.
- The lowest funded plan is West Virginia's, which study authors say is funded at only 31 percent.
- Four states are funded at less than 40 percent: Indiana, Illinois, Oklahoma and Kansas.
The report says that only $116 billion of the shortfall nationally can be attributed to the stock market drop brought on the financial crisis of 2007. Report authors say the Dow Jones Industrial Average would have to
nearly double overnight to make up for the present under-funding of these plans.
To read the full report, go to www.edchoice.org
News
New Report Says Indiana Falls Short Funding Teachers Pension Plan
- News
-
-
Week for Wishes ends optimistically
Down the road a bit from the multitude of Relay for Life fundraising activities taking place at the Decatur County Fairgrounds, the local chapter of the Make a Wish Foundation hosted a variety of fun events all their own.
-
Relay touts big numbers
Hundreds of area residents gathered at the Decatur County Fairgrounds over the weekend, each doing his or her part to take a stand against cancer.
-
"Kindy 500" a fun fest for all
There were no engines to start Thursday afternoon, and the racing "track" offered significantly less space and ground to cover compared to a certain race being staged this Sunday, but that did nothing to dampen the spirit among students as they participated in the 1st "Kindy 500" at Greensburg's Good Shepherd Academy.
-
School's out!
The children of Greensburg Elementary School were more than happy to mug for the camera en route to boarding the school buses that would soon ferry them on to summer vacation Monday afternoon.
-
FSA reminds producers to file Annual Report of Acreage
Julia A. Wickard, State Executive Director of USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Indiana today reminded producers to submit their annual report of acreage to their local FSA county office to meet FSA program eligibility requirements.
-
Surviving Decatur County's storm season
In an interview last September, meteorologist and Greensburg native Brian Schoettmer with the National Weather Service (NWS) in Louisville, Ky., told the Daily News that early-through-mid-spring and late fall tend to be the busiest and most dangerous times of the year for tornadoes and other severe weather in the Ohio Valley region.
-
Strawberry Festival date announced
The Decatur County United Fund's annual Strawberry Festival is set for Friday, June 1, on the south side of the courthouse square.
-
GoGreensburg silent auction
An autographed hat and photo card, complete with authentication papers, will be up for bids at a silent auction Monday.
-
Running Clinic ready to take off
Children planning to spend the early portion of their summer in a brisk jog may find the upcoming Decatur County Youth Running Clinic much to their liking.
-
Man held after assaulting police
A Greensburg man is in the custody of the Decatur County Jail following a drug-induced assault on police Thursday night.
- More News Headlines
-
Serial Stabbings Suspect Guilty of Murder
Facebook Shares Continue Negative Slide
8 Hurt in Oklahoma Shooting After NBA Playoff
US Airways: Diverted Flight Has 'Landed Safely'
A Few Odd Business Sparks but Europe Gloomy
Revived Focus on Regulation After JPMorgan Loss
Gerard Butler: the Good, the Bad and the Cannes
At Least 25 Dead in India Train Collision
Raw Video: Private Rocket Blasts Off
Boy to Rescuers: 'Do You Have a Plan?'
Doctors and Devotees Debate Barefoot Running
Blacks Seek to Find Their Own Missing
Houston Museum Unveils $85 Million Dinosaur Hall
Chicago Police: 90 Arrested in NATO Protests
Ex-Rutgers Student Gets 30 Days in Webcam Case
Obama Sees Inspiration in Joplin Graduates
Raw Video: Man Saved After Niagara Falls Plunge
NATO: Afghan Exit 'Irreversible'
Catholic Groups Sue Over Contraception Mandate
4 Arrested After Man's Beating at Dodger Stadium
