Brown mulls cutting PERS costs

[TexasTowelie]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Gov. Kate Brown is reportedly considering selling the state's workers compensation insurance corporation or tapping its substantial capital surplus to hold down future pension costs for school districts around the state.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that according to documents it obtained via a public records request the idea is still tentative, and it's not clear it would raise enough money to accomplish the goal on its own.

Chris Pair, a spokesman for the governor's office, said Monday "our office will not be providing comment."

The proposal to tap SAIF, the state's 100-year-old employer-funded workers compensation agency, was initially floated in 2017 by a task force Brown set up to look for ways to reduce PERS' huge unfunded liability. That liability now stands at about $26.6 billion.

Read more: http://mailtribune.com/news/government-politics/brown-weighing-moves-to-reduce-school-pension-costs

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. I've been saying for years that government employees

are going to face the same cut-backs in pensions that private sector workers have been hit with for the past thirty or so years.

It's the unfunded aspect that is completely unconscionable in both sectors.