Problem solved. The Treasury issues funding rates allowing pensions to use a 25-year historic...

This news story has 10 comments:

Register or Login to rate comments »

Whitehawk Comments (2964)
 
As they say, 'whatever floats your boat.' (nonsense)
17 Aug 2012, 03:48 PM Reply Like

Swass Comments (418)
 
Ahh, well I guess it doesn't matter anyway. It's likely the pensions are unsustainable and will fail to deliver in the end anyway, so they can play whatever games they want. They're just going to lead to a much larger underfunding later.
17 Aug 2012, 04:42 PM Reply Like

Poor Texan Comments (3499)
 
Allow the managers to keep collecting their fees for a little longer before the s**t hits the fan. Numbers don't lie but liars figure.
17 Aug 2012, 05:06 PM Reply Like

bbro Comments (7897)
 
Who has defined benefit plans these days???
18 Aug 2012, 02:42 AM Reply Like

WMARKW Comments (8560)
 
Perhaps, mostly only State and other Government plans. Still, it's a lame approach. Cut your contributions now so you will be more able to adjust in the long run......hmmmmm doesn't make much sense to me.
18 Aug 2012, 11:32 AM Reply Like

Good Captain Comments (447)
 
Defined pension benefits are on the decline but they still exist in many union-dominated industries and government. Clearly these plans today are unreliable at best and likely unsustainable w/out major changes, including altering existing plans to defined contribution plans for all newly hired and future employees.
18 Aug 2012, 01:41 PM Reply Like

willydo Comments (206)
 
There are still billions in pension funds for teachers, govt workers and private pensions where commitments were made years ago. This smacks of the same way we got into a mess with housing.

So we have this problem of pensions underwater with no way to catch up because of sustained low interest rates. So instead of contributing more and trimming payouts, the Treasury simply makes a rule they can model on a 25 year average! I think the taxpayers are going to be on the hook for yet another huge, too-big-to-fail entity. This is a bigger issue than it is getting credit/attention for.
18 Aug 2012, 02:05 PM Reply Like

sethmcs Comments (2207)
 
Raise the 30 year US treasury rate to 6% and the problem is solved.
18 Aug 2012, 05:13 PM Reply Like

Lakeaffect Comments (719)
 
The headline to this article is misleading. Defined benefit plans are mostly in the federal, state and municipality public union workforces.

This is simply a bailout for those governmental entities so they won't have to face the choice of raising taxes or cutting benefits to unionized public employees. They're trying to keep what happened in San Jose a few weeks ago from spreading all over the country.

Most likely this move won't help accomplish their goals because the real problem is that the private sector is getting angrier each day with the fat deals their public servants have served up for themselves.
18 Aug 2012, 10:54 PM Reply Like

bobbio66 Comments (2)
 
These rules are for corporate plans - single employer plans. These regulations are a good thing. With the fed interest rates at all time lows and accountants requiring mark to market, the liabilities for these plans are overstated (lower interest rate yeilds higher present values).

There are alot of these plans in existance.
19 Aug 2012, 12:38 AM Reply Like