Raleigh Taxpayers Crushed by Platinum Government Pensions

By on September 10, 2012   /   Latest, North Carolina, Pension Reform  

View release as a PDF
Raleigh—Taxpayers United of America (TUA) today released the results of a new pension study of Raleigh, Wake County, and North Carolina State government retirees.
“North Carolina lawmakers have only flirted with reforms of the government pension system, and not without boosting their own pensions,” stated Rae Ann McNeilly, Director of Outreach for TUA. “North Carolinians have been led to believe that their system is in good health, but with inflated actuarial practices and a limping economy, meaningful reforms are imperative.”
“While residents across North Carolina face crushing taxes, falling home values, 9.3% unemployment, and a painfully slow economic recovery, government employees continue to receive stunning pensions largely funded by taxpayers who will never collect more than about $22,000 a year from Social Security.”
“North Carolina is the 18th state in our nationwide pension reform tour and the results are consistent with our findings across the country: government pensions are out of control. Across the country, millions of bureaucrats are being paid billions, to do absolutely nothing!”
“The purpose of our study is to put some perspective around individual pensions, to put them in terms to which the average taxpayer can relate. Taxpayers need to know how much North Carolina’s government retirees are being paid not to work and the astronomical accumulation of those payments over an average lifetime. Hundreds of government retirees’ pensions being released today will accumulate to millions of dollars in payouts.”
McNeilly continued, “For example, Dempsey E. Benton, retired at age 55 from the Raleigh Municipal Government and collects an annual pension of $116,327. His estimated lifetime pension payout is $3,700,959.*”
“Larry E. Price, retired from state government at the age of 53, has an annual pension of $208,166, with a staggering estimated lifetime payout of $7,762,391.* ”
“Retired Wake County government teacher, William R. McNeal, has a lifetime estimated pension payout of $4,546,706*, with an annual pension of $162,019, having retired at 59.”
View pension amounts below:

“North Carolina’s government pension systems are crushing middle class North Carolinians. Government employees should be paid a fair wage for the work they do today so they can save for their own retirement. Replacing defined benefit pensions for all new government hires with social security and 401(k)s would eventually eliminate unfunded government pensions. Current government employees must consider a voluntary pension contribution of up to 10% to preserve their pension benefits. Additionally, all members should pay for 50% of their healthcare premiums. We need a stable system that is fair to both taxpayers and beneficiaries or pension checks will stop coming,” added McNeilly.
*Annual pensions are actual amounts provided by the respective fund. Lifetime estimates include the sum of the pension paid to date and the projected remaining payments with a 1% COLA. Uses a life expectancy of 85 (IRS Form 590), the actual retirement date and age at retirement

Back to Top

It’s a Spending Problem, Not a Revenue Problem – Even in Shawano, Wisconsin!

By on August 20, 2012   /   Latest, Pension Reform, Taxpayer Alert, Wisconsin  

View release as a PDF
SHAWANO—Taxpayers United of America (TUA) released salaries and estimated pension payouts for Shawano School District government employees.
“At a time when bureaucrats are trying to raise property taxes, one might think that they tighten their own belts, but not in Shawano, Wisconsin! They intend to also give themselves a 2% pay raise while raising the school property taxes by 12.4%,” stated Shawano resident and president of TUA, Jim Tobin.
“I have published the salaries and estimated pensions for Shawano School District to illustrate how irresponsible a property tax increase would be. Keep in mind that these are 2010 salaries, so it is likely that they are considerably higher today,” added Tobin.
“When average taxpayers in the district are making about $28,000 a year, how can anyone justify taking even more from taxpayers? This will hit farmers, retirees, and small business owners very hard at a time when they can least afford it.”
“It’s time for administrators to stop thinking of taxpayers as an unlimited source of money and be responsible by making the cuts to the largest portion of the budget – salaries and benefits.”
View the top salaries and estimated pensions of Shawano government school employees here.
Tobin continued, “Todd Carlson, Shawano superintendent, made a comfortable $169,196 in wages and benefits. As if that isn’t enough, he will also be paid about $117,784* annually, NOT to work when he retires.”
“The ten highest paid district employees make a combined total of over $1.5 million in total compensation; that’s an average of $150,000. It would be interesting to know exactly how many students these 10 highly paid individuals educate or how often they even step into a classroom!”
“Of the top 25 salaries for Shawano County government schools, 11 of them are from the Shawano District. Only five of the top 25 are from Bonduel and they are able to cut their rate this year. Perhaps Shawano could learn from them.”
“I am encouraging all taxpayers to attend tonight’s annual board meeting and let the bureaucrats know how they feel about their plan to increase spending without a second thought about forcing the taxpayers to foot the bill. Nearly every one of us has had to make cuts in our personal spending, yet Shawano School District administrators refuse to do the same.”
The annual school board meeting will be held tonight, August 20, at 8:00 pm, at Olga Brener Intermediate School, 1300 Union Street, Shawano.
*Based on 2010 salary data provided by the school district through the FOIA process. 1. Assumes employee retires in 1 year and this salary would be 2nd to last salary, 2. Assumes employee works 41 years or more and retires at age 65 and pension = 70%, 3. Plus Social Security.

Back to Top

Colorado Springs & Pueblo CO Hide Stunning Government Pension Payments From Taxpayers

By on August 16, 2012   /   Colorado, Latest, Pension Reform  

View release as a PDF
COLORADO SPRINGS—Taxpayers United of America (TUA) released estimated pension payouts for Colorado Springs, Pueblo City and County, El Paso County and area government school employees. Colorado refuses to release actual government pensions, ignoring citizens’ right to review all payments funded by taxes. TUA calculated estimated pensions for government employees based on actual salaries of current government employees to shed light on the largess of the tightly guarded secret payouts.
“Colorado is the least transparent of the 17 states studied thus far in our nationwide pension tour, attempting to hide even government employee salaries,” stated Rae Ann McNeilly, Director of Outreach for TUA.
“The cost of shielding the system from review, and ultimately, reform, is devastatingly high as cities around the country are buckling under the weight of their unfunded liabilities. Government pension funds are the number one budgetary problem in the country and Colorado is no different. Choices will have to be made between services we need today, and stunning pension payments.”
“The purpose of our study is to put some perspective around individual pensions, to put them in terms to which the average taxpayer can relate. Taxpayers need to know how much Colorado’s government retirees are being paid not to work and the astronomical accumulation of those payments over an average lifetime. The top 300 government employees’ pension estimates being released today will each collect over $1.6 million to do absolutely nothing!”
“While residents across Colorado face crushing taxes, falling home values, high unemployment, and a very anemic economic recovery, government employees continue to receive stunning pensions funded by taxpayers who will never collect more than about $22,000 a year from Social Security.”
McNeilly continued, “For example, Robert C. Bux, El Paso County Coroner, stands to collect an estimated annual pension of $177,975* based on his actual annual gross of $237,300. His estimated lifetime pension payout could be a staggering $5,695,200.*”
“Michael Mark Hatchell, Academy School District 20 Superintendent, has an estimated annual pension of $148,470*, based on his actual annual gross of $197,960, with an estimated lifetime payout of $4,751,040.*”
“Colorado Springs City Attorney, Patricia K. Kelly, has a lifetime estimated payout of $4,416,871* with an estimated annual pension of $138,027*, based on her actual annual gross of $184,036.”
View pension amounts below:

“Colorado’s government pension systems are crushing middle class Coloradans. Replacing defined benefit pensions for all new government hires with social security and 401(k)s would eventually eliminate unfunded government pensions. Current government employees must consider a voluntary pension contribution of up to 10% more to preserve their pension benefits. Additionally, all members should pay for 50% of their healthcare premiums. We need a stable system that is fair to both taxpayers and beneficiaries or pension checks will stop coming,” added McNeilly.
*TUA submits FOIA requests for current employee salaries and estimates pensions based on the current pension laws, uses 32 years of retirement at 75% of the current salary (based on IRS form 590 LE of 85 and CO pension laws).

Back to Top