MICHIGAN – Taxpayers United of America has released the top pensions for Michigan government teachers and employees. “This is an effort to shed light on the problems with Michigan’s government pension system in a way that the average, working taxpayer can relate to,” said Christina Tobin, Vice President of Taxpayers United of America (TUA), and founder and President of ‘Free and Equal.’ “While some reforms have occurred in Michigan, more pressure needs to be applied by taxpayers,” she said.
“The broken government pension system desperately needs reform, and revealing individual names and pension amounts illustrates the problem very clearly,” said Tobin. “The current system, designed to keep the wrong people in power, is corrupt. It is a system that makes government, and those with whom government negotiates — union bosses, politicians, and administrators — wealthy on the backs of taxpayers.”
“There is no fair representation of taxpayers. This is a nationwide, non-partisan problem that burdens the Left and Right alike, and has fueled the financial crisis facing Michigan taxpayers and retirees. The urgency of this crisis is illustrated by the extensive press coverage that our government pension reports have received throughout Michigan.”
Tobin, who toured through Michigan towns revealing top government pensions to the public, was covered by the Detroit News, NBC Channel 4, Wood-TV 8, WLNS-6, AnnArbor.comGrand Rapids Business Journal, and 1600 AM WAAM.
Tobin stated that while the individual pension amounts have been eye-opening in the communities that have followed the law and released the pension information requested by Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, TUA will be exploring all options to obtain the information still being withheld by the city government bureaucrats of Detroit and Lansing. Tobin does not exclude the possibility of filing a lawsuit to obtain the information.
TUA will be revealing pensions across the nation, continuing with Kentucky, Kansas, and New York in the coming weeks.