Portland Public Schools "will see increased costs of more than $14 million." - David Wynde
There is more bad news on the PERS front. Today’s (9/29/12)
Oregonian has a front page headline “Employers face 45% PERS hike.” It’s a
complicated problem, but, as I understand the issues, Portland Public Schools needs
to stop making its problem worse. Last year the PPS-Portland Association of
Teachers contract added an additional step increase (2%, I think) for its Tier 1
teachers (and others), thus increasing the PERS liabilities for PPS and others in the PERS
system. Another contract will be negotiated in 2013. PPS should not again
increase its and other’s PERS obligations.
From the Oregonian article “Oregon PERS: Board unanimously approves 45 percent jump in contribution rates” by Ted Sickinger (here):
Oregon's
underfunded Public Employee Retirement System board adopted new pension
contribution rates this afternoon that will pinch budgets even more across the
state.
Pension contributions of $2 billion in this two-year budget period will rise by
45 percent, $900 million, in the 2013-15 biennium.
School districts will be paying on average about 26.7 percent more of their
payroll starting in 2013. The escalating cost of the pension system has become
a budget
buster for many of the 900 government agencies, school districts and
municipal entities whose employees are members.
The vote occured following testimony from local government officials predicting
dire effects on schools and public safety, where deep cuts may occur.
And from a later Oregonian article “Oregon PERS hikes: Schools, governments, taxpayers will feel the pain of 45 percent rate increase” by Nick Budnick (here):
Portland Public Schools, which had borrowed money to reduce its contribution rates, will see increased costs of more than $14 million, said David Wynde, deputy chief financial officers. That's roughly equivalent to nine days cut from the school year.
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