Why are wealthy states with high taxes owe so much in pensions?

[BugsyPal]

Originally Posted by InformedConsent

Or Illinois. Yep. That "support" is both donations to political campaigns and votes.

Here in NYC it also comes the form of boots on the streets and butts in seats. Unions provide vast amounts of members who hit the bricks doing campaign work, and or work telephone banks that make calls to registered voters.


Much of this goes back to the various Democratic political "machines" that developed in places like New York, Illinois, Michigan. Massachusetts, etc... Sometimes it is the entire state or just local areas, but either way soft soaping and the rest has been away of life for ages.

[BentBow]

Originally Posted by PCALMike

Low wages and retirement security in the plains states is one explanation. In South Dakota, a police officer earns less than half of what a police officer does in some other states. In Wisconsin, firefighters earn close to starvation wages of $28 000 a year on average.

Has to do with GDP of the state. The comparison here is states with low GDP have a very progressive taxing program to redistribute the wealth. While states with really good GDP, the free market distributes the wealth, the government doesn't pick and chose who gets the wealth. The people do in their free will transactions for services and products.

[Delahanty]

Originally Posted by enraeh

Those who work for government should not live better than those who don't.

A statement full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

You might as well be saying that those who work for Wegmans shouldn't be living better than those who work for Whole Foods. People choose where they're going to work, and "how they live" is more often a result of choices they make.

Oh, and in case this is where you were headed...Public employees pay taxes, too.

[Quick Enough]

Originally Posted by Goodnight

The chart indicates percentage funded so that has nothing to do with COL. New Jersey had an ongoing battle and Christie just won in court regarding his ability to freeze COLA otherwise they would be insolvent. CT is more complicated with pension caps and lawsuits but still at the heart of it is public pensions.


The Rhode Island Governor, Gina Raimondo, has done great job addressing their pension shortfalls but she had the laws of RI on her side relative to because pensions are guided by statues rather than contracts.

Go back and read the OP.