Comments (26) (Please sign in to comment)

1. 

   Nos Nevets said, 4 months ago

   “City” could be replaces by “USPS” or “GM” or . . .
2. 

   DavidGBA said, 4 months ago

   Underfunded for years!
3. 

   mickey1339 said, 4 months ago

   There have been many recent posts about California’s budget surplus and the optimistic comments made by our governor. What seems to get shifted under the carpet is illustrated by this cartoon and is an ever present reality for California state, counties and cities. The amount of future monies required to fund union medical and pensions are already putting several cities on the edge of Chapter 9 bankruptcy. Brown’s much lauded prop. 30 raised the top individual tax rates to 12.3%, to my knowledge now the highest in the nation. Our sales taxes are over 8% in many areas. Unfortunately these optimistic budget projections don’t realistically include pension costs. Now the push is on to tax the oil producers more and cut more corporate tax breaks. Somehow the Sacramento folks don’t get it that businesses are migrating away from here just because of this tax structure. Texas, Arizona and Nevada gain while we lose. So now they are raising taxes on a continually decreasing tax base. It’s Einstein’s definition of insanity all over again. I’m glad I’m retired and out of the business dogfights and higher income brackets.
   

   
   Governor Brown (affectionately called “Moonbeam”) has made some program reductions but the unions aren’t sharing in budget cuts. They (SEIU) now sit in on budget meetings and submit their own “requests” for budgeting and funding levels. When approached on the union pension issue, most of our politicians get a grave look on their face and say, “yes, that’s a big issue for the future and we’re concerned about it.”
4. 

   braindead08 said, 4 months ago

   @mickey1339

   If the cities or govt entities were private firms, they would be taken over by vulture capitalists and bankruptcy would be declared. The cities do not have that option – yet.
   .
   Democrats have a majority in Sac and I think they — and the unions — should look warily at the midwest states where draconian union busting has taken effect.
   .
   They should NOT believe that it could not happen in California.
   .
   BTW (not addressing your points), but sales taxes are close to 10% in many Bay Area counties. I do not ever remember Republicans criticizing sales tax increases. In fact, when Reagan was governor, the first thing he did was to raise sales taxes from 4% to 5%.
5. 

   skipcarlsen said, 4 months ago

   The unscrupulous politicians who bought those union votes years ago by agreeing to outrageous union wage and benefit demands are long since retired and living in luxury while we taxpayers today are saddled with their larceny! It’s going to be painful, but those absurd pensions are going to have to be seriously cut if many cities and municipalities are going to survive.
6. 

   Night-Gaunt49 said, 4 months ago

   @Nos Nevets

   USPS is in trouble because the Congress is making them put away too much money for the pensions, $5 billion a year! So it puts them into financial straits even as they mack profits.
7. 

   Night-Gaunt49 said, 4 months ago

   @braindead08

   Union busting turns workers into the working poor. And the Republicans win by default because the Democrats get most of their funding from Unions.
8. 

   Ms. Ima said, 4 months ago

   Pensions are the next target for government. They will take them with the promise of paying it back through the Social Security ponzi scheme.
9. 

   Rockngolfer said, 4 months ago

   Here in FL they came up with a money making scheme.
   Red light cameras that take a picture of your license plate.
   Rear-ender wrecks increased about 41% and my insurance went up even though I have not had a claim in many years.
10. 

    braindead08 said, 4 months ago

    @Night-Gaunt49

    I’m not suggesting that union busting is a good thing. I’m suggesting that the Democratic legislature should not think it will enjoy a majority no matter what. There are many steps that can result in bringing those pension obligations into balance that are short of union busting. It’s just that over-reaction is the norm.
    -
    This is their chance to govern for the benefit of the state, as opposed to special interests only.
    -
    I’m no more in favor of governing for one set of special interests than governing for a different set.
11. 

    SkepticCal said, 4 months ago

    @DavidGBA

    Over promised for years!
12. 

    josefw said, 4 months ago

    @Rockngolfer

    What happened to your bicycle?
13. 

    mickey1339 said, 4 months ago

    @braindead08

    “If the cities or govt entities were private firms, they would be taken over by vulture capitalists and bankruptcy would be declared. The cities do not have that option – yet.”
    

    
    Thanks for the update, I was just quoting our southern calif. rate. 10%, those guys are getting clipped! In response to your comment, there is a form of bankruptcy just for municipalities, called “Chapter 9.” I have read about several cities that are in a “pre-bankruptcy” reorganization process to try to stave off filing for Chap. 9. There are also entities within the cities, hospitals, school districts etc that are in trouble. The list I linked to is just a small sampling and doesn’t go very deep but it gives you a picture of the situation.
    

    
    http://www.governing.com/gov-data/municipal-cities-counties-bankruptcies-and-defaults.html
14. 

    Ketira shena Pretarasedrin said, 4 months ago

    @Rockngolfer

    You haven’t been driving here on the Coast, then. When those red-light cameras went up, the number of people driving through red lights went down. They’re at the major intersections in my part of the Space Coast, and I like them there.
15. 

    Eryx said, 4 months ago

    @mickey1339

    Well, the oil bidness is still there, along with the pension obligations. Tax the extraction at the source. Here in Illinois, we have $90 billion in underfunded pensions, caused by cutting taxes while not meeting those obligations. School pensions were supported by the State and not the municipality. Some municipalities voted for obscene pensions for local pols under home rule. As a result, we have our share of bankrupt communities, but they are a tiny part of the problem (as the state doesn’t pay most of these pensions). It sucks to live in a couple of communities near mine that were governed by thieves (I am on a library board, and we had to cut off a neighboring community that was draining us dry: tens of thousands of lost property. No one wants to deny kids books, and that decision really HURT!).
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