Astorino, Roach Join New York Leaders for Pension Reform

• Editor's Note: What follows is user-generated news. If you would like to post your news to Patch, for detailed instructions. The following is a press release from New York Leaders for Pension Reform.

Mayors and county executives from across New York State, representing more than 15,000,000 New Yorkers, today announced that they have formed a bipartisan coalition to address the crisis of skyrocketing pension costs.

New York Leaders for Pension Reform will lead a vigorous campaign across the state to ensure state legislators understand the importance to local governments of passing Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s reform plan to get pension costs under control without reducing retirement benefits for a single existing public employee.

Coalition members also will travel to Albany later this month to advocate for the Governor’s plan.

Taken together, annual pension costs to local governments across the State have gone from $1.7 billion in 2002 to $12.5 billion today – an increase of more than 630 percent.

Despite opposition to reform by Comptroller DiNapoli and others, members of the coalition know first-hand how runaway local pension payments have already significantly reduced localities’ ability to fund education, public safety, social services, economic development and other services – and how skyrocketing costs threaten to force severe budget cuts or tax increases in the years ahead.

That is why local government leaders are demanding action from the Legislature now.

Governor Cuomo’s plan will create a new tier of pension benefits for yet-to-be-hired employees who are participating in the New York State and New York City retirement systems. Existing employees and retirees will be unaffected.

The new plan would reasonably raise the retirement age for newly hired employees, and exclude overtime from the formula used to calculate the final average salary for pension payments.

Further, the proposal would provide employees with the option of participating in a defined contribution plan – similar to plans common in the private sector – that some employees may decide is a better choice for their individual career path.

Founding members of New York Leaders for Pension Reform are:

Mayors

• Albany: Mayor Gerald D. Jennings
• Hornell: Mayor Shawn Hogan
• Jamestown: Mayor Samuel Teresi
• New York City: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg
• New Rochelle: Mayor Noam Bramson
• Ogdensburg: Mayor William D. Nelson
• Plattsburg: Mayor Donald M. Kasprzak
• Rochester: Mayor Thomas S. Richards
• Syracuse: Mayor Stephanie Miner
• Utica: Mayor Robert A. Palmieri
• Watertown: Mayor Jeff Graham
• White Plains: Mayor Thomas M. Roach

County Executives and Legislative Leaders

• Albany: County Executive Daniel P. McCoy
• Dutchess: County Executive Marcus J. Molinaro
• Erie: County Executive Mark Poloncarz
• Genesee: Legislature Chair Mary Pat Hancock
• Monroe: County Executive Maggie Brooks
• Nassau: County Executive Edward P. Mangano
• Oneida: County Executive Anthony J. Picente, Jr.
• Onondaga: County Executive Joanne M. Mahoney
• Orange: County Executive Edward A. Diana
• Rockland: County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef
• Suffolk: County Executive Steve Bellone
• Westchester: County Executive Robert P. Astorino
• Wyoming: Chairman of the County of Board of Supervisors Douglas Berwanger

Today, coalition members – full list below – spoke out in favor of the Governor’s proposal:

“I am pleased to be working with Mayor Bloomberg and my colleagues around the state on this critical issue. Pension payments are one of the top budget drivers in my city,” said White Plains Mayor Thomas Roach. 

“The pension reform plan put forth by Governor Cuomo in his Executive Budget is a sensible one – and one that must be passed if we are to have any hope of bringing these costs under control in the future. At the same time, it rightly recognizes and protects existing pension benefits for current employees.” 

“Exploding pension costs are the single biggest threat to local government’s ability to deliver needed services,” said Westchester County Executive Robert Astorino.

“It will be impossible to provide any real property tax relief while operating under these debilitating labor costs that automatically increase every year at an unsustainable rate. The Governor’s proposal is a good first step toward delivering savings in the long-term and I thank Mayor Bloomberg for spearheading this coalition. We must continue working together to enact this plan and other reforms that will provide relief for both today and the future.”  

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