Pennsylvania and neighbor to the east New Jersey, no strangers to bracing news regarding the effect of their financially strapped public pension plans, have received yet more tough assessments. And the Keystone State’s neighbor to the west, Ohio, has as well.
Fitch announced on Sept. 23 that it cut Pennsylvania’s general obligation rating to AA-, the lowest rating it’s given the state since 1997, Bloomberg reported. Fitch attributed the lower rating in part to the state’s growing unfunded pension obligations, which it said amount to almost 10% of 2013 personal income and will rise in fiscal 2014 to $2.7 billion. It joins Standard & Poors and Moody’s Investors Service, which already cut their ratings of Pennsylvania’s finances.
The commission that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) appointed less than two months ago to make recommendations regarding how to reform New Jersey’s public pension and health benefit systems has wasted no time in giving him news that may be unwelcome but also is unsurprising.
The commission on Sept. 25 in its preliminary report said the situation is “dire” and that there is no choice other than making the state’s public employee health and pension systems affordable and sustainable. It laid some of the blame at the feet of elected officials who increased pension benefits but did not also find a way to pay for them. The commission now is forming suggestions regarding how to address the situation.
And Moody’s has had some bad news for Ohio, too. It said that the funded status of nearly all public pensions in the Buckeye State has declined. However, it also had some good news: it said that reforms to the state pension system have kept these declines from exerting fresh pressure on the state budget.
Fitch announced on Sept. 23 that it cut Pennsylvania’s general obligation rating to AA-, the lowest rating it’s given the state since 1997, Bloomberg reported. Fitch attributed the lower rating in part to the state’s growing unfunded pension obligations, which it said amount to almost 10% of 2013 personal income and will rise in fiscal 2014 to $2.7 billion. It joins Standard & Poors and Moody’s Investors Service, which already cut their ratings of Pennsylvania’s finances.
The commission that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) appointed less than two months ago to make recommendations regarding how to reform New Jersey’s public pension and health benefit systems has wasted no time in giving him news that may be unwelcome but also is unsurprising.
The commission on Sept. 25 in its preliminary report said the situation is “dire” and that there is no choice other than making the state’s public employee health and pension systems affordable and sustainable. It laid some of the blame at the feet of elected officials who increased pension benefits but did not also find a way to pay for them. The commission now is forming suggestions regarding how to address the situation.
And Moody’s has had some bad news for Ohio, too. It said that the funded status of nearly all public pensions in the Buckeye State has declined. However, it also had some good news: it said that reforms to the state pension system have kept these declines from exerting fresh pressure on the state budget.
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