ALBANY— "Gov. David Paterson is right to call for a less costly tier of pension benefits for new public employees. Failing to reform the pension system to lower future costs would put an anchor on the state's economy,” said Kenneth Adams, president & CEO of The Business Council of New York State. “When the state has faced economic crisis in the past legislators in both parties have recognized the need to create lower cost pension tiers. This current crisis demands reform to lower costs.”
“Public employee pension costs are bankrupting the state and local governments. These costs must be reduced,” added Adams. “The Governor showed he is truly committed to this reform by vetoing the Tier II pension extension bill because the legislature has not been willing to address pension reform.”
The Business Council pointed out that the pension changes would not affect current state or local government employees. The change, which could save the state government alone $48 billion over the next 30 years, would only apply to new hires.
The Governor's press release is available here.
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