An AP story this week about a superintendent who forfeited thousands in pay and retirement benefits is a refreshing lesson for officials to put entitlement arguments aside. We've got a crisis to get through.
Fresno County's superintendent Larry Powell has offered to give up $800,000 he would be earning in the next three years to offset budget cuts in his California school district. On top of that, Powell retired early, and will now receive $28,000 a year less in pension payments for the rest of his life. He also asked his board to rehire him at $31,000, a steep pay cut, and — adding to the generosity — that money will be going to charity.
As public workers spar with lawmakers over pension and benefit negotiations, this story provides much-needed inspiration — something that was robbed from me this week since I discovered my former state governor's generous pension is based on a private salary and could be paid through tax dollars.
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According to the Denver Post, former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter's $300,000 salary as head of a renewable energy center at Colorado State University is funded by private foundations. But, because he served as Denver district attorney for 11 years and governor for four years, he's on track to receive a chunk of PERA, the Public Employees' Retirement Association of Colorado. In five years, he'll qualify for a PERA retirement at age 60, and since his final years of salary dictate his pension, he'll be eligible for $150,000 annually.
Ritter's case is unusual, because his retirement is based on a salary that's privately funded, but his hefty pension draws from public worker contributions. The Post reports that "60 percent of PERA's funding comes from private investments, while the remaining 40 percent is split roughly evenly between contributions from the governments that employ public workers and the employees themselves."
Ritter doesn't know how long he'll hold the job and told the Post, "PERA will not dictate the number of years I serve here," but his double-dip into public service and private enterprise is an ethical battleground and fodder for growing interest to cap retirement benefits for public officials. Another Colorado politician, for example, U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman, will propose legislation this fall requiring lawmakers forgo the defined benefit portion of their congressional retirement plan.
Coffman wants politicians to lead by example. Fellow members of Congress might not concede to it, but the proposal is a bold step in Washington that puts sacrifice before privilege. And that's inspiration we desperately need.
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