Findings from TUA’s pension project on Saline, Kansas, are featured in this article from Wichita Business Journal.
Advocacy group Taxpayers United of America has been touring Kansas this week criticizing what it says are excessive city, county and school district pension programs funded by property tax increases.
The Salina Journal reports that according to the organization, some Salina employees are eligible for payouts of between $1 million and $2.8 million after they retire. However, Salina City Manager Jason Gage says the estimates are misleading because they don’t take into account factors like variation in employee pay from year to year, the average tenure of employees and the average life expectancy.
Taxpayers United of America, which is expected to visit Wichita on Thursday, hand delivered a letter to Gov. Sam Brownback earlier this week encouraging pension reform.
Findings from TUA’s pension project on Kansas City, Kansas, are featured in this article from the Kansas City Business Journal.
One of the largest taxpayer organizations in the United States is calling for reform of government worker pensions by revealing pension payouts to local officials, Fox4 reports.
Taxpayers United of America claims many government employees will become “pension millionaires” after they retire, with taxpayers footing the bill.
The group calculated the top 25 pensions for government employees in Wyandotte and Douglas counties.
Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Rick Armstrong tops the list in Wyandotte County. If he retires at 55 and lives until he’s 85, the group estimates he will receive about $3 million in pension payments.
Findings from TUA’s pension project on Saline, Kansas, are featured in this story from KSALLink.com.
An organization that believes government pensions are out of control, and unsustainable, will on Wednesday reveal the salaries and projected pensions of Salina and Saline County government employees.
Taxpayers United of America is currently traveling the country, making stops in every state.
In an effort to bring notice to their cause, the organization is stopping in communities across the country, revealing the salaries of local government employees, and projecting what their lifetime pensions will be.
For regular government employees the lifetime pensions are projected from retirement at age 62, to age 85. For police and fire lifetime pensions are projected from retirement at age 55, to age 85.
Appearing on KSAL’s Friendly Fire program Tuesday evening, the organization’s Vice President Christina Tobin revealed some of the group’s research.
Tobin said “Salina Police Chief James Hill can look forward to an estimated lifetime pension payout of $2,878,529, based on his current gross salary of $119,939. Sheriff Glen Kochanowski stands to receive an estimated lifetime pension payout of $2,041,290 based on his $85,054 gross salary. And Saline County Engineer Neil Cable will enjoy an estimated lifetime pension payout of $1,506,608 based on his annual gross wages of $102,490.”
Tobin says that she believes that all government workers need to get what is owed to them. However, the current pension system is broken, and needs to be changed to more of a 401K style program for new government employees.
She adds that though she thinks that current government workers should get what is owed to them, the current pension system cannot be sustained and needs to be changed immediately.
Taxpayers United of America plans to release their entire list of local Salina and Saline County government employee salaries, along with their projected lifetime pensions, on Wednesday.
Taxpayers United of America is a non-profit pro-taxpayer organization based in Chicago. The group is currently on a tour that will stop in all 50 states, and the Dictrict of Columbia, urging state governments to switch to 401K style pension plans.
