Connecticut’s two largest pension funds for teachers and state employees received 16 percent returns over the course of one year thanks to a surging stock market, giving the state a much needed boost.
Last week Pelletier decided to lash out against the Commission on Fiscal Stability and Economic Growth with an op-ed in the Hartford Business Journal and some quotes in a CT Mirror story. According to her, the commission “attacks working people” because it is daring to discuss Connecticut’s financial problems and — gasp! — look at charts and graphs.
Connecticut lowered the discount rate of the teacher’s retirement system from 8.5 percent to 8 percent in 2016, but it still remains higher than most other states. According to NASRA the median discount rate has dropped to 7.5 percent.
Pension and healthcare costs for employees with the Department of Transportation grew $30 million over three years, increasing operating costs for Connecticut’s beleaguered Special Transportation Fund. According to figures from the State Comptroller’s Office, between 2014 and 2017 state pension contributions increased $21 million, while healthcare costs increased $9 million.
The number of retired state employees receiving six figure pensions jumped by at least 30 percent since 2016 and more than 1,000 percent since 2010. According to a report by the Hartford Courant, there are now “nearly 1,400” retirees who received more than $100,000 in pension payments over the course of 2017.
Connecticut has spent $13.9 million more in overtime for state employees during the first half of this new fiscal year than it did in 2017, according to a report by the Office of Fiscal Analysis. Connecticut had been making headway in reducing overtime spending since a high of $256.1 million in 2015. In 2017, Connecticut spent a total of $204.4 million.