Bronze Supporter
- Messages
- 8,284
- Reactions
- 18,078
Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Should put the fear of God into many states that have used debt to finance their reckless spending. Everyone knows that debt cannot be pushed endlessly down the road, they just hope they are retired when it comes crashing down.
Now if it happened to Commiefornia too? That's a Schadenboner I'd need medical attention for. LOLCome on Stomper. Stop beating around the bush and tell us how you REALLY feel.
And I would like to add they can FOAD. Seeing The Peoples' Republik of Illinois melt down and explode would fill me with Schadenfreude.
We need a law that state employees can no longer have a pension and must plan their own retirement. The is no reason to offer this to state employees as almost all private businesses have done away with it. I can see offering it to be competitive if the private market offered pensions.
Should put the fear of God into many states that have used debt to finance their reckless spending. Everyone knows that debt cannot be pushed endlessly down the road, they just hope they are retired when it comes crashing down.
The following is as I remember - please correct if there are any LEOFF1 members here.
From 1970-1977, Washington State had a law enforcement/firefighter retirement system (LEOFF1) which paid medical and dental for life upon retirement. It paid 60% non-taxable for disability retirements - essentially a full paycheck. Sadly, too many ripped it off and the opinion of a single doctor was sufficient for a disability. It was amazing how many were miraculously cured after retirement. So, in usual government knee-jerk fashion, they gutted it and replaced it with LEOFF2, which gives you nothing but the promise of a paycheck each month. No medical. No dental. Rather than a pension system with investment, it is a "defined benefit." The worst example is a Seattle firefighter who became 100% disabled after only 6 months on the job. Since LEOFF2 is based on service credits, he gets $1.82 monthly. He would have received 60% of his wages tax-free plus medical and dental under the old system
Due to attrition, LEOFF1 eventually built up a reserve of some astronomical figure (multi-millions? one billion?) and the state was drooling to tap into it. They wanted to cash out the remaining retirees (no more paid medical or dental) and divvy the money up, holding back the state's portion of contributions. I think that a lawsuit was the only thing that stopped them.
Pension systems and the temptations of money and power are the downfall of many a state government. And the feds? Best not to even mention them...
The firefighter was young, so SSD would have been very little also. I never heard anymore about this, but it happened in the early 90s IIRC.Are in anyway suggesting that they would not get Federal Social security disability in this situation ?