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Capitol Recap: Lawmakers Move On Municipal Pension Reforms

Matt Rourke
/
AP Photo

 

Lawmakers have advanced a proposal meant to address Pennsylvania's multibillion-dollar municipal pension problem — but some critics say it would severely compromise retirement security and fail to adequately address how funds are managed.

Collectively, the Commonwealth’s municipalities’ are projected to be $7.7 billion short of what they’ll need to pay promised retirement benefits. The estimate makes assumptions, in some cases about events decades in the future. But already,municipalities have been dealing with ballooning annual expenses. Some of the most dramatic illustrations are ScrantonPittsburghand Allentown.

Read the full version of this reportat Keystone Crossroads' websiteKeystone Crossroads is a new statewide public media initiative reporting on the challenges facing Pennsylvania's cities. WPSU is a participating station.

Emily Previti is WITF's reporter for Keystone Crossroads, a statewide public media collaboration focused on issues facing Pennsylvania's cities.