California is printing up $3.2 billion worth of “IOUs” to send to vendors and to people expecting cash payments from the state, including taxpayers due rebates for overpayment. Is this legal? (more…)

Via the redoubtable Larry Littlefield, recently released Census data on state and local public pension systems show that, compared to national averages, New York government employees directly contribute a much smaller share of their own retirement costs.

And that’s not all: New York public pension funds are more heavily invested in stocks (which means more exposure to downside risk for the taxpayers), and government workers and retirees make up a much larger share of the electorate in New York than in other states.

The details, as calculated by Littlefield (with “local” in New York denoting the New York City systems):

The short list of “critical, non-controversial” measures Governor Paterson has sent the deadlocked state Senate for possible action tonight includes a bill authorizing Nassau County to issue bonds to finance early retirement incentives for county employees.  Pursuant to an agreement between County Executive Thomas Suozzi and his local Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA), the county reportedly plans to issue $65 million in 10-year bonds to finance added severance payments of $1,000 per year of service for several hundred employees — in addition to their generous, taxpayer-guaranteed public pension and post-employment health benefits, that is.  The goal is to clear workers off the county payroll without layoffs.

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In 2008, the state Metropolitan Transportation Authority employed 539 police officers who were paid an average of $96,553, including overtime and shift differentials.    A salary database of all 78,393 MTA employees during 2008 — searchable by name, title and authority subsidiary — is posted under the “payroll” tab at www.SeeThroughNY.net.

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China is likely to set up a new stock market through which smaller companies can access domestic and possibly international capital, the Financial Times reports. (more…)

As part of the February stimulus package, Washington offered new inducement for municipalities to issue taxable bonds. The program may have the effect of pushing up tax rates for the wealthy. (more…)

That mindlessly right-wing rag, The New York Times, has a piece today that makes a simple and salient point about New York City pensions. If Albany won’t cooperate on real pension reform, one good way for the mayor to keep pension costs down is to control wages. (more…)

In April, the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority won Albany’s approval for a new, $1.5 billion annual tax on downstate payrolls. Now, the authority, with fresh finance-committee approval this morning, is moving to float a $600 million short-term bond against those expected revenues. (more…)

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee is choking on the estimated $1.6 trillion cost of national health insurance.  And out of left field, there’s this:

Ms. Feinstein has threatened to vote against Mr. Obama’s health care bill if it draws Medicare funds from high-cost areas like California to low-cost areas of the country. Ms. Feinstein noted that California’s population is greater than that of 21 states and the District of Columbia combined.

If Sen. Feinstein is serious, and if more of her colleagues from high-income states realize that an expanded federal role in health care will require a massive further redistribution of their constituents’ remaining wealth, Obama’s plan will be DOA.  (And if congressional representatives from New York do finally notice who pays the bill for big government, it’ll be about time.)

Congress is set to approve an add-on to the February stimulus law that will allow public-transit agencies, including New York’s state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to spend 10 percent of their stimulus money on operating costs, rather than for capital projects, the Daily News reports. (more…)