US pension insurer runs record $34B deficit

[Locutus]

Can't be good can it?



WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal agency that insures pensions for more than 40 million Americans last year ran the widest deficit in its 38-year history.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. said Friday that its deficit grew to $34 billion for the budget year that ended Sept. 30. That compares with a $26 billion shortfall in the previous year.

Pension obligations grew by $12 billion to $119 billion last year. Assets used to cover those obligations increased by only $4 billion to $85 billion.

The agency has now run deficits for 10 straight years. The gap has grown wider in recent years because the weak economy has triggered more corporate bankruptcies and failed pension plans.

If the trend continues, the agency could struggle to pay benefits without an infusion of taxpayer funds.


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US pension insurer runs record $34B deficit

 

[Jenson]

......and?

 

[Highball]

This is just another indicator that governments aren't successful at any business venture. Dump $400 million in the venture and reap a deficit in the first year of $500 million. Then give the over seer of the venture a $200 million dollar bonus for failing. This is the American way, right? Look at Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae who seem to be solvent but the parent FHA is billions in debt it can't repay. Successful government ventures are not a US tradition.

 

[Jenson]

Sort of like how the private sector sold mortgages then bet against them.... Oh yeah the evil public sector....give me a break.

 

[Kreskin]

......and?

Well these threads are always about chastising liberal policies, preferably Obama. In this case the insurer was formed just two weeks into the Ford administration.

 

[Jenson]

Well these threads are always about chastising liberal policies, preferably Obama. In this case the insurer was formed just two weeks into the Ford administration.

You mean before the deficit creator Reagan the saint of allllllll concervatives?

 

[Kreskin]

You mean before the deficit creator Reagan the saint of allllllll concervatives?

Yup.

 

[Jenson]

Yup.

That's what I thought.....lol!

 

[The Old Medic]

Congress had passed the legislation establishing the Benefit Guaranty Corporation. No President has the authority to set up an agency like that, only Congress can do this, by passing it into law. The President can either sign the bill, Veto the bill, or just do nothing. In that case it becomes law without his signature, UNLESS Congress goes into recess after passing the bill.

By the way, I am, and always have been, a Conservative. I do NOT consider Ronald Reagan to be a "Saint". In fact, he actually governed as a "Moderate", and NOT as a Conservative.

To me, the ONLY true Conservative that has ever been nominated by a Major political party since 1900 was Barry Goldwater. Goldwater would consider most of todays "political conservatives" to be anything BUT conservatives.

A true Conservative is not at all concerned with any private behavior, unless that behavior somehow harms others. As an example, a true conservative would not give a damn about a person using any form of drug, UNLESS in using that drug they endangered others (like having a PCP rage or driving under the influence), engaging in homosexual behavior, etc. etc.

A "true Conservative" would never support, or establish, most of the Federally funded programs that currently exist (including those started under Reagan). To a true "Conservative, the Federal Government has absolutely NO business regulating, or funding) anything that should be under the control, of the States (such as Education, medical care, drug and alcohol use, etc., etc.

So please, if you set out to slam "Conservatives" it would help a LOT if you actually know what "Conservatives" stand for. Just because someone calls themself a "Conservative", does not actually make them one.

 

[tay]

Who Wants to "Fix" Your Social Security?



CEO's Who Can't Manage Their Companies' Retirement Plans Want to "Fix" Social Security



Americans only pay Social Security taxes on their first $110,000 of wages each year. Workers who earn more than that don't pay taxes on their additional income, nor do investors who earn money from dividends and capital gains. In other words, the top 1% of Americans finish paying into Social Security by mid-March (if they pay at all) while the overwhelming majority of us continue to pay a percentage of our paychecks into the fund all year long, year in and year out.

If lawmakers take a bold step and raise the cap on the Social Security payroll tax to make all income subject to payroll taxes, the Congressional Budget Office estimates, it would do three times as much to solve Social Security's shortfall as raising the retirement age to 70. It would raise enough revenue to close Social Security's solvency gap for 75 years and improve benefits for retirees.

It's also unlikely that "Fix the Debt" campaign members would ask lawmakers to raise the cap on Social Security as they stand to reap billions in windfalls if Congress approves one of their main proposals. But why should lawmakers take advice from CEOs who can't manage their own companies' retirement plans?


CEO's Who Can't Manage Their Companies' Retirement Plans Want to "Fix" Social Security | Mother Jones