Politics & Government

Marin Coalition Focuses On Pension Reform

Larkspur's Larry Chu advises local and state agencies to reduce costs and work with unions to fix pension problems.

Larkspur City Councilman Larry Chu is good at adding up the numbers — it's kind of what he does — but the numbers don't seem to always add up when he looks at government pension practices.

Chu, San Rafael Mayor Gary Phillips and Marin County administrator Matthew Hymel will be the guest speakers Wedneday during a Marin Coalition luncheon, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at Deer Park Villa in Fairfax. The topic is "Pension Reform - The Challenge Confronting Local Governmental Agencies Today / Trying to Apply Governor Brown's 12 Point Pension Plan Proposals"

"If you go back to 1999 that was a delineating point when legislation was passed by the California Assembly that lowered the retirement age of public employees to 50 years old and also provided those benefits to other existing employees retroactively," Chu said in an address earlier this year. "What it effectively did was to take a lot of the gains that had been made when the stock markets had been doing well and took it to the point where there were inadequate supplies and reserves to meet the times when the pension systems were not generating what they needed to."

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Chu has suggested that local and state governments must reduce costs and potential risks in order to avoid potential economic disaster. He has called for government agencies and unions to work together to find a viable middle ground.


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