Senator Edward Kasemeyer, Chair of the Senate Budget & Taxation Committee led a discussion of public pension plan liabilities and the ways that the State and local governments are working to reduce liabilities.

During the session, In the Wake of Detroit: Public Pension Liabilities, Elizabeth K. Kellar, President/CEO, Center for State and Local Government Excellence gave national perspective on unfunded liabilities of pension plans.

Anne E. Gawthrop, Esq., the Maryland State Retirement Agency’s Director of Legislative Affairs began with a brief history of  the State Pension System’s funding, including the effects of the “corridor” funding method. She described the General Assembly’s reforms of the pension system, including the plan to reinvest savings back into the system and other changes that will help bring the State’s system back into a healthy level of funding by 2025.

Kristin Barcak, Baltimore City’s Ten-Year Financial Plan Manager, began her presentation by noting the financial strain on the City of Baltimore. She then described how the reforms will bring the City’s benefits package into alignment with industry standards and sustain its ability to raise salaries, changes that are in line with the interests of  millennial job seekers.