State officials tackle pension reform

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - Gov. Lincoln Chafee and General Treasurer Gina Raimondo kicked off the first meeting of their pension advisory group Monday with warnings of hard work ahead but optimism a solution is possible.

"We have a formidable task in front of us," Chafee said, adding that he is confident the 12-member volunteer group is up to the task of helping solve the pension problem.

• Nesi's Notes: In-depth coverage on pension problems

Chafee and Raimondo created the panel after the state Retirement Board, which the treasurer chairs, approved new pension liability estimates this spring that showed Rhode Island's state system is $7 billion in the hole, with only about half the assets needed to pay future benefits.

The two leaders have asked the group to vet information about the pension system and make recommendations as they prepare legislation for the General Assembly to consider this fall. Reductions in benefits are among the choices on the table.

Raimondo said she hoped Rhode Island could create "a process other states can emulate" as they look to solve their own pension problems.

The pension group's members include Cranston Mayor Allan Fung; former Auditor General Ernest Almonte; the National Education Association Rhode Island's Robert Walsh; and Alicia Munnell, director of Boston College's Center for Retirement Research.

Another member, the Council 94 union's J. Michael Downey, said he has been contributing to the pension system for 32 years, and he told the group to keep the impact of their decisions on individuals in mind as they work.

Noting how often the issue has been taken up in the past, Chafee quoted a 2005 Providence Journal story that began: "This appears to be the year for pension reform." A number of the group's members said they hoped to craft a lasting solution once and for all.