Senate Takes Action on Pension Crisis

Feb 12, 2020 by AFP

Grassroots group thanks the Senate for passing pension reform, encourages House to support bill that puts state’s pension system on solvent path

SANTA FE, NM – Americans for Prosperity-New Mexico (AFP-NM) today commended the Senate for passing SB 72, a bill that reforms the Public Employees Retirement Associate (PERA) pension fund. The bill received bipartisan support in the Senate and a broad range of stakeholders have endorsed the bill.

The grassroots group has been at the forefront of advocating for pension reform. The organization is currently running statewide digital ads encouraging citizens to contact their legislators in support of SB 72, while also sending text messages and making phone calls encouraging support.

Americans for Prosperity-New Mexico State Director Burly Cain issued the following statement:

“We can no longer kick the can down the road, hoping our pension crisis resolves itself. The Senate showed the bold action that is needed to ensure the situation doesn’t get worse. This bill is a good first step toward getting our state’s pension system back on a fiscally sound path. We encourage the House to support this bill and protect taxpayers from higher taxes to pay for our broken pension system.”

Background:

New Mexico’s retirement system now has unfunded liabilities nearing $7 billion (almost the total proposed 2020 budget of our state), or $2,861 for every single person in New Mexico.

SB 72 will set the pension fund on a course to achieve 97% funding over the next 25 years.