Reader reaction to “Retirement Debt: What’s the problem and how does it affect you?“

Great article. Clear and informative. I would have preferred that there was more detail re Gray Davis’s 1999 benefit increase. It wasn’t just an “enhancement.” It was a huge and disastrous increase. By changing from 2 percent to 3 percent, that is a 50 percent increase. Plus allowing earlier retirement, the combined effect became a more than 50 percent increase in pension liability for public agencies. This blew up the system and more than anything else, created the problem.

Michael Henn, Piedmont
Feb. 24, 2018