The Working File

Today’s New York Post was just depressing on pension and tax issues.   First, in  YOU HURT, THEY PROSPER, an editorial predicted a massive tax hike to hit the state:
“Is it fair to ask the people who make more to pay a little bit more in this time of crisis?” he wondered last week, arguing for [...]

Mayor Bloomberg has an opinion article in today’s Daily News offering a rather weak reform of NYC public employee pensions:
Pensions. New York City offers full retirement benefits after only 20 years of service for uniformed workers. In this day and age, with people living longer, taxpayers cannot afford to continue hiring workers who will be [...]

Shannon Love at Chicago Boyz thinks that California has reached a tipping point:
Of course no one is being whipped, but in effect an ordinary citizen of California cannot get their desires for reduced state spending implemented due to the disproportionate power of the State’s employees and allied interest. It appears now that the government unions [...]

Last week the Metropolitan Transit Authority decided to punt its obligations, and agreed to refer its new labor negotiations to an arbitration panel.  With skyrocketing deficits and the promise of higher fares, higher taxes, and even a new tax on payrolls, they made no effort to confront the union over wages, work rules, or pensions.  [...]

Today’s opinion section in the Daily News today has three separate articles on taxes and pensions for government workers.  Well, two-and-a-half, really.
First, the lead editorial argues that government worker costs are way too high, and ends with this conclusion:
The runaway costs of pensions and health care are a major reason the city and state are [...]

The New York Times lead editorial today:
Concern over swelling deficits should not stop Congress from taking steps to revive the economy. But rising deficits — coupled with long-term budget problems driven mostly by the rising cost of health care — make it imperative to get the most from every dollar that is spent on stimulus. [...]

This is just about right, but doesn’t go far enough. Lawhawk points out that the so-called austerity budget proposed by Governor Patterson actually increases spending over the previous year. Lawhawk also notes that if Patterson had simply proposed the same budget used 2 year ago, he would have saved $7 billion. I [...]