THE JANUARY 2001 PENSION SCAM

Is there any better example of the games that the political class plays than the attached story from the Commercial Appeal. I talked to Jim Strickland about this story and he only found out about this situation when certain people started retiring who were not in appointed positions when the January 2001 ordinance was revoked in 2004. Scott McCormick wrote the language and it was assumed then that only those who were currently in appointed positions in 2004 would be covered under the January 2001 pension resolution which allowed elected and appointed people to retire after 12 years regardless of age.

What happened? Well it turns out that Sara Hall and certain Herenton administration officials twisted the language and determined that if a civil service employee was later moved to an appointed position after the revocation of the January 2001 ordinance and if they had 12 years or more of service, they could retire regardless age. Some have and more are probably lining up.

It is a disgrace and it points out that the pension system should be changed so that all future employees should be covered by a 401K like the people who make the whole system possible, the taxpayers. It is time for the taxpayers and voters to take back control of the system and their pocketbooks.

 

Click here to read the Commercial Appeal article