Louisville Courier-Journal op-ed: Matt Bevin's pension plan will hurt Kentucky. Here's a better way to deal with this crisis
Thanks to Liles Taylor for sending us this.
By JOE GRAVISS and BUDDY WHEATLEY
With Gov. Matt Bevin calling a special legislative session beginning Friday to pass his public pension plan, we are reminded of Henry Ford, who famously said his customers could have cars painted “any color, so long as it’s black.”
For weeks now, the debate has focused solely on the governor’s bill and a few tweaks he’s made. Legislators have been told that he wants an up-or-down vote on his bill, specifically, and that we would be free to make additional changes in 2020. But there are other, less bumpy routes leading to the same destination.
The two of us serve on the General Assembly’s Public Pension Oversight Board and have a thorough understanding of the damage the governor’s bill would do if enacted. We share the same goal of protecting our public health departments, rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters, regional public universities and other quasi-governmental agencies from a crushing 68% increase in pension costs, starting in July. This bill, however, is not the way to do it.