Chafee’s Role in Warwick’s Pension Mess
In a GoLocalProv story that reiterates much of what I wrote about back in April, Russel J. Moore also explains the mess that Warwick’s pension system is in and also traces it back to then-Mayor Lincoln Chafee:
Governor Chafee has been an outspoken advocate for municipal pension reform. But several of the issues in Warwick, can be directly traced to his administration. For instance, the Police and Fire I plan, which is dangerously underfunded and acts an as albatross to Warwick’s other pension plans is currently funded on a 40-year schedule. This was implemented in 1995—when Lincoln Chafee was Mayor of Warwick. Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) standards, which are federal guidelines that municipalities are supposed to adopt, and are solidified in state law, (General Law 45-10-15) say that a plan should not be funded over a period shorter than 30-years.
Remember, “no one is to blame” for our current pension problems? Right.
Here’s some serious irony. I was talking to the FOP president from another department during the last election. He said that Caprio was touting the Warwick plan as the model for public safety pensions. He said that Caprio highlighted a floating contribution which would be adjusted according to the annual return on investment. So basically, Caprio was promoting a Chafee plan that Chafee wouldn’t even promote. You can’t make this stuff up.