While most folks are struggling to make ends meet in this depressed economy, New Jersey government and municipal retirees are cleaning up. In fact, 428 retirees pull in over $100,000 per year in pension money.
In 2008, the median pension in New Jersey was $61,800 for police and fire retirees, $81,700 for State Police, and $43,200 for teachers. These figures are more than the salary – yes, salary – of the average New Jersey worker, which is $37,900.
In a state with an $8 billion budget deficit this year, the $5.7 billion in pensions is an unfair drain on taxpayers. To add insult to injury, the state and many municipal governments have failed to keep up with fully funding these pension funds, meaning the public will get increasingly larger bills each year.
So what to do?
Obviously, the system needs to be changed. The thought that a fireman or policeman can work from age 21 to 46 and collect substantial sums of pension money after this 25 years, then start a second career, is unconscienable. Newly hired state employees, who could retire at age 55 as of 2001, have seen outgoing Governor Corzine increase that back to age 60.
It appears that legislators are fearful of reigning in the money grab by retirees. So taxpayers will continue to fund this act of greed through real estate taxes, which are already the highest in the United States.
There is one group that won’t be funding the pension through real estate taxes. Did I mention that one-third of these pensioners have moved out of New Jersey?
- Mountain Man
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