**********1-9-2015 Letter from Speaker Greg Stumbo*********** I am writing to inform you that today, Jan. 9th, I filed House Bill 4, which is modeled after the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System’s (KTRS) $3.3 billion bond proposal presented at the November meeting of the legislature’s State Government Committee meeting. I filed this legislation because I believe the time is ripe and we need to start the discussion of how to address the additional funding needed for the KTRS pension fund. I want to emphasize that the bill does not alter teachers’ pension benefits in any shape or form. HB 4 only addresses the additional funding requested by the system and sets out a plan to support those contributions in future years. I was pleased to learn that Kentucky Treasurer Todd Hollenbach, an ex officio member of KTRS, said that he “wholeheartedly support(s)” this approach. We worked with KTRS staff on preparing the bill to ensure that it mirrored their proposal. The bill uses a combination of bond proceeds and direct state appropriations to pay the additional contributions needed to fund the KTRS pension fund on an actuarially sound basis. In addition to the bond funds, the bill also expresses intent to build in incremental increases in the direct state appropriation over the next eight years until it reaches the full contribution rate to the pension fund. This will ensure that money will be in place to fully fund the rate as the bond proceeds are exhausted. Again, I am filing this bill today because I believe this issue deserves to be considered and debated. I understand that this is a significant amount to bond and recognize the risks associated with this proposal, but I think we owe it to our teachers to start the discussion and give this proposal a chance to be heard. This legislation will be available online, and can be found on the General Assembly’s website at lrc.ky.gov. If you would like to leave a message for any or all legislators regarding this legislation, that toll-free number is 1-800-372-7181. Sincerely, Gregory D. Stumbo Speaker of the House of Representatives [email protected]
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 22:22:48 +0000
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