Curtis to Speicher re: speakers, petitions & membership
Hello Dave,
Thank you for your reply once again. I hope that many in your RTA will consider supporting CORE, as we have been the only organization that has been at the STRS each month for the past three years, actively supporting the reform process suggested by Dr. Dennis Leone; one that desperately needs to take place. We have many people who on a monthly basis speak to the board for the allotted 3 minutes available to each speaker.
It is unfortunate, but our past board members and organizations we have always looked to for leadership and support have failed us, as they have not kept their eye on ORC 3307.15 and we have suffered a great price for such. CORE members are already life members of those many organizations such as OEA & OEA-R, OFT & OFT-R, ORTA, AAUP, OCHER, and local union associations but have found them to not be taking the lead in the much needed reform process.
At this point in time the STRS has an unfunded accrued liability of 55.5 years, when it is supposed to be at 30 or less years. You may not understand what this means, but generally speaking, it means that the contributions coming in from the active teacher and their board of education no longer sustain the pension promises made to each of us and is grossly underfunded. We are now totally dependent upon the profits from the STRS investments of our funds and have no money left to benefit the membership health care stabilization fund. This fund is predicted to be out of funds in 2018, which is not far off. Retirees are looking at continuing increases in our cost for health care, which reduces the buying power of our pension check for every retiree. For those of us retirees between the ages of 50-64, the cost of such has very drastically affected our buying power to the point that many have had to go back to work to either obtain other HC coverage, or to supplement the cost of the STRS HC coverage. This is a serious concern of CORE. Those retirees who had the spousal and dependent child subsidy removed have had to absorb the greatest expense of all retirees today. This is not right, but the STRS tells us that there is no money to grandfather those that had already retired and had been promised those benefits. This is not an acceptable answer to me, I do not know how you feel about what I have just explained, but please feel free to respond.
Our only possible way to alter this situation is to place people on the board that will assume the responsibility to make the necessary changes suggested by Dr. Dennis Leone in his May 2003 position paper to the STRS board, for a start. CORE has endorsed two candidates we believe will honor our concerns, Dr. Thomas Hall, an Economics professor at Miami University and Mark Fredrick, an English teacher in the Cleveland Public Schools system. That is why I asked you for support in getting their petitions signed by active, inactive or disability retiree members of the STRS. If you might help in any way, please contact me immediately.
78% of our funds are invested in the stock market, in hope that sufficient gains can be obtained each year to make up the difference of what the teacher/employer contributions to the pension fund bring in. If the stock market would have a huge downturn once again, as it often does, our pensions would be in jeopardy. This is not a good scenario and one few retirees seem to be concerned about.
We must become more involved and speak up, or the real possibility that our future financial situation will leave us unable to be self-supporting, as we have been accustomed to doing. Because of the changes in HC benefits, many of us are only one catastrophic illness away from bankruptcy. This is not why we joined and belonged to a retirement system.
Our fiduciaries have failed us miserably. The cost of the operation of the STRS is outrageous and has not been reduced significantly. These people have taken our money hostage and tell us they are our only chance for survival. This means we must totally depend on them to invest our funds wisely, for which they continually feel they must be paid higher wages. They spend our funds each year for consultants to make studies to support their need for more money, yet there is no more money to be had. This is a ridiculous request when funds are not available. These same people increased the cost of the operation of the STRS significantly during the same period of time that they lost $12.3 billion dollars. They claim to have no money to alleviate our suffering, but continually ask for raises for them. It is all about them and how much money they can make. They threaten us with each consultant's report that if we are not willing to increase their wages they will leave for greener pastures. That is basically a felonious statement.
What I am most concerned about is that investing our funds to provide for a reasonable pension and health care benefits is all they have ever been charged with, yet we find ourselves in this poor financial situation, because of their inability to deliver what they have promised us. Recently, Damon Asbury had the audacity to say to me, "Who promised you those benefits?" This is simply unbelievable to me!
Thank you again for your time to read my message,
Tom Curtis
CORE Advisory Committee Member
Thank you for your reply once again. I hope that many in your RTA will consider supporting CORE, as we have been the only organization that has been at the STRS each month for the past three years, actively supporting the reform process suggested by Dr. Dennis Leone; one that desperately needs to take place. We have many people who on a monthly basis speak to the board for the allotted 3 minutes available to each speaker.
It is unfortunate, but our past board members and organizations we have always looked to for leadership and support have failed us, as they have not kept their eye on ORC 3307.15 and we have suffered a great price for such. CORE members are already life members of those many organizations such as OEA & OEA-R, OFT & OFT-R, ORTA, AAUP, OCHER, and local union associations but have found them to not be taking the lead in the much needed reform process.
At this point in time the STRS has an unfunded accrued liability of 55.5 years, when it is supposed to be at 30 or less years. You may not understand what this means, but generally speaking, it means that the contributions coming in from the active teacher and their board of education no longer sustain the pension promises made to each of us and is grossly underfunded. We are now totally dependent upon the profits from the STRS investments of our funds and have no money left to benefit the membership health care stabilization fund. This fund is predicted to be out of funds in 2018, which is not far off. Retirees are looking at continuing increases in our cost for health care, which reduces the buying power of our pension check for every retiree. For those of us retirees between the ages of 50-64, the cost of such has very drastically affected our buying power to the point that many have had to go back to work to either obtain other HC coverage, or to supplement the cost of the STRS HC coverage. This is a serious concern of CORE. Those retirees who had the spousal and dependent child subsidy removed have had to absorb the greatest expense of all retirees today. This is not right, but the STRS tells us that there is no money to grandfather those that had already retired and had been promised those benefits. This is not an acceptable answer to me, I do not know how you feel about what I have just explained, but please feel free to respond.
Our only possible way to alter this situation is to place people on the board that will assume the responsibility to make the necessary changes suggested by Dr. Dennis Leone in his May 2003 position paper to the STRS board, for a start. CORE has endorsed two candidates we believe will honor our concerns, Dr. Thomas Hall, an Economics professor at Miami University and Mark Fredrick, an English teacher in the Cleveland Public Schools system. That is why I asked you for support in getting their petitions signed by active, inactive or disability retiree members of the STRS. If you might help in any way, please contact me immediately.
78% of our funds are invested in the stock market, in hope that sufficient gains can be obtained each year to make up the difference of what the teacher/employer contributions to the pension fund bring in. If the stock market would have a huge downturn once again, as it often does, our pensions would be in jeopardy. This is not a good scenario and one few retirees seem to be concerned about.
We must become more involved and speak up, or the real possibility that our future financial situation will leave us unable to be self-supporting, as we have been accustomed to doing. Because of the changes in HC benefits, many of us are only one catastrophic illness away from bankruptcy. This is not why we joined and belonged to a retirement system.
Our fiduciaries have failed us miserably. The cost of the operation of the STRS is outrageous and has not been reduced significantly. These people have taken our money hostage and tell us they are our only chance for survival. This means we must totally depend on them to invest our funds wisely, for which they continually feel they must be paid higher wages. They spend our funds each year for consultants to make studies to support their need for more money, yet there is no more money to be had. This is a ridiculous request when funds are not available. These same people increased the cost of the operation of the STRS significantly during the same period of time that they lost $12.3 billion dollars. They claim to have no money to alleviate our suffering, but continually ask for raises for them. It is all about them and how much money they can make. They threaten us with each consultant's report that if we are not willing to increase their wages they will leave for greener pastures. That is basically a felonious statement.
What I am most concerned about is that investing our funds to provide for a reasonable pension and health care benefits is all they have ever been charged with, yet we find ourselves in this poor financial situation, because of their inability to deliver what they have promised us. Recently, Damon Asbury had the audacity to say to me, "Who promised you those benefits?" This is simply unbelievable to me!
Thank you again for your time to read my message,
Tom Curtis
CORE Advisory Committee Member
posted by Kathie Bracy at 2:13 PM
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