Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Councilwoman Vicki Almond is the lone dissenting vote as an 11th hour push to table the legislation fails.
A change to how county employees appeal pension decisions was approved despite an 11th hour attempt to delay the final vote. The Baltimore County Council Tuesday night voted 6-1 in favor of the legislation that moves the appeals process from a seven-member panel appointed by the council to one of two administrative law judges appointed by the county executive. Councilwoman Vicki Almond, a Reisterstown Democrat, was the lone vote against the bill and three amendments. Almond, reading from a prepared statement, said the bill would affect the integrity of the council and "county employees for years to come." She said conflicting legal opinions offered by County Attorney Michael Field and county legislators in the General Assembly was reason …
39.399673
-76.605396
Baltimore County Administration
400 Washington Ave, Towson, MD
/articles/council-approves-changes-to-pension-appeals
427724
/locations/8849736
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
A federal judge grants the county permission to seek an appeal while the damages phase of the trial continues.
Baltimore County will appeal a federal judge's ruling in October that found pension rules that charge some county employees different rates are discriminatory. At issue is an October ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Benson Everett Legg that found that the county's pension rules requiring different contribution rates from employees based on age violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. That ruling came after a federal appeals court overturned Legg's original ruling that was in favor of the county. The county asked Legg for permission to seek an appeal on his current ruling while the trial enters the damages phase. The county argued in a filing that it would need as long as two years to review as many as 10,000 pension …
Thursday, November 29, 2012
The proceeds of the sale will be used for the county employee's pension plan.
County officials say a better than expected bond sale to be used for the pension system will save county taxpayers $83 million more than originally estimated. The county sold $256 million in bonds at an interest rate of about 3.43 percent—nearly a full percentage point lower than expected. The better than expected result means the county will pay $416 million in principal and interest over the next 30 years instead of nearly $500 million. The County Council approved the bond sale in October. The borrowed money is needed because the board of the Baltimore County Employees Retirement System voted to reduce its expected rate of return on investments. That change, made in July, would result in an additional $15 million payment from the county …
Monday, October 22, 2012
The lawsuit was filed in 2007 on behalf of two county Department of Corrections employees.
Baltimore County pension rules that charge some employees different rates are discriminatory, according to a ruling by a federal judge. U.S District Court Judge Benson Everett Legg ruled that pension rules requiring different contribution rates from employees based on age violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which brought the suit in 2007, announced the decision Monday afternoon. The federal commission brought the suit on behalf of two county Department of Corrections employees. The county made changes to its pension system in July 2007. Employees hired after that date contributed to their pensions at a flat rate regardless of their age at the time of their hiring. …
Monday, October 15, 2012
County officials say borrowing the money will save county taxpayers $260 million in pension costs over the next 30 years.
Baltimore County will borrow up to $260 million for its pension system under a plan approved unanimously Monday by the Baltimore County Council. The proposal was part of a two-bill package approved by a 7-0 vote. The borrowed money is needed because the board of the Baltimore County Employees Retirement System voted to reduce its expected rate of return on investments. That change, made in July, would result in an additional $15 million payment from the county next year. "That amount would grow to a much larger level over the next 30 years," said Keith Dorsey, the county's budget and finance director. Without the change, county officials estimate that it would have to contribute $4.8 billion to the retirement system. With the change …
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Union representing nearly 1,600 County employees agrees to increased pension contributions in return for guaranteed pay increases and no layoffs or furloughs for the next three years.
The union representing correctional workers, highway supervisors, 911 employees, and office workers has reached an agreement with the county. As part of the agreement, members of the Baltimore County Federation of Public Employees will receive regular step and longevity increases and a guarantee of no layoffs or furloughs through June 30, 2015 in return for increased pension contributions made by corrections officers. Currently, corrections officers contribute 8 percent of their salary to the county pension system. As part of the agreement, corrections officers hired after July 1, 2011 will contribute 10 percent. "I am very pleased that the County was once again able to reach an agreement with labor," said Baltimore County Executive Kevin …
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
County Administrative Officer Fred Homan asks to fund pension liabilities with $255 million in debt.
Baltimore County officials are asking the County Council to approve the issuance of $255 million in bonds to fund the pension system. County Administrative Officer Fred Homan told the council during a Tuesday lunch briefing that he wants to use the money to invest in the pension system. "There are market risks to a pension bond deal," Homan said, adding that the risk is not achieving the 4.25 to 4.5 percent rate of interest the county believes the bonds will sell for. Currently, the nearly $2 billion pension system is funded at nearly 77 percent. Homan said the move is expected to lower long-term pension system costs over the next 30 years. The request will be part of a two-bill package introduced Monday night with a vote expected in …
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Baltimore County officials say the loan for a Cockeysville recycling facility from its underfunded pension system is a "win-win." But some County Council members have questions.
UPDATED (3:16 p.m.)—Some Baltimore County Council members and union officials say a $25 million loan made to the county from its own pension system raises questions. The loan will be used to pay for a new recycling facility in Cockeysville. It's the same facility for which the Baltimore County Council approved $25 million in bond sales last November. Councilmen David Marks and Tom Quirk say they now have questions about the change in how the project is financed and the lack of independent oversight. "I don't know any of the details of the arrangement at all," Quirk said. "We definitely have questions." Marks, a Perry Hall Republican, said he was withholding judgement on the changes but was asking the administration to provide a legal …
39.471931
-76.646394
Recycle Way, Cockeysville, MD
/articles/25m-pension-loan-raises-eyebrows-questions
/locations/7521286
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Expert: "To be in denial, and say you’re ahead of the curve and that you’re in good shape and will stay in good shape is just ignoring reality."
UPDATE (9:10 a.m.)—The board that governs the pension plan for Baltimore County employees is lowering its official expectations on annual investments made by the retirement system. The eight-member board Tuesday unanimously approved a decrease in the assumed annual investment earnings rate by more than six-tenths of a percent to 7.25 percent. The rate is used to determine the county's level of funding for the nearly $2 billion pension system each year. The change means the county will have to come up with an additional $15 million in pension contributions beginning next July 1. The board’s action Tuesday is the first time the rate has been changed since it was set in 1993, according to a report by the Baltimore County Auditor’s office …
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
County Administrative Officer Fred Homan, in an April 30 letter, writes that the firms withdrew because of disclosure of information provided at a secret meeting between county officials and Council on April 16.
Updated (4:59 p.m.)—A contract to hire an outside attorney to sue Merrill Lynch over a failed $21 million investment has been withdrawn. In an April 30 letter to the Baltimore County Council, County Administrative Officer Fred Homan said the contract with Scott, Douglass and McConnico, LLP and Themis PLLC was being withdrawn due to press reports about the potential lawsuit. Homan wrote that "due to the disclosure of confidential information about Baltimore County's claim, they are not willing to move forward on the county's behalf at this time." Patch reported two weeks ago that county officials met secretly with members of the Baltimore County Council to discuss a 2007 investment in Mainsail II LLC. That investment, which involved …
moe green
5:29 am on Tuesday, March 26, 2013
another member of the stay at home but want to get paid crowd. how about you lose forty pounds, join a gym and stop smoking? more ›