When Deanna Woods retired, she wondered what she would do with her time. But filling her time has not been a problem. The newest OPRI Board member shares that the key is to keep learning and to do something that makes a difference. Throughout her career, Deanna served in the Portland Public Schools, where she…
On August 6, 2020, the Oregon Supreme Court denied the challenge brought forward by public employee unions regarding pension benefit reductions which passed during the 2019 Legislative Session through Senate Bill 1049. The lawsuit alleged that SB 1049 was unconstitutional and sought to overturn provisions of the law. Here is a look back at the…
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the reductions in public employee pension benefits that the Legislature passed in 2019 to help address the state’s burgeoning pension funding deficit and rein in the escalating pension costs and resulting budget problems for public employers. Read the full story on The Oregonian
Oregon lawmakers have successfully, if perhaps temporarily, halted the steady upward trajectory of public pension costs for government employers, according to a preliminary analysis of pension contribution rates that will kick in a year from now. That’s good news for public employers around the state struggling with revenue declines amid an economic recession, and increased service needs…
Helga Thompson dedicated her career to educating children. Now, as an OPRI Board member, she dedicates time to protecting retirement benefits for teachers like herself. Born in West Germany, Helga’s family immigrated to the U.S. when she was six years old. Helga describes her life growing up as calm and quiet, her father working in…
It’s been 10 weeks since Governor Brown issued the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order that resulted from our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Oregonians made many sacrifices to stay home as much as possible in order to slow the spread of the virus. Now, as Stay Home orders begin to lift across Oregon, many…
Coronavirus market chaos slashes Oregon PERS investments by billions – oregonlive.com The coronavirus market contagion has cleaved billions of dollars off the value of Oregon’s public pension fund investments and significantly increased the system’s unfunded liabilities. Continue reading story on The Oregonian
Schools, municipalities and public employers across Oregon will get a reprieve from the relentless increases in employee pension costs they’ve been facing since the 2008 financial crisis. Continue reading story on The Oregonian
Each year, OPRI conducts a membership survey to better understand member perspectives on PERS reform and make sure we are accurately representing the views of our members in the Legislature. Below are the results of this year’s survey. 1. Do you believe that Oregon’s Public Employee Retirement System has become a financial crisis for state…