San Jose Pension Crush Spurs Bid to Ease California Pacts

If Chuck Reed were a private employer and saw his pension costs triple in 10 years, he could cut future benefits as allowed under a federal law known as the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Reed, though, is mayor of San Jose, California, and the law doesn’t cover the public employees he oversees. Their pensions are treated as a contract between the government and worker. While cities are allowed to make changes for new hires, union representatives say that future benefits promised to existing workers can't be modified.