NY Budget Sweetens Pensions for Some Workers at $4 Billion Cost
- Budget rolls back part of 2012 pension reform under Cuomo
- Move will help retain public sector workers AFL-CIO says
New York Fire Department firefighters work at night in the Manhattan borough of New York on Feb. 4.
Photographer: Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Taxpayer contributions to New York City and state pensions will rise by $4 billion under a benefit sweetener for some public employees included in the state budget.
The budget reverses Tier 6, a 2012 pension reform pushed through by former Governor Andrew Cuomo after the financial crisis opened up yawning funding gaps for public employee pensions. The reform extended the average salary to calculate pensions to the last five years of employment for workers hired after April 1, 2012 — a group that encompasses about half of the city and state workforce.