Jackson Jambalaya

More importantly, why was it formed and by whom? Why was there a need for a separate plan, funded separately? Why 150% of the benefit available to PERS retirees? And, parenthetically who give themselves the benefit of counting mileage as income when disallowing that for all other PERS participants.

Why should a part-time employee working for four years be eligible for a taxpayer funded retirement plan? Why are they at liberty to double their own plan (if not caught at it)? Who else, other than Congress, determines their own perks and benefits and which laws they're exempt from?

The $500 odd monthly benefit you say you concluded, ain't bad for a temporary, part-time gig, especially when you're George Flaggs who has been a PERS participant for many years, is at the same time a SLRP member and is running for mayor so he can contribute on the municipal side of the equation. If he could speak The King's English he might be in the Highway Patrol as well.

Anyway, good to see this element of PERS getting attention (again).

Lulz

And, why haven't those who pretend to be fiscal conservatives submitted a bill to change this?

Why didn't governors who ran on being fiscal conservatives make this an issue while in office?

Per diem is something that should be looked at as well especially when so much business can be done via the Internet now. And,how much of the " business" for these extra days could and should have taken place while " on the clock".

And, I want to know if banks still forgive loans to politicians who win State elections and if the interest rates on loans for cars/mortgages/investments are lower than for those with an excellent credit rating ?

I also wish someone would compare state contracts awarded to campaign contributions made and parties given.

I want someone to look into " studies" taxpayers pay to have done and see how much of that information could have been gathered in a matter of hours by a state employee already paid to provide information.

Or, we could just look at a politician's income and compare it to their lifestyle before taking office and once in office and get a hint.

Assumptions derived from averaging SLRP payouts are actually meaningless. The politician who is summarily defeated early on might draw a hundred bucks a month while the lifers who serve in multiple capacities, chairmanships, dual roles, etc, upon retirement will draw 30thousand a year until they die and then have the option to protect the little wife for her lifetime.

And, again, a real ass-chapper is (or should be) that they voted it possible for themselves to count per diem and travel as income, further enhancing their SLURP Trough.

Again, excellent for a part-time, temporary job where you can vote yourself lifetime benefits.

I think all plans for retirement should be consolidated. Part of austerity is simplicity in my view.

8:21. Agreed. But, do you see a correlation with the federal rules makers?

They design plans for US and tell the rest of us what our benefits will be yet exclude themselves, crafting finer ones for their own.

They write the regulations on trading, exemptions and loopholes for all of us, then exclude themselves and design self-gratifying avenues to riches; rules which are not subject to review.

They deluge business and industry with regulations, laws, employment behavioral rules....then exempt themselves.

They craft diminimus regulations for the rest of us that have no application to themselves. We have to report a gift card as income while they receive plasma screen television sets, jaunts to tropical locations, preferred loan rates and forgiven promisory notes.

Why are we surprised when this hokey bunch we elect and send to Jackson mimick those behaviors?