State agrees to revise pension reports

Town Manager Bruce St. Denis informed the Town Commission Wednesday through an e-mail  the state is willing to help resolve a pension issue that arose when no employees took advantage of an early retirement incentive last year.

Foster & Foster actuary Brad Heinrichs told the commission last week that the state mandates that actuaries assume everyone that’s offered an early retirement incentive will take advantage of the offer.

“When zero people took the incentive last year, we are talking about a huge finding difference for this fiscal year,” Heinrichs said.

That funding shortfall was $3 million.

But Heinrichs and Finance Director Tom Kelley explained to the commission that only another $200,000 will be needed to fund the town’s three under-funded pension plans this year if the state is agreeable to a calculation change.

Wrote St. Denis: “I spoke to Brad Heinrich of Foster & Foster today. He said that the state has agreed to accept revised actuarial impact statements from the town. The revised reports would take out the factor for early outs not taken and will revise downward the amount owed in this fiscal year.”

Foster & Foster, St. Denis said, will file the revised reports at their expense.

The new reports will have to be taken to each of the town’s pension boards for approval before they are sent to the state.

Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].