Raleigh, N.C. – Little noticed help came to North Carolina from the so-called bill with no name President Obama signed into law August 10.
The extra federal money from H.R. 1586 will help N.C. make a larger cash payment to the Teachers and State Employees Retirement System than budgeted. Unfortunately, the payment still falls about $182 million short. It’s the first time in 69 years the General Assembly failed to make a 100 percent contribution.
Gov. Beverly Perdue says the pension is not at risk. It is consistently ranked as one of the safest pensions in the country.
State Treasurer Janet Cowell says any risk to the pension is years down the road, but missing one payment can compound the problem in the years to come. To get the pension back on track, the General Assembly will have to come up with at least $1 billion next year.