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Reckoning with Historic Unfunded Municipal Pension Obligations
This report examines the historical decisions that contributed to these unfunded liabilities and highlights how current taxpayers are paying more than their fair share.
March 25, 2025
Key Takeaways
- As of 2023, recent generations of Massachusetts taxpayers paid an estimated $22 billion more than their fair share to cover local pension obligations left by prior generations, yet these local plans still have an estimated $8 billion in unfunded liabilities.
- Current taxpayers face additional costs because most of the pension funds are managed by local boards that have underperformed the state pension fund by more than $5.4 billion since the 1980s.
- Geographic disparities associated with uneven changes in population since the late 1970s have exacerbated this burden for residents of some communities, including many Gateway Cities.
- This pattern means lower-income residents and people of color shoulder an inequitable share of legacy pension costs. Since the 1980s, Gateway City residents have paid billions more than their own generation’s fair share to cover local pension costs, with more than $5 billion in appropriations made for legacy pension costs since 2010.
Latest MassINC Updates
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Gateway Cities Journal: Restoring Homes and Reviving Hope
Dina Fein reflects on key insights from the Reclaiming Vacant Property Conference and outlines a path forward for transforming abandoned spaces into stable homes.
April 17, 2025
MassINC Matters: April 2025
April 15, 2025
Event Recap: Reclaiming Vacant Property Conference
April 15, 2025
Upcoming Events
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Apr. 30, 2025
No Man is an Island: The Collective Climate Challenge of Coastal Massachusetts
A moderated conversation on living and planning responsibly on the Cape and Islands, balancing today’s choices with the long-term realities of climate change.
7:00pm – 8:00pmProvincetown Town Hall
May. 5, 2025
The Shifting Federal Landscape: MA Nonprofits Raise the Alarm
The Boston Foundation, Massachusetts Nonprofit Network, and MassINC Polling Group invite you to the release of the MA Nonprofits Federal Impacts Survey results, with responses from over 500 nonprofit leader capturing nonprofit perceptions of the new administration's impact on their organizations and vulnerable communities.
12:30pm – 2:00pmLivestream
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