Former Warwick Councilman Accuses Mayor of Ignoring Pension Problem

Former Warwick Councilman Accuses Mayor of Ignoring Pension Problem

A former Warwick City Councilman and School Committee Chairman claims the city’s pension system is not as safe as Mayor Scott Avedisian, suggesting the existing plan is in “critical status.”

Robert Cushman, who has been highly critical of Avedisian in the past, made the claims during presentation before the Rhode Island Municipal Pension Study Commission last week.

Since 2004, Cushman says, approximately forty-five cents out of every dollar raised from city taxes is going to pension and OPEB (Other Post-Employment Benefits) costs. Furthermore, factoring in existing employee salaries, sick pay, and health care costs, $0.92 of every dollar in new taxes is devoured by those costs.

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Cushman says the costs then leave little funding for other necessary city services.

“We are clearly in a crisis situation in Warwick, with the lion share of our tax dollars going to fund an unsustainable pension system and employee benefits program,” he said. “Our city is doing what Providence did years ago, ignoring the problem and kicking the problem down the road until it blows up on someone else’s watch. Politicians come and go…but those of us who live here in Warwick are going to be stuck with a huge bill if we don’t get serious about addressing this crisis now.”

Cushman further went on to say that the recent municipal pension reform steps in Warwick did nothing to alleviate the situation. An analysis of the numbers shows that Warwick won’t begin saving any money from the reforms until 2015. In fact, according to the actuarial findings, Warwick will not save $1 million until 2023. With taxpayer contributions to the system rising dramatically in that time frame, by 2023 these contributions will have increased by a shocking $25 million.

“The Mayor likes to point to cuts in state aid being the driving force behind the need to continue to raise property taxes and the need to hike automobile taxes to fund city government services,” he said. “But the real story is how taxpayer money is simply being funneled to preserve employee pensions and healthcare retirement benefits.”

Avedisian could not immediately be reached for comment.

Since 2004, Warwick’s local property taxes have increased from $162 million to $214 million. However, when the city raised $52 million to replace the $15 million lost in state revenues, the remaining money did not go to the services the city so desperately needed, Cushman claims..

“It didn’t provide better city services or expanded programs to the people of Warwick. It went to paying for an unsustainable pension and benefits system that is in dire need of reform.”