KENTUCKY PENSION TRUTH

For much of the past decade, the Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions has led from the forefront of pension reform in the commonwealth of Kentucky. "Future Shock," the institute's groundbreaking four-part series released in 2011 and 2012, warned that without meaningful reforms, the pension liability would engulf Kentucky's entire economy. In a column published by the Bluegrass Institute on March 26, 2013, the late Lowell Reese, an esteemed journalist, publisher and former Chamber of Commerce executive, urged policymakers to take seriously the need to address the commonwealth's deepening pension crisis. "The soaring cost of public employee pensions in Kentucky has become a major societal issue," said Reese, who authored the "Future Shock" series. "The standard of living of all Kentuckians is at stake."... The pension and healthcare funds for government employees in Kentucky - the state-administered pension systems - are in significant financial stress. The unfunded..