State Policies Created School Pension Pain

State Policies Created School Pension Pain [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
"Pension costs are forcing tough choices on Michigan’s school districts.
Their problems are caused almost entirely by state policies, so the solution must come from the state.
In Michigan, school districts have little to say about the retirement benefits offered to their employees; all the key decisions are set by state policy.
The state requires districts to use its retirement system, sets its benefits, and decides what the funding assumptions and policies will be.
To pay for pension benefits, the state assesses districts a percentage of their payroll.
...If the state weren’t making these payments, it could use that same amount of money to increase the foundation allowance by $727 per pupil.
Conversely, if the state didn’t make those payments, districts would have to dip further into their foundation allowance to meet pension commitments.
Public attention often focuses on the size of the foundation allowance. 
But public school districts would rather see extra money from the state go to cover pension costs than increase the foundation allowance, an unrestricted grant.
The reason is that charter schools do not participate in the public school pension system and therefore do not receive the state pension assistance; they would, however, receive their share of an increased foundation allowance, and districts would receive less..."
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