TKC LABOR DAY SPECIAL: TRUMP RECESSION AND PUBLIC SAFETY PENSIONS THREATEN TO BANKRUPT KANSAS CITY!!!



During one of the greatest bull markets and economic booms in American history, Kansas City's budget remains "structurally unbalanced" and unsustainable without dramatic increases in taxes and rate hikes on an electorate skeptical of 12th & Oak promises.

Don't worry, it gets worse . . .

On this Labor Day as Americans salute some of the most indefatigable members of our society. Hard fought pension obligations to valiant public safety workers also serve as an albatross around the neck of local government and the financial risk of disaster increases every day. Moreover, the prospect of recession could send this town into economic oblivion.

We don't need any insider to confirm this one, it's part of the public record that's ignored by most politicos, journalists and bureaucrats.

The basics of the budget show Kansas City spending outpacing revenue in the best of times.

Even Republicans are getting nervous about Prez Trump & the economy.

A recent pension task force offered dire warnings that circulated around City Hall and nowhere else.

The upshot . . .

ANY SIGNIFICANT DECLINE IN REVENUE FROM A RECESSION THREATENS TO PLUNGE KANSAS CITY INTO A VERY QUICK DEFICIT AND BANKRUPTCY!!!

Think that it can't happen here???

From Stockton, Cali to Harrisburg, PA . . . Tax & spend politicos were confident about their financial fortunes right up until the point they were forced to kneel before bankers and beg debt forgiveness. So far nearly a dozen American cities have filed very real and very horrific bankruptcies, as usual Kansas City wouldn't be doing anything special by joining the club.

Nevertheless, the political reality is that public safety employees aren't giving up their pensions any time soon and we don't blame them one bit for this fight.

Behind the scenes, the police "local control" debate isn't as much about social justice as it is a clandestine effort for KC to get its hands on cop cash -- This was confirmed by former Councilman Ed Ford in public during a library conversation not so long ago. His candid and confident remark about 12th & Oak moving to control po-po retirement money inspired gasps of terror and a chill over the audience of otherwise tough and battle-tested police.

Accordingly, make no mistake that our TKC blog community respects the contribution of organized labor to the local discourse, American freedoms and our standard of living. But there's no denying the rising costs of old school pensions prized by labor advocates which now threaten to plunge this town into financial ruin.

Anybody who pretends to have answers is lying as the only strategy on which KCMO relies upon is continued prosperity and taxpayers easily tricked by crafty marketing.

Check the links . . .

CBS: Labor Day celebrates workers — but not everyone's winning

Pitch: Kansas City’s mayoral candidates on funding municipal employee pensions

Forbes: No, Public Pension Reform Experiments Have Not Failed

Fox Biz: Public pensions returns lowest in three years

Seeking Alpha: Blame The Fed For The Coming Pension Fund Crisis

Newsweek: Labor Day 2019: Where Did 'No White After Labor Day' Come From?

CNN: America is facing a pension crisis. Retirees will pay the price if we don't act now

You decide . . .

Comments

  1. I know what's going to fix this. More streetcar and more hotels. That will be the missing piece for all of us.

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    Replies
    1. Happy labor day to you asshole!

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    2. The pension crisis could be worse but it isn't all so bleak. The unions need to make concessions and that is achievable with the right leadership. It's not about stealing benefits away from workers but working toward a future that is more sustainable that still fair.

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  2. ^^^ You give up your paycheck first a$$hole.

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  3. Personally I'm enjoying a day on Geffens mega yacht in France today. And you?

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  4. Sorry but Trump has nothing to do with the possibilities of Kansas City going bankrupt. I've been following what's been going on in Kansas City for 25 years and you have to blame the local politicians for corporate giveaways call Tiff 2 multi millionaires and billionaires leaving the infrastructure crumbling. The only one to blame are the failed policies of the city. What needs to change is for the politicians and City Hall to change their attitude and support citizens of Kansas City rocket out of town developers

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  5. Do not move to Kansas City USDA . There’s no sign of intelligent life in Jackson county but they’ll keep finding new ways to rob the taxpayers.

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  6. So, the mayor appoints a task force, the task force hires a consultant, the buck is traveling already. I might point out that consultants are the primary reason we're in this financial mess in the first place. "Yes, you definitely need 800 more hotel rooms."

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  7. Feds can just turn on the printing presses if the risk of mass geezer riots hit's the imminent threat level. The Plutocrats and Mega wealthy are just toying with the masses at this point because they have nothing better to do for entertainment.

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  8. Support your local shooting range this labor day to help take your mind off of a KCMO bankruptcy. If you are in midtown ride your bike on Armor. KCMO will probably be filing for bankruptcy within 5 years.

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  9. Democrat greedy union slobs scamming the taxpayers.

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  10. We are part of the top 1% and the boom years since the 2008 bailout began have been incredible. Things have never been better. It's at the point to where we literally have to throw away money for amusement and entertainment because we'll never be able to spend it all.

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  11. Relax. Frank White and Gail Beatty just fixed the pension crisis problem.

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  12. Just raise the water bills. That will pay for the $11K raise the council voted into law for themselves earlier in the summer. That’s $11K per council member.

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  13. ^^^ the mayor got around $20,000 for a raise so.....

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  14. Trump's recession will still be greater then Hussein Obama's best days of economy.

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  15. You've probably seen articles discussing how much money you'll need to "retire comfortably." The trick of course is the definition of comfortable. The conventional idea of comfortable (as I understand it) appears to be an income which enables the retiree to enjoy leisurely vacations on cruise ships, own a boat and well-appointed RV for tooling around the countryside, and spend as much time golfing or boating as he/she might want.

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  16. The city council and mayor should not have just voted to give themselves raises if the city has financial problems.

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  17. I am no fan of big banks, but the picture on the PBS article that TKC cites has someone holding a 'Stop debt service to banks that destroyed Detroit' sign. No thought to causation or 'how did we get here?' when that is the message and fervor held by some. I heard it put best by someone on the radio in California that said, and I'm paraphrasing, 'It's not a Democrat thing. It's not a Republican thing. It's a math thing.' when referring to public pensions and debt obligations for which municipal and state governments find themselves on the hook.

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  18. Solving this crisis sounds like a job for Wickham James.

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  19. I know how to fix this mess with kcpd and kcfd, start making them pay social security that way we don’t have to give them so much retirement money.

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  20. ^^^ You're close, @11:23, but the real answer is to take off the "cap" on payments into the Social Security system so you get rid of absurdities like some "Leader of the Free World" ceasing to pay into Social Security at 12:02:26 on January 1st every year.
    Let him brag about something else, if he can find anything.

    You want to boost the Economy?
    Raise taxes on the Rich, and get more money into the hands of the 99%, they spend their own money, not other people's.

    Ever hear of the "multiplier effect", where a dollar you spend goes to someone who also spends it, and so on, so that your $1 has the effect of putting $7.50 into the Economy. Well, giving a "One Percenter" a dollar, which he doesn't ever have to spend, has the reverse effect of taking $7.50 OUT of the Economy.

    MAGA!
    MORE TAX CUTS!
    MAGA!

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  21. 12:07 You fail basic economics, but A+ on socialist propaganda.

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  22. Jesus did you see that "woman" working at the Burger King? A mud shark who is uglier than a mud fence and three little mutts in tow! Where's niggadad? Probably in jail!!! Those people get what they deserve when the sleep with negroes. Every bit of it.

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  23. ^^^^Once again we owe Tony our gratitude for keeping people like you off the streets and posting in their rusty trailers.

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  24. DST Systems Inc invested 30% of their employees funds in Valaent, the pharma company that had a stock crash. Spring invested in the ION project -even a 3rd grader knew that AT&T was not going to let Sprint borrow the last 20 feet of their copper lines into each person's house. KC is bankrupted by idiot executives like Tom McDonnell and Bill Esrey in my humble opinion.

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  25. Go to HR and see their employee retention and reward program- it's very posh and could solve alot of problems. I want to work for the city. Best city in the Midwest!

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  26. "CNN: America is facing a pension crisis."

    No, some union plans are facing a pension crisis. Most of the rest of America is doing fine. And the union plans wouldn't be doing so poorly if the union members had not kept electing professional scam artists to run the shop year after year.

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  27. @3:26 " Most of the rest of America is doing fine."
    EXCEPT FOR,..

    Farmers,
    Factory Workers
    Teachers
    Veterans
    Recent College Grads
    Military Families
    Service Industry Workers
    and
    Patriots!

    Right Wing Propagandists are doing great!
    That's a growth Industry right now!

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  28. Kcpd and kcfd don’t pay social security so they invest they privately, the city gives them (lower level employees) $48,000 a year retirement plus money towards their medical. They don’t put anything into the pension but they sure as hell take from it.

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    Replies
    1. Incorrect-KCPD employee contribution is 12.5 percent of salary. Pension concessions have already been made. Officers hired now must work 27 years to get a small pension. Insurance after leaving KCPD is $2,500 a month. Get your facts straight.

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  29. MAGA! Farmer’s facing a suicide epidemic in the heartland! The rubes who voted for this colossal failure are killing themselves in the wake of his failed presidency. The guy who declared bankruptcy five times and squandered his daddy’s money, turned out to be a moron. Who didn’t see this coming? MAGA! We are winning so hard right now! The

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  30. ^^^^^ KCFD propaganda, that "small pension" is much more substantial than any 401K payout. Your facts is that you're a cop and you know you're ripping off the taxpayers. The debt burden for KC over those pensions is crushing KC. I don't fret about it too much. KC probably won't be able to pay it in 5 years.

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  31. ^^^^^^^^^ Support police. Their pensions aren't what they used to be and not as good as the FD.

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  32. 👽🌈🌞⭐️🌚

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  33. The debt under the previous mayor and city manager is a direct contributor to the dire financial future for the City. Not 1 one the reported cost saving outsourcing of city jobs or any of the new initiatives under this city manager has benefited the FUTURE of the city.

    City employee morale and confidence in the city manager is in the negative as he has been in place long enough that his tactics and lack of character is common knowledge.

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  34. When KCMO and Jackson County lack the funds to offer wage increases during union contract negotiations, their painless, but shortsighted, default is to offer unfunded pension benefit increases, which become some future administrations problem to pay.

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  35. Civil service pensions are been going to shit long before Trump took office, so can we please dispense with this whole line of shit?

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