The City of Port Huron is making major progress in addressing unfunded retiree benefits. Changes to retiree health plans have resulted in significant cost savings and have moved the funding level from 39% to 74%.
The pension system for city employees has also made great improvements in its funding levels. In just the past two years, the pension plan has moved from a 49% funding with an $83 million liability to 86% with a $23 million liability.
In a letter to the Mayor and City Council, Port Huron City Manager James Freed said that healthcare plan reforms and the pension restructuring have achieved a combined savings of nearly $89 million.
Freed said, “These dollars saved can now be used over the coming decades to allow our children the freedom to build their own future, free from the unfunded liabilities of the past generation.”
A report from CBIZ Retirement Plan Services said that investment returns were nearly four times what was expected for the fiscal year ending June 30th of 2021.
Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland
