The state legislature make take up bills to change the public school teacher retirement plan system in the upcoming lame duck session.
The current retirement plan for teachers in the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System is a combination pension and 401(k). Some lawmakers want to switch all newly hired teachers to only 401(k) accounts.
James Hohman is with the Mackinac Center, a think tank that often opposes unions. “The current plan’s offer to school employees are neither generous, nor are they cost effective because they’ve been able to promise employees one thing and then set aside payments of that to the future.”
But the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget says the current system is fully funded and should be kept.
I’m Cheyna Roth in Lansing.