We posted this item on Friday linking to an post by National Review Online blogger David Frum that raises questions about CalPERS' stock market investments in light of Wall Street's financial crisis.
CalPERS spokeswoman Pat Macht didn't want to let the post go unchallenged and sent along this statement:
This type of blog seems to imply our retirees benefits are in some kind of trouble. This mischaracterization manufactures worries for our retirees. CalPERS wishes to re- emphasize that our members retirements are 100 percent guaranteed by the constitution and state law. And CalPERS has never missed a benefit payment in its 77 year history.
Patricia K. Macht
Assistant Executive Officer
Office of Public Affairs
Let's be clear about this. Since state legislation established the fund in 1931, CalPERS has never missed a payment.
CalPERS' members have guaranteed retirement benefits that are funded three ways: employee contributions, employer contributions and returns on CalPERS' vast investment holdings. If the fund's assets are squeezed and the revenue from that income stream slows down too much, the fund can ask employers to contribute more.
This, of course, doesn't make taxpayers outside of the civil service system happy, because "employer contributions" are essentially passed through to the public, since the "employers" are government entities.


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