I am a critic of Barletta and company. I think his staff are lacking in competence and are cocky and arrogant. They answer phones for a living and present themselves as if someone elected them to office. All that voiced, reducing the amount of money that Hazleton paid into the police pension fund at a time when the financial markets were at an all time high was a very smart thing for Barletta (or anyone else) to do. However, now that the markets are still 40% off the highs, Hazleton would be wise to make a large lump sum payment into the fund. If it does that, Hazleton could eliminate the need to make contributions in the future, providing that the fund achieves a large over funded status.

Claiming that the quoted 2.9 million obligation constitutes debt is incorrect. Its not a debt. Pension funds have a “funded status” and that status changes as the market price of the investments in the fund move. It also changes as actuarial assumptions change. It may be the case that Hazleton’s police pension is in an over funded status. The one thing I have not seen clearly reported is the actual quantitative funded status of the pension fund. So far, I have only heard opinion. I want to see real numbers.