PITTSBURGH, PA (October 20, 2021) Under the financial leadership of Mayor William Peduto, both as mayor and during his time on City Council, the City has made important progress in strengthening the Comprehensive Municipal Pension Trust Fund (CMFPTF), which provides retirement pension benefits to city staff who provide essential public services to the residents of Pittsburgh.
The City of Pittsburgh and CMPTF Board of Directors is responsible for funding the retirement benefits for three pension funds for city employees through the CMPTF. The fund is managed by a board of peer-elected city staff representatives and is subsidized through employees’ bimonthly contributions, allocation of state aid and the City’s annual contribution. The plans are funded by the City on an annual basis and State Act 205 requires that minimum annual contributions be based upon the calculation of the Minimum Municipal Obligation (MMO).
The strength of a pension fund can be measured in the percentage it is funded by the municipality, which signifies its solvency and sustainability. In 2010, the CMPTF was in distress being funded only 27%. In an effort to protect the pension investments of hardworking city employees, Mayor Peduto, with the leadership of City Council and City Controller Michael Lamb, committed to improving the strength of the fund.
The pension fund was 57.69% funded when Mayor Peduto took office in 2014 and has grown due to the mayor’s annual pension fund contributions that far exceed the state-mandated MMO. In 2020, the MMO called for $51.5 million, but the City contributed a total $99 million. This year, the MMO calls for $52.2 million, but the City will contribute an additional $46 million above the MMO. As a result of this commitment, the fund has hit a new milestone at 72% funded.
“Our pension funds have hit a historic milestone and it could not have happened without the commitment of our Finance team, City Council and the City Controller. I especially want to thank CMPTF Chairman Ralph Sicuro and the CMPTF Board of Directors for their dedication to fighting for and protecting the retirement of their fellow city employees,” said Mayor Peduto.
CMPTF Chairperson Ralph Sicuro added, “The City has followed the Actuarially Recommended Contribution (ARC) which exceeds the MMO set by the state’s Act 205 requirements. The commitment of funding our pensions by following the ARC recommendation over the MMO requirements must continue now and into the future.”
This table outlines the City’s total contributions to the CMPTF and includes the amount contributed over the MMO:
|
Year
|
Total Contributed
|
Minimum Municipal Obligation
|
Amount Contributed Over MMO
|
|
2015
|
$60,858,477
|
$42,860,296
|
$17,998,181
|
|
2016
|
$63,382,560
|
$43,073,288
|
$20,309,272
|
|
2017
|
$70,487,381
|
$49,202,651
|
$21,284,730
|
|
2018
|
$86,414,394
|
$49,662,394
|
$36,752,000
|
|
2019
|
$94,333,652
|
$51,011,799
|
$43,321,853
|
|
2020
|
$99,099,273
|
$51,519,388
|
$47,579,885
|
|
2021
|
$98,819,645
|
$52,264,801
|
$46,554,844
|
“It’s critical that the City to continue to exceed expectations of investment into the pension fund,” continued Mayor Peduto. “We have employees who commit their whole careers to providing public and essential services to the city and they and their families should not be concerned about the stability of their pension because of the political financial mismanagement of others.”
