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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- Blair County's pension plan issued $8.15 million in payments in 2023, falling $1.75 million short of the contributions from the county's general fund and from county employees.
"Fortunately, our investments have paid out more than $1.75 million," county Controller A.C. Stickel told the retirement board on Wednesday when presenting the report.
The county's general fund, which was budgeted to allocate $5.25 million to support the plan in 2023, met that goal in December with the last monthly $437,500 payment. Employees contributed an additional $1.15 million in 2023 to make total contributions of $6.4 million, the report indicated.
The $8.15 million in payments reflected payments to retired or departing employees in addition to administrative fees.
Stickel told the board he will receive additional investment performance reports by the end of January that can be reported when the board meets in February. He said he didn't yet have reports for the last quarter of 2023. But based on the first three quarters of 2023 and the market's performance during the last quarter, Stickel said he was confident the shortfall was more than covered.
In September, the retirement board heard an annual report from CBIZ Retirement Plan Services Vice President David B. Reid Sr., describing the plan as 31.21% funded. He said that was a drop from the previous year's 37.05% funding level because of a negative 11.66% return on investment.
Despite the percentage drop, Reid's report described the county's pension plan as solvent and likely to remain solvent based on its funding policy, which resulted in the 2023 general fund contribution at $5.25 million and prompted commissioners to budget $5,512,500 for the 2024 contribution.
In 2015, Reid's annual report to the county identified 2024 as the year when the pension plan would become insolvent, meaning it wouldn't have enough money to cover its liabilities.
Subsequently, commissioners started allocating larger amounts of general fund money toward the pension, including money garnered from real estate tax increases levied after the 2017 property reassessment. In 2021, Reid issued a report showing no insolvency projection.
Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 814-946-7456.