Philadelphia Pays Retirees Bonus Amid Pension Gap
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Philadelphia has less than half the money it needs to keep its promises to retiring workers. Yet instead of socking away investment earnings, the city must spend the cash.
When the pension fund of the fifth-most-populous U.S. city performs better than its target, some retirees get a bonus -- which will occur this year for the first time since 2008. As Philadelphia, like municipalities nationwide, struggles to meet mounting retirement obligations, it can’t earn its way out of the hole, underscoring the challenge of honoring politicians’ past pledges.