On this day, May 5, 1903, James Beard, US culinary expert, author (Delights & Prejudices), was born in Portland, Ore.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, A Japanese balloon bomb exploded on Gearhart Mountain in Oregon, killing Mrs. Elsie Mitchell, the pregnant wife of a minister, and five children after they attempted to drag it out the woods in Lakeview, Oregon. The balloon was armed, and exploded soon after they began tampering with it. They became the 1st and only known American civilians to be killed in the continental US during World War II.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, Bly minister Archie Mitchell, his pregnant wife Elsie, and five children from Mitchell's Sunday school class were on a Saturday morning picnic. Thirteen miles northeast of Bly, or about sixty miles northeast of Klamath Falls, Mitchell parked the car, and Elsie and the children headed to Leonard Creek. Mitchell later remembered: "As I got out of the car to bring the lunch, the others were not far away and called to me they had found something that looked like a balloon. I heard of Japanese balloons so I shouted a warning not to touch it. But just then there was a big explosion. I ran up there--and they were all dead." It was a Japanese balloon bomb. They were 70 feet tall with a 33-foot diameter paper canopy connected to the main device by shroud lines. Balloons inflated with hydrogen followed the jet stream at an altitude of 30,000 feet.
This study doesn’t account for the unfunded liability
Oregon’s Public Employees Retirement System released its
study findings on retiree benefits paid in 2019. PERS covers approximately 95% of public workers in Oregon including all state and school district employees and most local government employees.
The study analyzed how PERS benefits paid to Oregon retirees impacts Oregon’s economy. Oregon PERS paid approximately $4.11 billion in benefits to PERS retirees living in Oregon in 2019. The $4.11 billion in annual benefit payments multiply to $4.33 billion in economic value to Oregon when the full financial impact of these dollars when spent in local communities. These benefit payments sustained an estimated 33,402 local jobs, and added approximately $1.29 billion in wages to Oregon’s economy. Additionally, the state of Oregon collected an estimated $234.9 million in income taxes on PERS retiree benefits during 2019.
Funding for these benefits came mostly from investment earnings on contributions previously paid by members and public employers. Investment income has provided 74.4% of total pension revenues since 1970. Member contributions have accounted for 4.4%, with employer contributions providing 21.1% of pension revenues over the past 49 years.
These retirees spent a significant portion of this money on goods and services in Oregon, which helped support local businesses. These businesses then purchased goods, in part, from other local vendors, adding to the Oregon workforce and economy. This study quantifies the total effect of these benefit payments on Oregon’s economy, based on three factors:
- Economic value of PERS benefits to Oregon
- Jobs created and related wages
- Tax receipts
Depending on who you ask, the PERS deficit is between $26 to $50 billion that is needed over the next couple of decades to pay pensions. The issue is that the employer contributions are going towards current benefit payments and not reserves. Increase in Investment earnings reduces the obligation.
Investments earnings increased in 2019 by $6,981 million, which was more than enough to cover increased payments, and 2020 is on track to do the same.
--Donna Bleiler| Post Date: 2020-12-12 20:59:41 | Last Update: 2020-12-12 22:38:11 |
