Taking aim at city pensions

With pension costs expected to consume nearly a third of the city budget within five years, the City Council on Tuesday ordered new studies of ways to rein in the expense, potentially setting up conflicts with the city's powerful unions. Troy Anderson in the Daily News,

The 15-0 vote followed a report by City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana that said the city's pension contributions are expected to double from $1.1 billion this year to $2.2 billion in 2015-16.

"How can we run the city with a third of the budget in 2015 going to employee benefits?" Councilman Bill Rosendahl said. "We are in a very tough moment. We cannot sustain and maintain the present pension system as it is. We can no longer postpone pension reform."