City Finances
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Philadelphia pensions still in dire shape
 The Philadelphia municipal pension fund’s condition remains dire, even though it has improved slightly from its nadir in 2009. Its funded ratio—the amount of money the fund has on hand compared to payments it must make to retirees over the long term—crept up to 47 percent in 2010, according to the pension system’s latest actuarial report (PDF). That’s above the 45 percent level of a year earlier. Give credit to deferral of some expenses, higher uniformed employees’ contributions and stock market gains. But state regulators still classify the fund as "severely distressed” (PDF) even after giving it $54.5 million in aid last year. It has until 2016 to rise the ration to 69 percent or face stricter state oversight, among other things.
This matters to all residents, not
just city employees, because the less money that the pension fund
generates on its own to pay retirees, the more it must take from
taxpayers. Philadelphia and scores of other cities and states made various changes in 2009 and 2010 to lower or defer pension costs. The National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems says in a new study (PDF) that many funds lowered their assumed rate of return, boosted employee contributions and raised the age requirements for receiving benefits. Citing such "modifications," several associations of local officials have declared
that public pensions actually are "not in crisis” and dismissed some bleak predictions. Mayor Nutter is second vice president of one of the groups, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, that rejects the "crisis" depiction.
Crisis or not, the situation is still grim. A Greenwich Associates analysis of local and state pension funds found that overall the funds gained about 14 percent in book value last year—as did Philadelphia (PDF)—but that was not enough in most cases to raise their ratio of assets to obligations. “The solvency position of public pensions actually deteriorated” in 2010, the firm wrote. For a view from elsewhere, watch this video of discussion about public pensions at NYC's The New School.
Thomas Ginsberg
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City Population
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Philly's up-and-coming Millennials
 While digging into the 2010 Census results, we noticed that Philadelphia had 57,961 more people between the ages of 15 and 29. That's a 17 percent increase, faster than the national growth rate. Now accounting for more than a quarter of the city population, this cohort includes “Millennials," also known as “Generation Y,” "Generation Next", and "Echo Boomers," loosely defined as people growing up around the turn of the millennium. What's on their minds? As a group nationally, Millennials are more ethnically and racially diverse than older Americans, less religious, more supportive of parenthood, less fond of marriage, and very likely to have had their careers set back by the recession. These and other findings are in Portrait of Millennials, an ongoing study (and quiz) by the Pew Research Center.
The Census numbers suggest that the city has become more attractive for young adults. Philadelphia’s challenge will be maintaining this growth, and keeping these people inside the city limits as they become parents of school-age children. The city had 31,587 fewer people between 35 and 44 last year than in 2000, and 43,370 fewer children between 5 and 14. These declines, presumably, help explain in part why the school district has 70,000 empty seats on its hands and is starting to make plans to close as many as 50 buildings over the next three years.
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| Roundup |
Philly transit on the right track?
 In May, the Brookings Institution put out a report looking at the ability of public transit systems to get people to their jobs. The study found that only 24 percent of Philadelphia-area jobs are reachable from home via transit in 90 minutes. In that regard, our region ranked 75th out of the 100 largest metros, despite having a more extensive transit system than most of them. Brookings did not study the share of commuters who actually use transit. By that measure from the Census Bureau, Philadelphia ranked in the top 10, with 9.3 percent of commuters using public transit.
Survey: more city workers seek early retirement
 Nationwide,
the percentage of municipal workers who are making plans to retire early has
more than doubled in the past year, according the Center for State and Local
Government Excellence, based on its annual (unscientific) sampling. Possible contributing factors: 72 percent also
said they’re paying more for health insurance, 62 percent have had pay frozen,
and 22 percent have to contribute more to pensions.There was no breakdown for Philadelphia.
New Philly websites to nurture globalism, altruisim
 Two new public-interest-oriented websites in Philadelphia caught our eye. Generocity.org aims to be a comprehensive site for networking, donations and news about nonprofits. And GlobalPhiladelphia.org wants to promote all things international here, from immigrant groups to multinational corporations.
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| Our Work |
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 Philadelphia's jail population: Updating our 2010
analysis, we examine an additional year’s worth of data and review the impact
of changes begun by prosecutors, judges and prison officials. Report expected
this summer.
 Philadelphia's racial and ethnic makeup since 1990: Among many changes, Philadelphia has lost 263,000 white residents since 1990, more than the population of Buffalo, NY. This and other findings in our May report A City Transformed.
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| Upcoming City Events |
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June 15: Board of Ethics meeting. Details here.
June 16: State of the City: Greenworks at Age Two, review of accomplishments. Details here.
June 17: Human Relations Commission monthly meeting. Details here.
June 23: City Council final scheduled session before recess. Details here.
June 23: Active Transportation Summit, hosted by Pennsylvania Environmental Council and DVRPC. Details here.
June 30: End of 2011 fiscal year for City of Philadelphia, approval deadline for 2012 budget. Details here.
June 30: Economy League roundtable event on 2026: Future Histories of Greater Philadelphia. Details here.
July 8: Philadelphia Historical Commission meeting. Details here.
July 19: Philadelphia City Planning Commission meeting. Check here closer to meeting date.
July 20: Philadelphia Commission on Parks and Recreation meeting. Homepage here.
July 20: Board of Ethics meeting. Details here.
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Most-Read Last Month
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Philadelphia 2011: The State of the City. Read here.
Philadelphia 2010: The State of the City. Read here.
City Councils in Philadelphia and Other Major Cities: Who Holds Office, How Long They Serve, and How Much it All Costs. Read here.
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| About Us |
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The Philadelphia Research Initiative provides timely, impartial research and analysis that help Philadelphia’s citizens and leaders understand key issues facing the city. See our Reports and Briefs page.
We also conduct regular opinion surveys of Philadelphians on key issues, using nonpartisan pollsters who adhere to the highest standards of opinion research. See our Polling page.
Check our News and Data Library for primary research documents and previous newsletters.
The Philadelphia Research Initiative is a project of the nonpartisan Pew Charitable Trusts. We welcome your comments.
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