Pensions

• Illinois Constitutional Amendment on Pensions Looms
• Source: The Chicago Tribune   |   Illinois   |   October 31, 2012
• During a year dominated by discussion of the state's deepening pension crisis, voters across Illinois will find on their ballot a question asking if they want to make it tougher for governments to approve increased retirement benefits for public employees.

• Missouri Lawmakers Seek to Simplify State Employee Pay Scale
• Source: OzarksFirst.com   |   Missouri   |   October 31, 2012
• Few will argue that Missouri state workers are the lowest paid in the country. But a committee studying what to do about it wants to know if somehow the state's pay scale is too complicated for its own good.
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• Is Government Losing Its Taste For BlackBerry?
• Source: Government Computer News   |   Nation   |   October 31, 2012
• BlackBerry's once unquestioned position as an invaluable tool at government agencies continues to erode.

• Court Allows Superintendent Salary Caps in New Jersey
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   October 26, 2012
• In another win for the Christie administration in its battle to hold down school spending, a state appeals court panel said Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf has the right to impose salary caps on New Jersey’s public school superintendents.

• Chicago School Board OKs Teachers Contract That Ended Strike
• Source: Chicago Tribune   |   Chicago   |   October 25, 2012
• The three-year contract will cost the district an average of $74 million per year.To accommodate that, the district plans a number of financial moves, including refinancing bonds and selling buildings and vacant land.

• The Next Government Workforce
• BY: Patrick Ibarra   |   October 24, 2012
• The role of government is rapidly evolving. Building the workforce that will be needed requires new approaches.

• Should State Education Chiefs Be Elected?
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   October 23, 2012
• Thirteen states choose their top education official in a partisan campaign. Some people think that makes little sense, but it’s very hard to change.

• North Carolina May Be 1st to Outlaw Student Cyberbullying of Teachers
• BY: McClatchy News   |   North Carolina   |   October 23, 2012
• It will soon be illegal for a student to bully a teacher online in North Carolina, under an expansion of the state's cyberbullying law that may be the first of its kind in the country.

• Unarmed Civilian Officers to Aide New Camden County Police
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Camden, N.J.   |   October 22, 2012
• Next year, when a new county police force starts patrolling Camden, replacing an embattled city department, residents will see many new faces beyond the armed officers.

• Public Corruption Cases Spike in Atlanta Area
• Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution   |   Atlanta   |   October 22, 2012
• The federal judicial district that includes metro Atlanta now ranks among the top districts in the country in corruption convictions.

• South Dakota Sen. George McGovern, Liberal Champion, Dies
• Source: New York Times   |   South Dakota   |   October 22, 2012
• Elected to the Senate in 1962, McGovern left no special mark in his three terms, but he voted consistently in favor of civil rights and antipoverty bills, was instrumental in developing and expanding food stamp and nutrition programs, and helped lead opposition to the Vietnam War in the Senate.
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• With the Death of Texas Sen. Mario Gallegos, What Happens to His Seat?
• BY: The Texas Tribune   |   Texas   |   October 19, 2012
• The late Texas state Sen. Mario Gallegos' name will still appear on the ballot in November, and if he wins, Gov. Rick Perry will call a special election to fill his seat.

• Parent Trigger Law Wins Key Court Ruling in California
• Source: Sacramento Bee   |   California   |   October 19, 2012
• A San Bernardino County judge ordered Adelanto's school board to stop stalling and grant the charter school petition of parents in the Desert Trails Elementary School.

• Strict Abortion Regulations Lead Virginia Health Commissioner to Resign
• Source: Washington Post   |   Virginia   |   October 19, 2012
• Virginia’s health commissioner abruptly stepped down over new regulations requiring abortion facilities to meet strict, hospital-style building standards that many clinics contend they cannot afford.

• Philadelphia Proposes Hybrid Pension Plan for Elected Officials
• Source: Philadelphia Daily News   |   Philadelphia   |   October 19, 2012
• Currently, elected officials get a retirement plan that allows them to collect pensions as high as their full salaries. But the city is proposing to move future elected officials to a hybrid plan that combines a lower-benefit pension with a 401(k).