Consolidation Task Force Committee Starts Pension Talks for New Government

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — Pension talks are topping the list of things to do as Macon and Bibb County governments merge.

Today, the Consolidation Task Force Human Resources Committee voted to bring in an actuary who will help a consultant come up with a plan for the new hires in the combined government.

Right now there are three pension plans that will eventually merge into one as employees retire and leave their jobs. They are the city’s, the county’s and the police and fire departments.

The question is what to do with employees who are hired with a start date after January 2014.
Chair of the Committee, State Senator Miriam Paris, says they want to get that plan in place before the new government takes office.

“The main thing we want to re-iterate is that our current employees and retirees will be taken care of, that those pensions will stay in tact that they will get everything that the city and the county promised them,” says Paris.

Macon Mayor Robert Reichert also mentioned looking into pension benefits for employees who don’t work for five or more years. He says we’re in transient times, and it’s important to attract people to the community by offering benefits even if they’re not going to invest years of service.