Defined Benefits

A proposal to shore up the long-term finances of a pension system for state and local government workers in New Mexico cleared the Legislature on Wednesday and heads to Republican Gov. Susana Martinez.

The Montana Legislature inched closer to finding a fix for its beleaguered pension system when a committee decided to advance both of the major proposed fixes.

Private industry employers spent an average of $8.57 per hour on employee benefits, or nearly 30 percent of total costs, including retirement plans, in December 2012.

Federal authorities announced Monday that Illinois has agreed to settle a securities-fraud charge that accused the state of misleading investors about the financial health of its public-employee pension systems, which are now $96.7 billion short of what's needed to cover promised retirement benefits.

Multiemployer plans with the biggest deficits have taken significant steps to address their funding problems.

The $86 billion system that funds pensions for public workers, state troopers, local police and firefighters, and teachers lost ground in the first year public workers were required to pay more toward their retirements, according to reports released Monday.