For Immediate Release
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Californians for Retirement Security
                                  
Public Employees’ Statement on Pension Measure Titles and Summaries

Dave Low, Chairman of Californians for Retirement Security, on the newly released title and summaries of two pension-gutting ballot measures:

"Just a few short hours after the Attorney General issued the title and summaries for two ballot measures to gut public pensions, backers already are complaining that the facts are getting in their way. The summaries provide straight-forward snapshots of propositions that would strap taxpayers with tens of billions of dollars in new costs in coming decades and break promises to firefighters, teachers, nurses, and other public employees who make up the heart of this state’s middle class.

The proposals’ ultra conservative engineers can’t hide from the facts. These measures will increase costs, harm workers and probably be overturned by the courts for violating Constitutional protections. Backers grasp at straws by attacking the messengers - California’s Attorney General and Legislative Analyst - when they cannot dispute the message.

No amount of finger pointing, sugarcoating or obfuscating can change the fact that these measures are bad for taxpayers and bad for California.  Anyone choosing to fund this ill-advised and poorly drafted campaign will be wasting their money.”