Mayor Aftab Pureval on Tuesday floated a plan to pump more than $100 million into the Cincinnati Retirement System in a high-stakes bid to wipe out the city’s long-running pension shortfall. The move would mark one of the largest single pushes in years to stabilize retiree benefits and rethink how Cincinnati tackles its multi-year funding gap.
As reported by the Cincinnati Business Courier, Pureval outlined a proposal to steer roughly $100 million-plus into the retirement fund with the stated goal of eliminating the system’s unfunded liability. The mayor’s office has framed the idea as a major fiscal tool to improve the plan’s funding status, but any big transfer would still need City Council approval and coordination with the system’s trustees.
How Big Is the Gap?
The Cincinnati Retirement System is still far from fully funded, with hundreds of millions of dollars in unfunded liability on the books. According to WVXU, the most recent actuarial review put the fund at about 68.3% funded and pegged the unfunded liability at around $846 million.
Big Fixes vs. Quick Wins
Local business and civic leaders have been pressing for deeper structural changes, from monetizing city assets to fully transferring the city plan into the state retirement system, in order to close the gap more decisively. The Cincinnati Futures Commission estimated that a transfer to the state plan would require roughly $390 million and suggested regionalizing Greater Cincinnati Water Works as one way to raise that kind of money, WCPO reported.
Where Would the Money Come From?
Pureval’s administration has pointed to one-time windfalls and returns from past sale proceeds as potential sources that could be funneled into the retirement system. Voters signed off in 2023 on a sale that created a roughly $1.8 billion Railway Trust, and the city has already put portions of those investment returns toward neighborhood and capital projects, per WLWT.
Next Steps and What To Watch
Any decision to move nine-figure sums into the pension fund would require formal sign-off from City Council and close coordination with the Cincinnati Retirement System’s trustees, who set actuarial assumptions and oversee the plan’s governance. The retirement office notes that benefits are paid for through employee and employer contributions, as well as investment returns, so officials have to weigh the impact of a one-time cash injection against the need for higher ongoing contributions to shore up long-term solvency, according to the City Retirement System…