The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System board has decided to buy itself some short-term breathing room at a long-term price. In a 12-2 vote yesterday, directors agreed to delay how quickly the agency pays down the San Diego Transit Corporation pension, easing pressure on today’s operating budget while swelling the pension’s overall cost by roughly $51 million.
The move immediately frees up cash for buses and trolleys, but it also sparked a sharp debate over whether the agency is simply handing future riders and elected officials a much bigger bill.
What the Board Changed
Following staff’s recommendation, the board voted to stretch the pension’s unfunded actuarial liability amortization schedule from the remaining 12 years to 20 years and to set the fiscal year 2027 pension contribution at $16,470,975. In plain terms, MTS will now pay the debt down more slowly, which lowers near-term payments but extends how long the agency carries the tab.
Documents posted by MTS list the adopted motion and the contribution figure approved by the board.
The Numbers: Relief Now, Cost Later
According to The San Diego Union-Tribune, MTS officials said the recalibrated schedule will reduce pension contributions by about $37.3 million over the next seven years, even as it increases long-term costs by about $51 million…