Laffey Blasts Raimondo on Pension Reform
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Steve Laffey blistered General Treasurer Gina Raimondo for not being aggressive enough in tackling the pension crisis in the state in an interview with GoLocalProv in which he predicted that unfunded liabilities in local and state government will sink the Ocean State economically.
Raimondo has earned praise from some quarters for her firm approach to the pension issue, but Laffey said she got off to the wrong start from even before she took office. “How do you run for office without a specific plan to stabilize the pension funds?” said Laffey, a former Cranston mayor and GOP Senate candidate who GoLocalProv reported is now considering a run for president.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTOnce in office, Raimondo said she wanted to get a handle on the real numbers before proposing reforms. That, Laffey said, could have been done within days of taking office, rather than months, as turned out to be the case. The focus has now turned to the Pension Advisory Group, which is developing a framework for possible reforms.
‘You got to be kidding me’
Laffey said it’s little different than what Frank Caprio did when he took office. “It’s like, you got to be kidding me,” he said. “Nothing is going to happen now. The whole thing is a game.”
“This thing is going to take down the state of Rhode Island,” Laffey concluded.
He said the state’s ailing finances were part of the motivation behind his move to Colorado about a year ago. He said he and his wife asked each other where they wanted to bring up their children. “Colorado is still a pleasant area. There is a lot of growth,” he said.
Laffey: Providence must declare bankruptcy
Laffey also weighed in on the financial struggled of cities like Central Falls and Providence. He said it’s too late to save Central Falls through bankruptcy. But the capital city still has a chance—only if drastic measures are taken, he added.
“Providence can’t come back from where it is today without declaring bankruptcy,” Laffey warned. “The pensions systems have overwhelmed the whole city.”
But ultimately in Providence too Laffey saw eventual failure, saying it will “bring the whole state down” in a couple of years.
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