New Hampshire Governor Signs Pension Reform Bill into Law

New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch has signed a bill that overhauls the state pension system.

The bill shifts $250 million from an account used to pay for cost-of-living increases for retirees into the main pension fund, thereby holding down increases in employer contributions.

Without the fund shift, contribution rates for the state and local governments would have increased 53 percent in 2010. Once signed, the increase will be 14 percent for local governments and 27 percent for the state.

Lawmakers did not fix two key long-term problems: how to fund future cost-of-living increases and how to help all public retirees with health insurance. Instead, they established commissions to study long-term solutions to both issues.