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Pensions vs. classrooms: Rising retirement costs are squeezing Massachusetts education – The Boston Globe

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Pensions vs. classrooms: Rising retirement costs are squeezing Massachusetts education – The Boston Globe


While standardized test scores of Massachusetts students are still mostly below pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, one education statistic that keeps rising is the cost to the state of funding teachers’ pensions.

In a new report on pension costs across six populous states including Massachusetts, we found that in the Bay State, 14 cents of every tax dollar dedicated to associated education spending went to pensions in 2022. That’s up from 9 cents in 2015 and far above the 8 cents forked over by taxpayers in our runner-up state, California.

Despite this increase in resources, the financial strength of the Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System hasn’t improved. Over this period, the percentage of assets the fund has relative to the value of its pension commitments remained consistently low, increasing from just below 57 percent to just below 58 percent.

Yes that’s right, MTRS has less than 58 cents saved for every dollar it owes, even under its assumption of a 7.15 percent return on investments every year. To put that in perspective, MTRS would consider a $100,000 payment due in 10 years as “fully funded” if it had just over $50,000 in its account today. And yet, this eye-popping increase in cash has barely kept MTRS treading water. This means that without policy reforms, Bay State taxpayers will probably pay an increasingly hefty bill.

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While the MTRS funding ratio and contribution increases are worse than its peers, these trends reflect a nationwide problem. Public pensions when properly measured are underfunded to the tune of $5.12 trillion, and the cost burden on state and local governments is increasing.

To understand how the contribution increases impact education, consider that Massachusetts’ current education budget for fiscal 2024 is $7.95 billion. The fact that pension contributions have increased by 5 percentage points translates into $398 million per year of additional money going into the fund than if the share had remained at its 2015 level.

This means that the state has $398 million fewer dollars per year to dedicate to important expenditures such as salaries for new teachers, classroom resources, or support services such as counselors, technicians, or librarians.

State revenues generally rise of course, as they have in recent years, giving the state more money at its disposal to offset these increases. For example, while pension contributions per pupil in Massachusetts have risen by 109 percent since 2015, revenues per pupil have increased by 21 percent, softening the blow.

Yet this pace of revenue growth is not guaranteed. While Massachusetts fiscal 2025 budget foresees a $2 billion or roughly 3.5 percent spending increase, the incremental revenues are coming mostly from the significant Fair Share tax increase. Money to fund education, pensions, and other public priorities does not grow on trees. It comes out of taxpayers’ pockets.

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Massachusetts officials could address the pension challenge through one key policy change: moving new employees from traditional defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans similar to 401(k)s.

Current teachers typically receive pensions based on a formula that uses a series of inputs including employees’ salaries, the ages of the employees, and the number of years of employees’ service. If an employee leaves their job, pension benefits are reduced or lost.

401(k)-type plans conversely require the state to contribute a flat percent of pay to a tax-deferred account as long as the employee is working in the job. Employees who leave the job can take their full accumulated retirement savings with them, and the state avoids the creation of more long-term obligations.

The mobility of 401(k)-type plans could attract more young people to the teaching profession, since they often prioritize flexibility early in their careers. While public sector defined benefit plans tend to be more generous than private sector 401(k) plans, that difference can be reduced by offering higher employer contributions. This setup would vastly improve the state’s finances while ensuring that retirement contributions do not continue to consume ever-increasing shares of education budgets.

Ultimately the burden of pension contributions will threaten the Commonwealth’s ability to remain a national leader in education. It would serve the state and its valued teachers well to move to a more sustainable model for retirement benefits before it’s too late.

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Joshua Rauh is a professor of finance at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. Gregory Kearney is a senior research analyst at the Hoover Institution.






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Cool off this summer at these 10 splash pads in central Massachusetts

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Cool off this summer at these 10 splash pads in central Massachusetts


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Looking for a way the kids can cool off after the Fourth of July heat wave?

In addition to numerous public beaches and pools, central Massachusetts has multiple splash pads open this time of year, offering the perfect way for children to enjoy being in the water without the hassle of a beach day. While some are ticketed, many of the region’s splash pads are free, with parks, playgrounds and other recreational areas attached.

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Here are 10 splash pads where you can beat the heat in central Massachusetts this summer.

Tacoma Street Spray Park

Decked out with umbrellas and chairs, green water buckets and a frog to run under, Tacoma Street Spray Park is one of Worcester’s newer spray parks, located on the 18.9-acre Tacoma Street Playground. The park also has a basketball court and picnic area.

Like all of Worcester’s splash pads, Tacoma Street Spray Park is open from noon to 7 p.m. daily through Sept. 7. Located at 345 Tacoma St. in Worcester.

Park Hill Splash Park

This small splash pad in Fitchburg features rainbow rings to run through and a large sun design painted on the ground. The splash pad is part of Park Hill Park, which also has a skateboard park, two playgrounds, a basketball court, several baseball fields and restrooms.

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Park Hill Splash Park is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily from June through August. Lifeguards are always onsite, and parking is available off Pratt Road in Fitchburg.

Cowabunga Splash Park

Davis Farmland in Sterling is back for a second year with Cowabunga Splash Park, the largest zero-depth water spray park in New England. Built with a state-of-the-art, computer-controlled water filtration system, the park features every kind of mister and sprinkler imaginable, including horse cannons, a water tunnel, a water table, a toddler spray pad and more. The park also has a giant slip-and-slide, an inflatable water slide and a huge water tower.

Admission to Davis Farmland, which includes access to over 50 activities, costs $35.95 for adults or $32.95 for seniors over 60, though tickets cost more at the gate.

COWabunga Splash Park is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every day from now through Labor Day, with the water slide and slip-and-slide opening at 10:30 a.m. Davis Farmland is located at 145 Redstone Hill Road in Sterling.

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Cristoforo Colombo Spray Park

Cristoforo Colombo Spray Park is a larger spray pad full of bright colors, water spouts and buckets dropping water from above. It is attached to Cristoforo Colombo Park, which also has a playground, fields, basketball courts and a baseball diamond.

The spray park is open from noon to 7 p.m. daily at 180 Shrewsbury St. in Worcester.

Fournier Park Splash Pad

Located inside the Arthur A. Fournier Sr. Memorial Park, this splash pad spouts water from various flowers, a frog and even a dragon. The water must be turned on by pressing an orange button on the pavilion side of the splash pad, and it runs for 12 to 14 minutes at a time.

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This splash pad is open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., starting Memorial Day weekend and lasting through Labor Day. Located at 525 Litchfield St. in Leominster.

Ghiloni Park Splash Pad

Ghiloni Park in Marlborough also has a splash pad with flowers and frogs, located right next to the park’s playground. Water is activated by placing a hand on the sensor of the green activator pole.

The Ghiloni Park Splash Pad is open from June 2 through Sept. 7, with daily hours from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Located at 239 Concord Road in Marlborough.

University (Crystal) Spray Park

Just opened last year, the splash pad at Worcester’s University Park features various tall water spouts for the kids to run through, surrounded by a playground, walking trails, pond views and plenty of umbrellas.

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From now through Sept. 7, the spray park is open daily from noon to 7 p.m. Located at 965 Main St. in Worcester.

Philbin Memorial Park and Splash Pad

Clinton’s Philbin Memorial Park has a newly renovated splash pad that turns on by touching the top of the red fire hydrant. The water runs for four to five cycles and then rests for 10 to 15 minutes.

Philbin’s splash pad is open daily from Memorial Day to Labor Day, with hours from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Located at Berlin and Wilson streets in Clinton.

Carbuncle Pond Splash Pad

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Located right next to the beach at Carbuncle Pond, this colorful splash pad is conveniently equipped with lifeguard staffing, concessions and indoor public restrooms. Resident and nonresident passes are sold online or at the gate.

The splash pad and the beach are open daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 495 Main St. in Oxford.

Greenwood Spray Park

Attached to a new playground, Greenwood Park’s splash pad has various sprinklers and buckets of water. The spray park usually has an attendant, and bathrooms are attached.

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Worcester’s Greenwood Spray Park is open from noon to 7 p.m. daily through Sept. 7. Located at 14 Forsberg St. in Worcester.



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Massachusetts man dies in Fiji after becoming critically ill on sailing trip

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Massachusetts man dies in Fiji after becoming critically ill on sailing trip


A Holbrook, Massachusetts man who fell critically ill while sailing through the South Pacific has died, his family told WBZ-TV Tuesday evening.

Scott Winslow was in intensive care at a hospital in Fiji for weeks, as his family fought to get him back home so he could be treated for septic shock and a serious infection.

Winslow’s wife and two daughters had made the 8,000-mile trip to be with him and fight for his care when he died.

“We are at the hospital and just said goodbye to our father,” his daughters told WBZ-TV. “We are heartbroken.”

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Winslow was traveling on his nephew’s sailboat in the South Pacific on what was supposed to be a three-month voyage when he noticed what appeared to be a bug bite.

His family isn’t sure exactly what the cause of the illness was, but his condition quickly deteriorated, and he could no longer walk once they diverted the boat to Fiji.

The family provided WBZ medical documents from doctors in Fiji, who said he needed to be evacuated to another hospital.

The family said his insurance company, Aetna, denied the transport and the medical flight to get Winslow home would have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Winslow’s family said they had secured medical services with the Mass General Brigham group if he got back to Massachusetts.

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“I don’t understand. My problem is, my parents pay for insurance, this is what insurance is for,” Lisa Babbin, Scott’s daughter told WBZ-TV earlier on Tuesday.

Before Winslow died, WBZ-TV reached out to Aetna. In a statement, a spokesperson said they were continuing to work with Winslow’s family “and his providers in Fiji to identify the best way to get him back safely to the United States for continued treatment.”

The Winslow family had also reached out the U.S. Embassy in Fiji for help securing an emergency loan.



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ICE detentions rise in Massachusetts amid World Cup festivities

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ICE detentions rise in Massachusetts amid World Cup festivities


The past month in Massachusetts has been synonymous with World Cup fan festivals, cheering crowds and tourists from Scotland crowning statues with traffic cones.

Amid concerns that the Trump administrations would ramp up immigration enforcement during the tournament, international soccer fans have posted on social media that they’ve felt welcome in the United States. The World Cup has even served as a distraction for many immigrants who’ve spent the past year and half in fear of the Trump administration’s deportation push.

And yet beneath the surface, immigration lawyers and advocates say detentions have not only continued across Massachusetts since the World Cup started in early June — they’ve increased in frequency.

“It’s supposed to be a joyous time for families, for children, and we’re still seeing an increase of arrests,” Eloa Celedon, an immigration attorney based in Marlborough, said. “Prior to the World Cup, it had settled down a bit — but since the World Cup started, it has been very sad to see arrests happening.”

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During May and early June, Celedon said her office received one or two calls a week about potential clients who’ve been recently detained. Over the last month, those calls have increased to four to five a day.

Celedon’s experiences track with a reported nationwide surge in arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Over a recent five-day period, agents across the nation detained more than 10,000 people. The arrests have occurred during routine check-ins with ICE agents as well as during traffic stops.

Todd Pomerleau, an immigration attorney and the president of Mass Deportation Defense Project, called the spike in arrests a “remarkable” contrast to the international goodwill that’s been on display during the World Cup. He pointed to a recent game he was at in California between Belgium and Iran, recounting the way players and fans cordially listened to both teams’ national anthems played before the match.

“Juxtapose that with what I’ve seen as an immigration attorney,” Pomerleau said. ”The government seems like it goes out of its way to basically arrest people without justification a lot and then just throw them in detention facilities.”

No attorneys have heard of any cases of immigrants being detained around the World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium, temporarily renamed Boston Stadium.

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A closer look at recent enforcement numbers

ICE didn’t respond to questions about how many people it has detained in Massachusetts since the start of the World Cup — the agency usually doesn’t provide time-specific enforcement figures.

Still, there are other ways to get rough estimates. Attorneys often file habeas petitions in federal court, asking judges to intervene in alleged unlawful detentions and keep immigrants from being sent to detention centers in other states.

There have been nearly 190 habeas filings in Massachusetts federal district court since the beginning of the World Cup matches, according to Habeas Dockets, a tracker run by the nonprofit Immigration Justice Transparency Initiative. Cases rose by 21% in June overall from the month before, going from 183 in May to 222.

One of those filings was for Malton Lacerda, who was detained June 28 by ICE agents after shopping at a Walmart in Halifax with his son Victor Lacerda, a Navy vet. The elder Lacerda wore a T-shirt saying “Navy Dad” as he put groceries in the car.

“Then we get rushed by a bunch of different ICE agents with guns drawn and threatening us. And we were confused,” Victor Lacerda, the son, said. “I looked back to see what was going on, because at first I couldn’t even believe it was happening to us, because we were just getting groceries. We hadn’t done anything wrong. And that’s when I saw them putting hands on my father and detaining him. But they were still asking me questions about my citizenship and my father’s citizenship.”

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Victor Lacerda, who was born in the United States, served in the Navy after high school and lives in Kingston, Massachusetts. His father, who’s undocumented, is originally from Brazil and has lived in the United States for at least 25 years. He’s currently being held at Plymouth County’s ICE detention facility.

Pomerleau, the Lacerdas’ attorney, says the father was in the process of securing a green card when he was detained. He’s eligible for permanent residency in the United States through a special process for veteran family members.

Pomerleau called the father an exemplary member of his community, noting that he works as a horse trainer and provides horse therapy for disabled veterans. He and his son also march in local parades, and planned on doing so again for the Fourth of July.

“He’s done a lot of work for the community for years. He marched in the 400th Thanksgiving Parade down in Plymouth, Memorial Day parades,” Pomerleau said.

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Malton Laceda in a Massachusetts parade last year.


Courtesy of Victor Laceda

Lacerda has two 20-year-old cases of driving without a license and paying fines, and a misdemeanor assault and battery charge from 2008 that was dismissed, involving his ex-partner who’s now raising funds for his legal expenses. ICE didn’t return requests for comment on the case.

Local immigration advocates say the recent spike in arrests is one more way the Trump administration has cherry-picked which foreigners and immigrants can enjoy the world’s biggest sporting event.

Celedon noted that the federal immigration crackdown has also made it impossible, or very difficult, for people from countries on full or partial travel ban lists to visit the United States to attend World Cup games. Those countries include Haiti and others in Africa.

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“It feels like almost like racial profiling people of certain countries that are allowed to come and those that are not allowed to come and not allowed to stay,” Celedon said.



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