PERS panel close to finishing

Gov. Kate Brown’s special panel tasked with finding money to help pay for $24.5 billion in unfunded state benefits looked at ideas big and small during a meeting Friday to winnow suggestions on how to generate more money for the state’s cash-strapped Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).

Converting some cash reserves to investments, selling state land and buildings, pumping up liquor sales and getting cities to be more aggressive in debt collection and foreclosures were among the ideas discussed by the panel.

“What we are really trying to do is create a pretty good blueprint,” said task force member Donald Blair, the former chief financial officer of Nike.

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Officially named the PERS UAL Task Force, the group meeting at Portland State University was asked by Brown to come up with $5 billion in new revenue that can cover the retirement system’s unfunded actuarial liability (UAL).

Read more: http://www.bendbulletin.com/localstate/5580986-153/pers-panel-close-to-finishing