CRANSTON, R.I. (AP) - The U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear the case of a Rhode Island city’s decision to suspend pension adjustments to retired firefighters and police officers.
The high court denied the petition filed by the Cranston Police Retirees Action Committee this week, the Providence Journal reported.
Cranston had previously suspended the pension adjustments for 10 years after citing the city’s finances and litigation by police and firefighter unions. The city responded to the legal pressure by dialing back the suspension of payments to alternating years.
The shift did not alleviate the issues, and a group of 72 retirees pressed the matter further in Superior Court and then in Rhode Island Supreme Court in June.
Mayor Allan Fung said the pensions are currently funded at 23%, a rise from the 16.9% in 2012.
“This gives people in other communities a little pathway to hopefully follow when they are facing similarly dire circumstances financially and a looming pension problem,” Fung said.
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