Public Pension Funds Are Shrinking

Pension funds for police officers, teachers, and other government employees were particularly destroyed by the downturn, the Washington Post reports. According to the article, within 15 years, public systems on average will have less half the money they need to pay pension benefits. The need to make up for recent losses puts public pension funds in a tricky spot: They must often choose between cutting retirement benefits or pursuing high-risk, high-return investments. “The urgent need for outsize returns by these vast public pension funds, which must hit high investment targets year after year to keep pace with rising retirement costs, is in turn fueling a renewed appetite for risk on Wall Street,” the paper says.

The New York Times leads its business section with a profile of Cesar Millan, the “Dog Whisperer,” who has created a multimillion-dollar company based on on his skilled work with pets and their owners. His Web site reportedly grosses annual sales in the mid-seven figures, thank to DVDs, books, and merchandise sales.  Nearly 11 million Americans tune in to watch Millan’s television show each week, and his first three books, all New York Times best-sellers, have collectively sold 2 million copies in the United States. In addition, there’s his Dog Psychology Center, a 43-acre mecca he calls a “Disneyland for dogs,” which is under construction, the first of many such centers nationwide.

The Times also takes a look this morning at Citigroup’s controversial pick for a lobbyist. According to the article, while most banks call in lobbyists to help them to sort out relations with Washington, Citigroup (C) has gotten some negative feedback for calling on someone with a particularly notorious reputation. “[P]eople inside and outside the bank say they were stunned when Richard D. Parsons, Citigroup’s chairman, enlisted the services last spring of Richard F. Hohlt, a longtime Washington insider with a history of aggressive advocacy for the banking industry,” the paper says. As a known lobbyist for the savings and loan industry in the 1980s, Hohlt helped to block regulation and “played a pivotal role helping to prolong dubious industry practices that cost taxpayers $150 billion to clean up.” According to one law professor interviewed in the article, ““It is singularly obscene that any recipient of taxpayer assistance through the TARP program during the current financial crisis would hire one of the most infamous lobbyists in the world to represent them.”

According to the Associated Press via the Wall Street Journal, “[t]The Department of Energy's $300 million 'cash for refrigerators' rebate program, meant to spur the purchase of energy-efficient refrigerators and other appliances, will take effect in the coming months.” Unlike the government’s “cash for clunkers” program, this one won’t require trade-ins. Instead, customers will get a rebate with the purchase of a new Energy-Star rated appliance. “Guidelines and criteria, including eligible purchases and rebate amounts, are determined by each state,” the article says. States have until Thursday to hand in their plans for how the program will work.

Finally, the recent shuttering of Gourmet magazine says something about the way Americans eat, the Washington Post says. “The good-food movement doesn't yet have mass appeal,” the article concludes. While it may be trendy to embrace local foods and support agricultural workers rights, those feelings aren’t as widespread as they might seem. “The number of farmers markets in this country is growing, but so are the sales of convenience foods,” the paper says. Microwaving meals is at an all-time high, and fast-food sales indicate that Americans aren’t cutting back on bagged greasy meals, either.