Darien To Pony Up $400K More For Cop Pensions
DARIEN, IL – Darien is likely to contribute $400,000 more to its police pension account next year.
That would bring the total to nearly $3 million, up from $2.6 million this year.
In 2002, Darien contributed $200,000 to police pensions, according to state Department of Insurance reports. Seven years ago, the contribution was $1.4 million, less than half of what is proposed for next year.
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Towns across the state have seen similar increases.
According to actuary Jason Franken’s report, the Darien pension fund has had an “unfavorable plan experience.”
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One of the factors in that experience is the fund generated a lower investment return than what was originally assumed.
The other factor is “lower than expected inactive mortality.” In pension-speak, that means fewer recipients died than expected.
Darien is aiming to get its pension account 100 percent funded by 2040. That’s even higher than the state’s requirement of 90 percent.
“We have always been extremely on top of making sure our pensions are funded at 100 percent. I guarantee you that we end up keep doing that going forward,” Alderman Ted Schauer said at Monday’s City Council meeting.
According to Franken’s report, Darien had 35 police officers contributing to the police pension fund as of May 1. That compares to 34 beneficiaries.
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