Public Employee PEnsions:
Controller Audit Finds Lax Supervision of Pension Spiking by Teacher Retirement Board

An audit of the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) by Controller John Chiang, released September 5, found that the system does not adequately audit more than 1,900 reporting entities (including school districts), has missed opportunities to reduce instances of suspicious or unjustified salary increases, and has failed to adequately use existing electronic systems designed to identify cases of pension spiking.

"Starting with more rigorous auditing and better use of existing technology, CalSTRS must fortify its ability and resolve to crack down on those seeking unjust enrichment at the expense of their fellow educators and taxpayers," Controller Chiang said.

CalSTRS audits only 40 of the 1,900 entities, the controller found.

Some findings of the audit:

At the San Francisco Unified School District, one executive received a 26 percent pay increase six months prior to retirement, and another executive received a 20 percent increase one year before retirement. The district was unable to provide any documentation supporting those raises.

After similar and repeated requests were made to the San Diego Unified School District, officials ultimately responded that documentation supporting raises is missing from their files.

CalPERS Executive Officer Jack Ehnes said he agrees with the controller's recommendations to crack down on pension spiking.

Public Employee PEnsions: Controller Audit Finds Lax Supervision of Pension Spiking by Teacher Retirement Board

Public Employee PEnsions:
Controller Audit Finds Lax Supervision of Pension Spiking by Teacher Retirement Board