Public pension math is real problem

Your editorial, “Something’s gotta give” [Dec. 10], summarizes what is probably the biggest budget-breaker that New Yorkers face, which is runaway public pensions. All the remedies you listed should be implemented, but the biggest problem, which you did not really outline, is the way these pensions are computed.

Most of these pensions are calculated using the last year or two of the employee's earnings, which are usually their highest salaried years, further inflated by excessive overtime income. As such, the basis for the calculation is grossly inflated, resulting in many public employees getting more money retired than they made while working. Clearly, this is absurd and not sustainable.

Legislation should be fast-tracked to use an employee's average base salary during their tenure as the basis for pension calculations. Until something like this is implemented, New Yorkers will continue to suffer financially, and many will flee New York for more tax-friendly states.

Michael Tartaglia

Franklin Square