retirement planning

Some future city workers will get a 401(k)-style retirement plan rather than traditional pensions under a sweeping plan unanimously approved by the City Council Monday.

Whether people tap into retirement savings programs through an employer or use other vehicles, what is important is investing that first step toward financial security, financial planners say.

"We had peace of mind, because we felt we'd have the kind of income so we didn't have to change our lifestyle," Gary Bassford said. "That whole process has been our road map ever since. We still live by that budget."

Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler filed a lawsuit against the oil company BP over investment losses following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion, alleging that the state's pension fund lost millions after the company misled the public about its safety protocols.

"Many people are putting off retirement because of economic issues. We're also tending to live longer," says Dr. Steven Gambert, co-director of gerontology and geriatric medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and director of geriatric medicine at the University of Maryland Medical Center. "People need to prepare ahead of time."

Baltimore County discriminated against older employees by requiring them to contribute more to their pensions than younger employees, a federal appeals court ruled this week.

Federal employment is expected to drop sharply in the span of a decade, government projections show, as budget cuts and retirements begin to reshape the workforce.

Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp and Comptroller Peter Franchot warned senators Wednesday that Gov. Martin O'Malley's proposal to divert $100 million a year from the state pension fund to next year's budget threatens the long-term health of the retirement system.

District 21 state Sen. Jim Rosapepe is co-sponsoring a bill that would expand retirement security to private-sector workers without employer-sponsored plans.

Maryland firefighters and municipalities are at odds in a high-stakes debate over a state law that presumes some cancers are related to fighting fires for purposes of awarding workers' compensation.

System funded at 118 percent

Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan to divert pension savings to the general fund is unfair to workers and potentially harmful to Md.'s fiscal health.

Ruppersberger urged to boost Social Security benefits

City must drop pension enhancements for a few police and firefighters to better fund pensions for all

The Howard County Board of Education Thursday, Jan. 23, terminated its contract with United Healthcare, officially backing out of a Medicare Advantage Health Benefits plan that many retirees had criticized.

The Baltimore-based office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is the slowest in the country to process disability claims for servicemen and women, averaging about a year, and also makes more mistakes than any other office.