The City of Saginaw has been awarded $38,678,237 in funding from the State of Michigan Department of Treasury Protecting MI Pension Grant Program. The grant funding will be applied toward the City’s underfunded pension retirement system.
The Michigan Department of Treasury appropriated $750 million to establish the pension principal payment grant program as part of their Fiscal Year 2022-2023 budget for qualified municipal retirement systems with a funded ratio below 60%, as defined in the Protecting Local Government Retirement and Benefits Act, Public Act 202 of 2017. The City of Saginaw is currently funded at a 49.1% ratio and submitted a grant request for $38,678,237 in June 2023 for the Municipal Employees Retirement System. The grant award amount was validated using the City of Saginaw’s retirement assets and liabilities as reported in their most recent Retirement System Annual Report (Form 5572) as of December 31, 2021.
Many municipalities throughout the state have been hindered by the need to fund their pension plans. In recent years, the City has been diligent in contributing a significant portion of its budget to this fund.
City Manager Tim Morales commented on the significance of the grant award, “The impact of growing pension payments has drastically affected the City’s ability to provide valuable services to our citizens. The Protecting MI Pension Grant Program will significantly improve the financial stability for the City and provide an overall benefit to our operations. We are very grateful that the State of Michigan has awarded this funding to the City.”
To view the FY 2023 Annual Audit and other important financial statements, click here. For more information concerning the City of Saginaw’s governmental accounting and financial reporting, please contact the City Manager’s Office at 989-759-1403.
