U.S. Supreme Court denies review of New Jersey pension fund contribution ruling
By Robert Steyer - Pensions & Investments February 29, 2016 11:43 am | Updated
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it would not review a New Jersey
Supreme Court ruling from last year that upheld Gov. Chris Christie's
withholding of certain contributions to the $71.1 billion New Jersey Pension
Fund, Trenton, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015.
Without offering any comment by justices, the court denied certiorari — a
request for review — in two petitions seeking to overturn the 5-2 verdict by the
state Supreme Court in June 2015. The requests by public employee unions argued
that the state Supreme Court ruling violated federal contract law. The petitions
are Burgos et al. vs. New Jersey et al. and New Jersey Education Association et
al. vs. New Jersey et al.
Attorneys representing the state maintained the state court's decision gfully
comportsh with previous U.S. Supreme Court rulings. They argued the state
constitution limits gthe ability of one Legislature to bind future Legislatures
with regard to appropriations.h
The state Supreme Court's decision struck down part of a state pension law,
saying it gdoes not create a legally enforceable contract that is entitled to
constitutional protection.h
The governor had promised to pay $2.25 billion to the pension fund for the
fiscal year ended June 30, 2015, then cut the amount to $681 million. He also
used a line-item veto to keep the payment at $681 million after the Legislature
had approved a budget for fiscal year 2015 that would have paid the original
amount.