The State Comptroller of Nebraska said more than 15,000 current Omaha Public Schools employees and more than $1.4 billion in retirement benefits for inactive and retired employees are mismanaged. State Comptroller Mike Foley said the department was concerned about the “faulty management” of Omaha school personnel. A new report filed Thursday refers to a retirement plan for OPS employees. The auditor’s report shows that errors in last year’s audit have not been corrected and new problems have been found. Foley said there were numerous accounting errors. He attributed this to the departure of two senior staff members and new recruits who were not trained in proper calculation methods. Auditors said this caused the money to be disbursed in error, resulting in an incorrect account balance. According to the report, there was an excess balance in the member’s account due to an incorrect calculation of the interest earned. Auditors examined 25 accounts and found 24 accounts with “false excess balances.” Over 9,000 accounts have excess balances totaling more than $8.4 million, according to the report. Nearly $7 million in misrepresentation and erroneous accounting entries were made, and about $1.6 million was refunded. Payments have been made, according to reports. Foley said there was no evidence of wrongdoing. He said mismanagement was the main reason for the situation. “If you are going to promise a generous retirement plan or pension to your retirees, you have to make sure that you have the money to cover your future responsibilities, and you need the money now.” No,” Foley said. The State Employees’ Retirement Plan is 94% for future debt. The district’s retirement plan has only 57% of its future debt covered, leaving OPS about $1 billion short when people retire and claim their pensions. Congress passed a new state law last year that forced OPS to relinquish control over the retirement plan. The state plans to implement the program next year, and school districts will continue to cover the costs and expenses of the retirement fund. Foley said his goal is to ensure the district’s retirement fund remains solvent. Get the latest headlines from KETV NewsWatch 7
The State Comptroller of Nebraska said more than $1.4 billion in retirement benefits for more than 15,000 current Omaha Public Schools employees, furloughs and retirees were mismanaged.
State Comptroller Mike Foley said in a new report filed Thursday that the State Comptroller is concerned about the “faulty administration” of the Omaha Schools Retirement Program for OPS employees. said that
According to the audit report, errors in last year’s audit were not corrected and new problems were found.
Foley said there were many accounting errors. He attributed this to the departure of two senior staff members and new recruits who were not trained in proper calculation methods. Auditors said this resulted in erroneous payments and inaccurate account balances.
According to the report, there was an excess balance in the member’s account because the interest was calculated incorrectly. Auditors examined 25 accounts and found 24 accounts with “false excess balances.”
More than 9,000 accounts have surplus balances totaling more than $8.4 million, according to the report.
About $7 million in misstatements and about $1.6 million in tax refunds were misrepresented, according to the report.
Foley said there was no evidence of wrongdoing. He said mismanagement was the main cause of the incident.
“If you’re going to promise a generous retirement plan or pension to your retirees, you have to make sure there’s money to cover future liabilities, and right now there’s no money for that,” Foley said. said Mr.
The State Employees’ Retirement Plan is 94% for future debt.
The school district’s retirement plan has only 57% of the funds available for future debt, leaving about $1 billion short of OPS when people retire and claim their pensions.
Last year, the state legislature passed a new state law forcing OPS to relinquish operational control of the retirement fund.
The state will implement the program next year, but school districts will continue to cover retirement benefits and expenses.
Foley said his goal is to make sure the district’s retirement fund is paid back.
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