City Council passes vote to fix Providence’s pension system

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — The City Council passed a vote on Thursday that will issue up to $515 million bonds for Providence’s unfunded pension system.

The 11 to 1 vote authorized the city to fix the city’s troubled pension system (Employee Retirement System).

Gov. Dan McKee was in attendance as a special guest and now can move forward in the process.

Council President John Igliozzi said, “We all know the economy has changed in the last few months. Taxpayers should know if the climate is not right for the city to borrow these funds, then we wait for the appropriate time. The enabling legislation allows current and future city leaders to act on issuing pension obligation bonds for up to five years.”