Andy Beshear on Social Security

No cuts to government pensions; find other revenue

A: Our educators, first responders, city, state and county employees already sacrifice so much. They work their whole lives to make Kentucky a better place to live. The last thing they should sacrifice is the pension they've earned. The best way to fix our state retirement system is to find new sources of revenue like closing tax loopholes for luxury items like private jets.

State gaming will cover $43B unfunded state pension plan

Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has opposed legalizing casinos. Bevin called the proposal "a tired tenet" of the Democratic Party.

Beshear's letter makes familiar arguments for expanding gambling--primarily that Kentuckians are already wagering big money at casinos in five neighboring states, including Indiana. It does not estimate how much money legal casinos would generate for Kentucky, but he wrote, "Commercial gaming in Indiana last year alone netted over $600 million in direct tax revenue." He said legalized sports betting could raise "an additional $30 million" in annual revenue.

Kentucky's eight pension plans recently reported having $42.7 billion in unfunded liabilities, including both pension and health plans.