Unlike the distorted idea of sustainable development, governments should worry about the sustainability of their pension and health care promises to retirees. Girard Miller at Governing.com suggests a formal sustainability audit that asks such questions as

  • Could continuation of the status quo eventually result in a lower bond rating or higher borrowing costs as investors begin to focus on this huge unfunded liability?
  • Is total compensation including the OPEB benefits both fair and affordable, and thus sustainable?

With North Carolina’s pension fund down at least 15 percent, but how much exactly the Treasurer’s office does not know (it’s most recent report is as of December 2006, and unfunded health care liabilities already at $30 billion, the sustainability of retirement benefits for state employees is a great unknown.