Estimates for Pensions to Tighten

By Mary Williams Walsh, The New York Times

Friday 29 December 2006

The states of New York, New Hampshire, Tennessee and about a dozen other governments may no longer be able to say their pension funds are fully funded no matter how the markets perform.

Accounting rule makers have proposed an amendment that would force these governments to provide a more realistic estimate of how much they owe retirees over time. They would also have to compare this with the assets they have set aside, showing whether they have enough to make good on their promises.