Leif Wellington Haase

CA Pension Bill in Sacramento Bee | Plan to Open Up CalPERS Reflects Worry About Inadequate Saving for Retirement

Communications — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 11:58:00 -0400

New America in the News:

Sacramento Bee | Plan to Open Up CalPERS Reflects Worry About Inadequate Saving for Retirement

Investing for retirement is the financial equivalent of eating your vegetables: It's good for you, but sometimes downright distasteful.

Now a proposal making its way through the California Legislature has people talking about whether the state can make putting aside retirement money more palatable.

The plan would let private businesses and workers funnel direct payroll deposits into a retirement investment account. The California Public Employees' Retirement System would administer the pooled money.

No one knows how many of California's 6 million workers without retirement plans would sign up. Many struggle in jobs that leave them with little money at the end of the month. The arcane language of finance can paralyze the uninitiated. And let's face it: We love buying stuff, even when we can't afford it.

"We want everything now," said Lynn Wigginton, a Sacramento certified financial planner. "All the bells and whistles, the newest car. It's a real obstacle to saving for retirement."

The savings plan could change that by making individual retirement investing as close to set-it-and-forget-it as possible.

*Assembly Bill 2940 would let private-sector workers without an employer-sponsored retirement plan sign up for IRAs watched over by CalPERS. The same apparatus used to take taxes out of paychecks would channel direct deposits into the accounts, which could be carried from job to job.

The plan's supporters, including Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and author Assemblyman Kevin de León, D-Los Angeles, believe CalPERS is up to the task. It's already the nation's largest public pension fund, managing $250 billion in assets for 1.5 million state and local government workers.

CalPERS hasn't yet commented on the idea. The fund's staff is analyzing the proposal and should make a recommendation to the CalPERS board at its mid-May meeting. . . Please click here to go to the Sacramento Bee website for the full article.

*Background on the pension bill: Advised by New America's Asset Building Program, Assembly Member Kevin De Leon (D-Los Angeles), introduced AB 2940 to establish the California Employees Savings Program. CalESP will provide voluntary and portable retirement savings accounts that workers can freely take with them from job to job. New America’s Asset Building Program has long called for the creation of a portable retirement account that will enable all workers the opportunity to build wealth and achieve financial security.

CA Retirement Saving Proposal in Sacramento Bee | California Assembly Panel Passes State-run IRA Proposal

Communications — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 13:15:00 -0400

New America in the News:

Sacramento Bee | California Assembly Panel Passes State-run IRA Proposal

A proposal to open California's retirement system to private sector workers prompted questions Wednesday about government competing with investment firms and the pension system's ability to handle the unique program.

"We just don't know if it's going to work yet," Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries, R-Lake Elsinore, said of the proposal to have the California Public Employees' Retirement System offer IRA accounts to workers whose employers don't offer retirement savings plans.

But Sacramento carpenter Lou Delgado said he would be interested in a CalPERS retirement account.

"I'm 40 years old and don't have anything in a real retirement plan, just some savings of my own," Delgado said. "I've worked for a lot of (companies) and never had something like that, so, yeah, I'd be interested in anything that could put away a few dollars a week at this stage of my life."

*The proposal, Assembly Bill 2940 by Assemblyman Kevin De León, D-Los Angeles, passed its first test Wednesday when a committee that deals with retirement issues approved it on a 4-1 vote, with Jeffries abstaining and another Republican, Joel Anderson of Alpine, voting against it.

Supporters said the idea has been percolating for years, both on the federal level and in statehouses. It's being pushed by think tanks as a way to get low- and middle-income Americans to start saving for retirement to supplement Social Security payouts.

"We're trying to create a new model to get people on board," said Mark Paul, senior scholar at the New America Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan institute . . .

As it is, about 6 million Californians work for businesses that do not offer retirement savings plans such as 401(k)s. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that he likes the idea. . . Please click here to go to the Sacramento Bee website for the full article.

Lessons From California's Health Reform Efforts For the National Debate

Health Policy — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 18:10:00 -0500

In January 2007, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a comprehensive health care plan that aimed to provide quality, affordable health insurance to all Californians. Based on individual responsibility, the plan focused on prevention and wellness and emphasized a shared responsibility approach to financing.

After almost a year of negotiations between Governor Schwarzenegger and Democratic legislative leaders, compromise legislation with a framework and goals similar to the governor’s original proposal passed the State Assembly with a large majority. This compromise legislation, however, was later rejected by the California Senate’s Health committee.

The effort to reform California’s health care system faced several… more

California Health Reform: Lessons for the Nation

Communications — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 12:00:00 -0500

A New America Event
03/07/2008 - 12:00pm

Efforts to reform California's health system hold many lessons for the nation. The bipartisan spirit displayed by Governor Schwarzenegger and Assembly Speaker Núñez proves that Republicans and Democrats can work together to address the most challenging health care problems facing our nation. In addition, the campaign to cover all Californians united an unprecedented coalition of advocates: hospitals, insurers, large and small employers, labor, and patients. Rarely have such disparate interest groups united in favor of a health reform proposal as in California.

The California experience also serves as a reminder that comprehensive health reform contains many complex elements that require carefully crafted and politically feasible policy solutions. Above all, the cost of providing comprehensive health coverage—to both households and governments—represents real challenges to reform efforts.

Following the release of New America’s analysis of the California reform effort —Lessons from California’s Health Reform Efforts for the National Debate —–key stakeholders from California joined New America policy experts to evaluate the California reform effort and consider what lessons it can teach the nation.

Almost across the board, panelists emphasized the importance of strong leadership and recognized that California’s unique budgetary rules were a real impediment to reform efforts. Speakers highlighted that concerns about affordability, the employer role, and financing all played an important role in the California debate.

To view a video and transcript of this event, please visit the Kaiser Family Foundation website.

Why the Budget Gap Shouldn't Derail Health Care Reform

adminn — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 15:06:00 -0500

As Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has released his budget threatened by $14 billion of red ink, many are asking whether California can afford the ambitious health care reforms that passed the state Assembly in December. Given the social and economic costs of leaving as many as 6.5 million Californians uninsured, the better question may be: Can we afford not to? Those worried by the possible impact of the budget gap on health reform include Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, whose chamber must vote for the health reform bill for it to move forward. Perata's concerns must be taken… more

Why the State's Budget Gap Shouldn't Derail Health Care Reform

Health Policy — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 14:47:00 -0500

On January 15, 2008, the San Francisco Chronicle featured an opinion piece authored by Leif Wellington Haase and Peter Harbage of the New America Foundation. The article, titled “Why the state’s the budget gap shouldn’t derail health reform,” presented several statistics on the importance of health reform. This background and analysis document offers the underlying support for the statistics used in their argument.

New America Welcomes Historic Vote on California Health Reform

Jerry Irvine — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:42:00 -0500

Len Nichols, Director of the Health Policy Program at the New America Foundation, made the following statement today after the California Assembly voted to approve health care legislation that would cover all Californians. New America has provided policy and communications advice to Governor Schwarzenegger, his staff, and to Democratic leaders throughout the reform debate. Many of New America’s core health reform principles, including an individual mandate, are included in the proposal:

“Today is an exciting day for Californians, and for all Americans. This historic Assembly vote encourages us to believe that creating a system of coverage for all… more

On California's Quest for Health Reform

Articles — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 06:16:00 -0400

Twenty-five years ago, 49er quarterback Joe Montana connected with Dwight Clark on a last-minute miracle pass that changed the history of pro football forever. The metaphor for saving California health-care reform in 2007 resides in that memory.

Several national media reports of the death of reform are premature. But we are truly down to the final minute. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s original plan was good, but not perfect. Those for whom the perfect is the enemy of the good have effectively blocked it. Republican legislators refuse to consider whether investing in Californians’ health might be worth the cost. Some left-of-center advocates… more

Leif Wellington Haase Quoted on Health Policy

Communications — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 23:51:00 -0400

New America in the News:

Gov. Bill Richardson [D-NM] on Tuesday fleshed out his $100 billion national plan for universal health care, which contains a few unique features but fails to set him far apart from the other Democratic presidential candidates, according to one analyst.

“I think it’s a very sensible plan, but it doesn’t differentiate him from the pack,” Leif Wellington Haase, director of New America Foundation’s California program and former health care fellow at The Century Foundation, said in a telephone interview.

The New America Foundation supports universal coverage for the nation, with an ongoing but government-regulated role for commercial insurance companies. This approach seems to be rising to the top; all but one Democratic presidential candidate (Dennis Kucinich) is proposing public-private hybrid solutions.

“This is a very good proposal,” Haase said of Richardson’s solution, unveiled in Iowa. “The key thing is that all the Democratic candidates are proposing ambitious, serious, honest health care plans. And I think that is more important than the specific details.”

Richardson’s platform won’t please people who want European-style socialized medicine. His universal health care proposal revolves around choice for the American public without raising taxes. He would create “affordable” options by letting working families buy the insurance plan that members of Congress enjoy, expanding Medicare for Americans in the 55-64 age group, building on existing programs for the poor and allowing children to piggyback off their parents’ coverage for a longer period of time.

Every American would be required to obtain coverage -- but pay 10 percent less for private coverage.

“Like John Edwards, he has mandated individual coverage in his plan, which Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton haven’t included,” Haase said...

For the complete article, please visit The Santa Fe New Mexican's web site.

Leif Wellington Haase

Operations — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 04:33:00 -0400

Director, California ProgramLeif Wellington Haase is Director of New America’s California Program, which aims to improve the state’s public debate by sponsoring a wide range of research, writing, and events on issues of critical importance to the future of California. His primary responsibilities include promoting the work of New America’s programs and fellows in California, launching new policy initiatives in California, organizing high-profile public events throughout the state, and forging strategic partnerships with other California-based policy organizations.Mr. Haase previously served as Senior Program Officer and Health Care Fellow at The Century Foundation, a public policy research organization based in New… more