Michigan schools face economic time bomb

According to a report by Ron French of The Detroit News "Michigan's school retirement system is riddled with loopholes and slipshod policies costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars and driving the state's public education system toward financial crisis." In the 2006-07 school year, the cost of retirement benefits per student was $1,015 — more than is spent on "books, buses, computer technology and building maintenance combined." Loopholes that qualify retirees for lifetime health coverage could alone cost the system $2 million a year. It's projected that $1 billion could be lost in a program that allows employees to purchase years of service in order to retire early.