by Delen Goldberg / The Post-Standard / www.Syracuse.com

In 1998, New York spent about $3.4 billion on pensions for state and local government workers. A decade later, that figure had ballooned to nearly $7 billion, a jump of more than 100 percent, according to the state comptroller.

State taxpayers footed most of the bill.

In fact, last year, for every $100 a government worker spent on his or her retirement, taxpayers contributed about $1,000. At the same time, residents continued to see their own private pensions shrink or disappear.

New York's public workers can retire at age 55 with guaranteed benefits. They have to contribute to their retirement plan for only their first 10 years on the job, and they pay no state income taxes on their pensions.

Compared with the average New York worker, state and local government employees receive the gold standard of pensions.

Click here for the full story.