In Colorado, the minimum wage as been reduced for the first time since in the inception of the minimum wage in 1938.

Millions of private sector retirement plans have gone from being a 401k to becoming a laughable 201k – or even worse.

Unemployment is reaching 13-percent throughout California, as businesses are fleeing a state that has saddled them with the ‘solo-responsibility’ for California’s recovery.

As a whole, the Golden State is coming to a realization that government regulation has made it impossible for profitability.

And, as the private sector asks for relief, there are no rescuers coming from the public employee union members.

We are in the midst of an economical war; a fight for our lives. It’s a battle between the makers and the takers; those who do, and those who are willing to let others do for them.

The defining lines are coming into focus for the majority of private sector workers and taxpayers. There is a growing awareness – a pain induced realization – as to what the real problem is and how we need to fix it.

A recent Field Poll has discovered that 45-percent of voters who said they pay attention to state government issues believe public employee pensions are way too generous.

California cities are crying out for relief, such as bankrupt Vallejo, struggling to survive the cancer caused by the ridiculous public employee union contracts which birth a new six-figure retiree every day.

By the sounds of the callers on my talk show, those who have made a decision to stay and fight are on the brink of a major war.

It’s a fight for the life of California; do we remain a thriving democracy, or do we continue to evolve into a socialized state of government protected workers?

Before we fall too far into the abyss, there is still hope.

My only question, When do the public employee unions agree to share the pain and the burden of a state gone wrong? When do these government protected workers come to the bargaining table and agree that their heroes, Governors Jerry Brown and Gray Davis, created economically burdensome union contracts that are causing the state to bleed out on the table?

Severe death awaits the private sector if nobody comes to its rescue.

On my Capitol Hour talk show I presented the new (another attempt) initiative called the Public Employee Benefits Reform. I asked for state works to give me a call and address the obvious, “why is this not a time for equal pain for the crisis that is facing the future of the state of California?”

As the private sector has been cut by the natural effects of economic consequences, why are government workers, their unions and sock-puppet politicians not coming to our rescue – which is ultimately everybody’s rescue?

Due to their reluctance to negotiate in good faith, the initiative process awaits once again.

It is time to draft one final weapon to tame the monster. That sword: The Public Employee Benefits Reform Initiative. Now this effort won’t save the state, but it will breathe some new life into her future.

It places responsible limits on the defined benefit pension and retiree health care plans that can be offered to new state and local government employees hired after July 1, 2009.

Here is a good look at its reconstructive surgery:

New Full Retirement Ages

The full retirement ages for new government employees are increased to 55 years for police and firefighters, 60 years for other public safety employees and the appropriate Social Security retirement age (65-67) for all other job classifications. New government employees may retire at earlier ages with actuarially reduced pension and health benefits.

New Limits on Pension Benefits

The maximum defined benefit pension formulas have to be recalculated to provide, when combined with any Social Security payments, a 60-67% replacement income for new government employees who spend their entire career working for government or education agencies. The formulas used to calculate pension payments are as follows:

• Police Officers and Firefighters – 2.2% the highest average salary to years of service at 55
• Other Safety – 1.8% the highest average salary to years of service at 60
• All other Non-Social Security – 1.5% the highest average salary to years of service at SS age
• All other Social Security – 1.0% the highest average salary to years of service at SS age

Highest Average Salary Calculation

Pension funds would use an average of the highest consecutive five years of base wages, excluding all other additions such as overtime pay, bonus pay, severance pay or payouts for unused vacation or sick days.

Minimum Vesting Requirements

New employees would need to work 5 or more consecutive years for a public agency or agencies to qualify for lifetime pension benefits. Lifetime retiree health benefits would only be available to new employees who work ten years for one or more public agencies and have at least five consecutive years immediately prior to retirement.

Cost of Living Adjustments

Cost of living adjustments of up to 3% a year may be provided to retirees after 5 years should the inflation-adjusted purchasing power of their original benefit fall below 80%. If a pension fund’s funding status is above 110%, the public agency may grant an increase of up to 3% each year to all retirees so long as the funding status does not drop below 110%.

Retroactive Benefit Increases Prohibited

No retroactive increases in pension or retiree health benefits may be granted to any employee (including current employees).

Raids on Pension and Retiree Health Funds Prohibited

Public agencies are required to make full payments to their pension and retiree health care funds each year, regardless of their funding status. Money may not be taken out of pension or retiree health care funds for any purpose other than providing the benefits for which they were established. These protections apply to all funds, including those set aside for current public employees.

Expand Local Control

The initiative establishes prudent limits on defined benefit pension and retiree health care plans. State and local government agencies may provide lower benefits as they see fit and may offer other forms of deferred compensation that are not defined benefit plans. In addition, the terms of retirement benefits offered to new employees will remain the exclusive authority of public agencies and cannot be included in collective bargaining agreements.

Voter Approved Increases

With the approval of a two thirds vote of their constituents during a statewide general election, any local agency may exceed the pension benefit formulas contained in the initiative. By a three fourths vote of both houses, the state legislature may exceed the benefit levels for state employees and the University of California without voter approval.

Death and Disability Benefits Not Affected

The initiative clearly states that the death and disability benefits offered to current and new employees are not affected by this initiative.

Considering ALL that the private sector is facing, you would think that government workers, and their unions would be willing to renegotiate and help California’s future. But that is not the attitude of today’s government unions and its indoctrinated workers.

This is a war; a battle to the finish – whoever becomes the last man standing, the spoils are yours.

I asked state workers during my broadcast, “Why can’t you agree to contracts that are affordable, workable and healthy for the future of the state”, the only answer I could gather from the circulating direction of their debate is best described as, ”screw you, we are guaranteed these contracts and we’ll stop at nothing to make sure we keep them.”

Not all state workers are removed from reality.

One ‘secretly’ emailed from her inner-office location, “I have over twenty-eight years state service and understand the public plight. Several years ago new employees were placed in a two-tier system for retirement, where the new employees had to pay more. Then the unions came in and changed that rule with campaign donation calculations. The state needs to reinstate the two-tier system.”

“The other problem the state has is deterring who is ‘public safety’ for the retirement calculation. The unions got their sticky fingers on this issue and now you have people who inspect milk, and other routine jobs who are now classified as ‘public safety’ and get the enhanced retirement benefits.”

“The public safety retirement system should be reserved for those who are truly in public safety positions: fire, police and prison guards. The state needs to look at those classifications which technically are not public safety and take it down to regular retirement.”

As you can see, the enemy has been recruiting for this battle.

They have enlisted more and more dependent warriors for the fight. But the private sector still holds the numbers to push forward for a win through the means and power of the ballot.

Just one victory, one major correction and we breathe some life back into California.

Pay attention pheasants, we may only get one more shot to take out the draw-bridge to this side of the castle. Stay alert, be prepared and when we give the signal vote for the public employee unions and their contracts to absorb some pain of their own.

It’s time to take back some ground.