Skip To Main Content
Robert Fellner on Muck Rack

Robert Fellner

Arlington, Las Vegas
As seen in: Business Insider, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post Opinions, Los Angeles Times, The Orange County Register, Washington Examiner, The San Diego Union-Tribune, Las Vegas Review-Journal, RealClear Politics and
Covers:  pensions, collective bargaining, public pay, public records, education, school choice, occupational licensing, constitutional law
Student at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School
Back to Robert Fellner’s profile

Robert Fellner’s Journalist Portfolio

View as a grid

California needs to put some heat in its sunshine law

California needs to put some heat in its sunshine law

The Modesto Bee — A bill before the state Legislature would finally penalize governments who would hide their records from the public. California's Public Records Act provides all Californians with the fundamental right of a transparent and accountable government. The CPRA is explicit and thorough in its requirements.
Who shared?

We Don't Need To Create Jobs - We Need To Create Value

We Don't Need To Create Jobs - We Need To Create Value

Zero Hedge — An influential left-wing think tank has called for the government to create millions of jobs for those without a college degree, leading to headlines like The Nation's declaration that "It's Time for the Government to Give Everyone a Job."
Who shared?

COMMENTARY: The Clark County School District's spin

COMMENTARY: The Clark County School District's spin

Las Vegas Review-Journal — As famed economist Ludwig Von Mises observed many years ago, the first priority of any bureaucracy will always be self-preservation. While defenders of government-run schools have largely succeeded in obscuring this fact from the public, the Clark County School District is doing its very best to remind us of just how valid Mises' insight remains.
Who shared?

News organizations need to stop misleading the public about PERS

News organizations need to stop misleading the public about PERS

npri.org — A pernicious myth is being spread by some of Nevada's news organizations about the financial health of PERS - erroneously suggesting the public should be unconcerned about a multi-billion dollar debt that continues to consume more and more tax dollars every year.
Who shared?

COMMENTARY: Nevada public pension system discourages talented teachers from staying in the profes...

COMMENTARY: Nevada public pension system discourages talented teachers from staying in the profes...

Las Vegas Review-Journal — There are undoubtedly a variety of reasons behind Clark County School District Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky's recent decision to retire. But one factor warrants further scrutiny: He would effectively lose money by continuing to work past the age of 53. Like all public school employees, Mr. Skorkowsky is a member of the Nevada Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).
Who shared?

The privatization of the subway is the solution New Yorkers need

The privatization of the subway is the solution New Yorkers need

Business Insider — A recent surge in breakdowns, delays and overcrowding at New York's subway system - in conjunction with a steady stream of rate hikes - has left many New Yorkers fu ming and seeking answers. By citing proximate causes like record-high ridership, the New York Times attempted to provide those answers in last month's column (Why is Subway Service in New York Getting Worse?
Who shared?

California labor union influence kills public records bill

California labor union influence kills public records bill

The San Diego Union-Tribune — A bill that would have finally made good on the promise of governmental transparency - a fundamental right promised to all Californians in the state Constitution - was killed late last week, despite having passed the state Assembly by a staggering 71-1 landslide.
Who shared?

Public unions betray their own members with pension propaganda

Public unions betray their own members with pension propaganda

npri.org — Thanks to lobbying efforts from public-employee labor unions, Nevada teachers must now rely on an increasingly risky retirement system that costs more, and provides fewer benefits, than ever before. New teachers are being treated "as sources of revenue for other people's pensions," according to a well-documented and authoritative national study.
Who shared?

NVPERS leadership discounts member complaints

NVPERS leadership discounts member complaints

npri.org — Is a very simple error - looking only at one side of the balance sheet - the source of a huge and growing rift between Nevada's largest teachers union and the Public Employees' Retirement System of Nevada (NVPERS)?
Who shared?

Pension Reform Must Come Before Tax Hike

Pension Reform Must Come Before Tax Hike

Forbes — Before lobbying the legislature to raise Nevadans' taxes yet again-its property taxes this time-incoming Clark County chief executive officer Yolanda King should heed the advice of one of her predecessors: Dr. Thom Reilly. As the former head of Clark County, Reilly has firsthand experience with trying to manage the county's largest expense: employee compensation.
Who shared?

California's public records law needs teeth

California's public records law needs teeth

Orange County Register — As long as government employees are free to violate the state's public records law with impunity, the transparency promised to all Californians in the state constitution will remain elusive.
Who shared?

The government's retirement problem is headed for a disaster

The government's retirement problem is headed for a disaster

Business Insider — The combined debt held by U.S. public pension plans will top $1.7 trillion next year, according to a just-released report from Moody's Investors Services. This "pension tsunami" has already forced towns like Stockton, California and Detroit, Michigan into bankruptcy.
Who shared?

Nevada Leads on Public-Sector Pension Yield

Nevada Leads on Public-Sector Pension Yield

The Wall Street Journal — Steve Edmundson's low-cost investment approach has helped the Nevada PERS outperform its peers, but it is still underfunded.
Who shared?

Robert Fellner: Don't wait for next bankruptcy wave

Robert Fellner: Don't wait for next bankruptcy wave

Vallejo Times-Herald — Last month, the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) announced a 2016 investment return of less than 1 percent, far short of its 7.5 percent investment target - foreshadowing higher taxes, reductions in police and fire services, closures of parks and libraries, and numerous municipal bankruptcies.
Who shared?

Shining a Light on the Public Pension Crisis | RealClearPolicy

Shining a Light on the Public Pension Crisis | RealClearPolicy

realclearpolicy.com — Taxpayer costs for U.S. public pension plans, already up three-fold since 2001, are going up yet again - the necessary consequence of long-term investment returns plummeting to record-low levels. While underperforming investments receive the most attention, they aren't the real reason for the tax hikes and cuts in government services needed to bail out public pensions.
Who shared?

Robert Fellner: Boom times for R.I. local public employees

Robert Fellner: Boom times for R.I. local public employees

Providence Journal — It seems that Providence residents just can't catch a break. Still struggling to recover from the ravages of the 2008 recession, residents were dealt another blow when it was revealed that "Providence ranks among top 5 cities for income inequality" (news, Jan.
Who shared?

Public Pension Defenders Can't Stand Their Ground If They Used Accurate Data

Public Pension Defenders Can't Stand Their Ground If They Used Accurate Data

Forbes — In August, an LA Times report exposed that CalPERS has spent billions on the "most rarefied services" that Wall Street has to offer, including paying what's expected to be a "ginormous" amount in bonuses and fees to private equity funds. Those "rarefied" services include investments in groups that buy and sell whole companies in hopes of making lucrative profits.
Who shared?

Pay gap widens between public, private workers

Pay gap widens between public, private workers

The San Diego Union-Tribune — The call for government to enact "share the wealth" policies is growing louder, thanks to a recent Brookings Institution study on rising income inequality. But this demand rests on a fallacy: that the amount of wealth is fixed, by which one profits at another's expense. The exact opposite is true, of course.
Who shared?

Teacher pay, evaluation systems need overhaul

Teacher pay, evaluation systems need overhaul

The San Diego Union-Tribune — California's teacher shortage is due, in large part, to a broken system that underpays its best teachers and discourages talented young professionals from ever joining. And now legislators want to make it even worse. A consensus that includes everyone from President Barack Obama to scholars at our nation's most distinguished universities agree: The single most important factor in students' development is the quality of their teachers.
Who shared?

The explanation for generous and inflated public-sector pay

The explanation for generous and inflated public-sector pay

Las Vegas Review-Journal — In his Saturday letter, Charles Parrish misses the mark by blaming the allegedly greedy nature of business owners for why government pay outpaces the private sector. Because business owners can survive only if customers voluntarily purchase their product, they face a level of cost restraint unlike anything found in government - which is, of course, funded by taxation.
Who shared?

Madera mayor misleads residents in attempt to hide unjustifiable, excessive pay raises

Madera mayor misleads residents in attempt to hide unjustifiable, excessive pay raises

transparentcalifornia.com — Summary: The City of Madera is facing significant financial problems, with a general fund deficit projected for each of the next five years, rising from $1.7 million in FY2018 to $3.9 million by FY2023. Over that same time period, the city's estimated annual pension costs will rise from $5.1 million to $8.5 million.
Who shared?

Nevada teachers the victims of lawmaker inaction on the Public Employee Retirement Sy...

Nevada teachers the victims of lawmaker inaction on the Public Employee Retirement Sy...

Las Vegas Review-Journal — A rising unfunded liability matters because, just like any other form of government debt, it translates to higher costs today. As PERS unfunded liability continues its meteoric rise - up more than 600 percent since 1995 - so too does the amount deducted from teacher paychecks.
Who shared?

Assemblywoman's pension 'fix' akin to pouring gasoline on a fire

Assemblywoman's pension 'fix' akin to pouring gasoline on a fire

npri.org — Assemblywoman's pension 'fix' akin to pouring gasoline on a fire
Who shared?

COMMENTARY: The facts behind Nevada's education spending

COMMENTARY: The facts behind Nevada's education spending

Las Vegas Review-Journal — Tick Segerblom's plan to raise the county sales tax by a full percentage point finally makes sense: He is operating under the catastrophically flawed assumption that education spending is at an all-time low, when precisely the opposite is true. Mr. Segerblom, a Democrat, currently serves in the Nevada Senate.
Who shared?
Show More