My guess is "Not long":
The average retirement payout for new retirees in California's biggest public pension system doubled between 1999 and 2012, according to CalPERS data, and initial monthly payments for one group nearly tripled in that period.
State and local cops and firefighters benefited the most.
In the 14 years covered by the data analyzed by The Sacramento Bee, average first-month pensions to state police and firefighters went from $1,770 to $4,978. California Highway Patrol officers' first-month retirement payments doubled from $3,633 to $7,418, and local government safety employees' pensions went from $3,296 to $6,867.
...
"These numbers indicate the cost of benefits given away a decade ago are finally coming home to roost," said Dan Pellissier, a pension-reform advocate who tried and failed to put a measure before voters last year to roll back pensions. "We're finally having to pay the pension piper."
Just as higher pensions established years ago are still rolling through the system, significant savings from changes that took effect this year – including caps on benefits for new hires and higher employee contributions – won't significantly stem retirement allowances and their cost to taxpayers for many years.
