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The 2017 Pension Political Power 25: Steve Sweeney
No. 12. Steve Sweeney


New Jersey State Senate
Last November, New Jersey achieved a dubious honor when it surpassed Illinois and Kentucky to claim the most underfunded pension system in the U.S. The Garden State has $135.7 billion less than it needs to cover its pension promises, and fixing the funding gap has been an ongoing political challenge. As the powerful president of the State Senate, Steve Sweeney, 57, is on the front line of the state’s bloody pension battles. He was the driving force behind a law passed in December that requires New Jersey to make quarterly rather than annual payments to its pension system. Governor Chris Christie vetoed two previous iterations of the bill — calling it an improper and unwarranted intrusion in 2014 — but conceded after a revision shifted borrowing costs associated with those payments to the pension fund. Pension politics will loom large in New Jersey’s upcoming state elections, slated for November. Though Sweeney has opted not to run for governor, he will be an important power behind whoever inherits the throne from an embattled, term-limited Christie. — Jess Delaney
![]() 2. Bruce Rauner Governor of Illinois ![]() 3. Betsy DeVos Secretary of Education ![]() 4. Laura & John Arnold Founders, Laura and John Arnold Foundation ![]() 5. Steven Mnuchin Secretary of the Treasury |
![]() 6. Wilbur Ross Secretary of Commerce ![]() 7. Tani Cantil-Sakauye California Chief Justice ![]() 8. Paul Ryan Speaker of the House ![]() 9. Anthony Scaramucci Founder, SkyBridge Capital ![]() 10. Kevin de León California State Senator and President Pro Tempore |
![]() 11. Mike Enzi Chairman, Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security ![]() 12. Steve Sweeney President, New Jersey State Senate ![]() 13. Jerry Brown Governor of California ![]() 14. Corey Lewandowski Co-founder, Avenue Strategies ![]() 15. Paul Singer President, Elliott Management Corp. |
![]() 16. Randel Johnson Senior Vice President, Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits, U.S. Chamber of Commerce ![]() 17. Joe Manchin U.S. Senator ![]() 18. Kenneth Feinberg Founder and managingpartner, Feinberg Rozen ![]() 19. Scott Walker Governor of Wisconsin ![]() 20. Richard Trumka President, AFL-CIO |
![]() 21. Mike Rawlings Mayor of Dallas ![]() 22. Elizabeth Warren U.S. Senator ![]() 23. Kent Mason Partner, Davis & Harman ![]() 24. Bernie Sanders U.S. Senator ![]() 25. Randi Weingarten President, American Federation of Teachers |