Puerto Rico church strips teachers of pension amid crisis

The church noted in the letter that its contract with employees allows it to terminate the pension plan at any moment and said the remaining money would be distributed among retired teachers.

Many financial experts here and on the U.S. mainland say underfunded public pension obligations totaling more than $41 billion will likely wind up on the chopping block.

If the money runs out, public school teachers, police officers, firefighters and thousands of other government employees could have their pensions cut, too.

Many, including teachers and police officers, are in retirement plans that are an alternative to Social Security so they wouldn't even get Social Security checks to depend on if their pensions were cut.

Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla, who was elected with the support of public sector unions, in 2013 approved government pension system changes that included raising the retirement age, which varies depending on type of job and number of years worked, and requiring employee contributions.

Congress is considering a bill to create a federal oversight board that would have powers that might include layoffs and pension cuts sought by some investors in Puerto Rican bonds.

The archdiocese created the pension plan in 1979 in part to lure teachers who were joining the island's public school system because of its pension plan.