Grand Rapids, MI -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/27/2013 -- Municipal debt, bond ratings, public pensions - the financial scene can be difficult to keep up with. Dennis Tubbergen, a financial advisor, author, radio show host and CEO of PLP Advisors, LLC gives a hand.

Whether people enjoy his weekly radio show or his blog at www.dennistubbergen.com, Tubbergen can be counted on to share his opinions and his viewpoints. On November 12, 2013 Tubbergen was entitled to a few bragging rights and his blog was titled I Told You So.

"On August 7, 2013, I commented on the triple drop on Chicago bond ratings by Moody’s," began Tubbergen. "Now it seems that Fitch agrees, lowering its ratings on Chicago bonds."

Below Tubbergen quotes from a November 11, 2013 article on the topic that appeared on Yahoo Finance.

Fitch Ratings has downgraded the credit worthiness of Chicago's bond debt because of its public pension problems.

Fitch dropped the rating from AA- to A- on $8 billion in general obligation bonds, backed by property taxes.

It also dropped the rating on $497 million in sales tax bonds — paid for by both the city's local sales tax and its share of the state sales tax. And the rating was downgraded on $200 million in commercial paper notes, financed by a general obligation pledge from any available city fund.

Friday's downgrade stems from "the lack of meaningful solutions" to the city's pension situation. City and fire pension programs have no more than 30 percent of the money needed to cover obligations.

The downgrade makes it more expensive to borrow money.

"One of the common themes of economic winter is pension funding problems," explained Tubbergen in the blog. "During better economic times, pension promises are made that cannot possibly be met in an economic winter season. We’ve seen it in Greece where government workers retire at age 50 with a pension equal to final salary as well as in the U.S. with such examples as Central falls, Rhode Island and more recently the City of Detroit."

To find out why Tubbergen claims it does not matter what promises were made or what the state's constitution requires, "if there is no money to pay a liability, it won't get paid" go to http://www.dennistubbergen.com and select his November 12, 2013 entry.

Tubbergen’s syndicated radio show can be heard on metro Michigan stations WTKG 1230 AM and WOOD Newsradio1300 AM and 106.9 FM.

About Dennis Tubbergen
Dennis Tubbergen has been in the financial industry for over 25 years and has his corporate offices in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Tubbergen is CEO of PLP Advisors, LLC and has an online blog that can be read at www.dennistubbergen.com.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the writer and not necessarily those of USA Wealth Management, LLC. This update may contain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements as to future events that involve various risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual events or results to differ materially from those that were forecasted. Therefore, no forecast should be construed as a guarantee. Prior to making any investment decision, individuals should consult a professional to determine the risks, costs, benefits and fees associated with a particular investment. Information obtained from third party resources is believed to be reliable but the accuracy cannot be