NEW YORK | By Robert Johnson via Next New Deal | The pensions crisis has far-reaching implications for the future of the U.S. economy: the state and local government sector is about 14 percent of the American workforce. What broke the system, and how do we fix it? Beyond the economic crisis, which put enormous pressure on state and municipal budgets, poor decision-making and the influence of big money interests has led to the underfunding of some state and city public pensions.