Pension costs hitting home across the state — hard

Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District came into being 14 years ago when four small fire departments serving farms and small towns east of Modesto merged.
The district now flirts with insolvency, a case study in how rapidly growing costs for pensions and other employee benefits are clobbering local governments.
Four years ago, Stanislaus Consolidated had 80 employees, most of them firefighters, and more than $13 million in revenues. However, as budget documents reveal, its expenses, mo