If you want to see a California politician run for cover, ask him or her about the acronym "GASB."

Every school board member, city council member, county supervisor, state legislator and statewide officeholder will know exactly what you are talking about. This is the issue that threatens to overwhelm state and local budgets within a decade.

Yet few politicians dare to talk about "gasbee."

At issue is health benefits for retired public employees. The math is straightforward: Politicians are making promises to today's workers that will require either huge tax increases or draconian cuts to other programs when the employees reach retirement age. Neither the state nor most local governments are putting aside a dime to cover this liability.

San Francisco's annual obligation for retiree health care ($17 million just six years ago) is $115 million and rising exponentially. The city now guarantees lifetime health insurance to its employees, starting at age 50, after just five years of service.

Between 2004 and 2010, the voracious costs of San Diego's municipal pension fund are expected to almost triple -- from $85 million a year to $242 million. That additional $157 million in taxpayer contributions to city retirees is more than enough to wipe out the entire annual budget of the Fire Department.

In fiscal year 2005, $15 million of Berkeley’s $115 million general fund will pay for contributions to the California Public Employees System (PERS). Last year, the city spent $8 million on retirement benefits. The year before, the city spent only $2.8 million.