Dozens of former public officials convicted of crimes are collecting state pensions from a $70 billion fund that has been an issue of contention between politicians and unions over financing in recent years, according to an investigation by the Asbury Park Press.

After analyzing data on thousands of people in the pension system and comparing them to New Jersey conviction records, the Press found that former public officials, including ex-politicians and former law enforcement officers, received more than $1 million in total last year from the pension fund.

According to a state pension fact sheet, any public official "may be subject to a reduction or forfeiture of earned service credit, salary, and/or benefits if suspension, dismissal, or termination of employment is due to misconduct; or if convicted of a crime that is in any way related to his or her employment or involves a crime of moral turpitude."

Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig. Find NJ.com on Facebook.