AgdaPkt 2005-02-07 - Laserfiche WebLink

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<3-A.?- PENSION REFORM from page 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mr. Richman's remarks came during his The govemor has also put forward a proposal presentation on ACA 5, a constitutional amend- to privatize employee pensions that would apply to ment he introduced last month that would require new hired state and local employees. Introduced that new state and local government employees by Assemblyman Richman as ACAX1 1, the (beginning in 2007) be provided a Mdefined contri- measure is similar to ACA 5, but does not mirror it butionM pension package - a 401 (k) self-directed precisely. The governor has also said that if the savings package - in lieu of the Mdefined benefl" Legislature fails to act on his proposal he would pension currently available to virtually all public take an initiative to the voters. sector employees working in federal, state and local governments. Assemblyman Keith Richman explains his pension reform proposal to League's Employee Relations Policy Committee. After explaining the details of his proposal to the committee and answering questions, the assemblyman urged committee members and the League to come to him with alternative ap- proaches. He told the committee that he was working with the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Asso- ciation, which has submitted his proposal to the Attorney General in the form of a statewide ballot initiative. The Attorney General is likely to issue a title and summary for the measure by mid- to late- February, clearing the way for signature gathering to start to qualify the measure for the ballot. PAGE 2/PRIORITV FOCUS A Two~Track Strategy Assemblyman Richman said that he planned to move both his ACA 5 and the Howard Jarvis- sponsored initiative on a parallel track, following a similar approach to that which the League and the LOCAL coalition had taken last year with their efforts to obtain a constitutional amendment to protect local revenues: pushing both the initiative route, and leaving the door open for a compromise approach developed through the legislative pro- cess. He urged the League and all stakeholders to come forward with suggestions for alternative approaches that could be amended into ACA 5. He cautioned, however, that he plans to move directly to the signature gathering and fundraising necessary to place an initiative on the ballot, and will work for its passage if ACA 5 is not passed by the Legislature in a form that he and his allies consider appropriate. Firefighters, Employee Unions Challenge Savings Assumptions Earlier in the day the committee had an exten- sive presentation and follow-up discussion with Christy Bouma, a lobbyist for the California Pro- fessional Firefighters Association. Ms. Bouma described in detail the concerns that her members have the Richman proposal, including the impact that it would have on recruiting and retaining the Mbest and brightestM of public sedor employees. She repeatedly cautioned the city officials on the committee to look closely at whether pension privatization proposals would adually save cities money. The CPF asserts that privatization will Continued on Page 4 Visit the League's Official Web Site--www.cacities.org