In December, we reported on renewed proposals to amend California’s Constitution, as it relates to public employee pension benefits. At that time, former San Jose Mayor, Chuck Reed, and former San Diego City Councilmember, Carl DeMiao, were aiming to move one of two voter initiatives towards the November 2016 ballot, depending on the Attorney General’s
Former San Jose Mayor, Chuck Reed, and former San Diego City Councilmember, Carl DeMiao, are spearheading two voter initiatives that would amend the California Constitution as it relates to public employee pension benefits. The first is the “Voter Empowerment Act of 2016” and the second is the “Government Pension Cap Act of 2016.” The initiatives
A number of California transit agencies, as well as cities and counties that operate and maintain transit systems, are in legal limbo over whether the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (“PEPRA”) applies to mass transit employees. The State of California prevailed in its legal challenge against the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”),
Cost sharing has become a very valuable tool for employers seeking to cut the cost of retirement benefits. It is where the employee pays part of the employer’s required contribution to the retirement system and therefore, results in an immediate reduction in employer costs. Prior to passage of the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of
On Monday, a unanimous United States Supreme Court, in a harshly critical opinion, overruled a decision of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that had in essence created a presumption that retiree medical benefits provided for in a collective bargaining agreement are per se vested, unless it can be proven by extrinsic evidence otherwise. In
We are all aware of the ongoing discussion over the rising cost of public pension benefits and whether they are sustainable in the long run. However, one unanswered question was lurking in the background: Is Chapter 9 bankruptcy a way for struggling municipalities to shed these pension liabilities? We now have a glimpse at what
This post was authored by Mary Dowell
On April 23rd our community college clients received a Legal Advisory from the State Chancellor’s Office which should be of concern to all public school and community college districts. It informed the community college Human Resources Officers about a decision by CalSTRS after an audit of City College
This guest post was authored by Alison Neufeld
Public sector pension reform has been a hot topic for months. But despite the public focus on the Governor’s 12-Point Pension Reform Plan, voter initiatives, charter amendments, litigation and bankruptcies fueled by unfunded pension liabilities, time seemed to be running out for pension reform during the current
Pension reform might still have a fighting chance. As we mentioned in yesterday’s Special Bulletin, Governor Brown announced that he had reached an agreement with Legislative Democrats to move forward on pension reform with the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (”CPEPRA”).
At the eleventh hour, the joint Conference Committee on
This guest post was authored by Steve M. Berliner
Governor Brown issued a press release today indicating that an agreement was reached with legislative Democrats on public employee pension reform at the state level to take effect on January 1, 2013. Details are sketchy at this point but it does appear that most of the