AG Jerry Brown To Defend AOCDS From Anti-Retroactive Pension Lawsuit
Posted by: Jubal | 09/02/2008 12:48 PM
Jerry Brown's campaign for governor in 2010 took another step forward, as he announced plans to help defend the AOCDS against the OC Board of Supes lawsuit seeking to roll-back to retroactive portion of their 3-at-50 pension spike.
I remember when law enforcement used to back Republicans over Dems because of public safety issues. Once the Dems wised up and ditched their public opposition to the death penalty and tough anti-crime measures in general, competing for law enforcements' affections began turning on who was more generous with taxpayer dollars. And that's a game in which Reps just can't compete with the Dems (not that some of them they don't try).
Here's the press release:
I remember when law enforcement used to back Republicans over Dems because of public safety issues. Once the Dems wised up and ditched their public opposition to the death penalty and tough anti-crime measures in general, competing for law enforcements' affections began turning on who was more generous with taxpayer dollars. And that's a game in which Reps just can't compete with the Dems (not that some of them they don't try).
Here's the press release:
Attorney General Brown Defends Orange County Deputy Sheriffs From Effort to Roll Back Pensions
Attorney General Brown Defends Orange County Deputy Sheriffs From Effort To Roll Back Pensions
LOS ANGELES--California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced his decision to seek permission from the court to file a legal brief on behalf of the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) to protect an Orange County deputy sheriffs' pension plan currently being challenged by the Orange County Board of Supervisors.
"The deputy sheriffs put their lives on the line for us, and they deserve fair compensation for their hard work serving and protecting the people of Orange County," Attorney General Brown said. "County Supervisors are not entitled to suddenly change their minds and decide to take away important pension benefits that the deputies bargained for in good faith. The hard-working men and women of the Orange County Deputy Sheriffs' Department deserve far better treatment from the Board of Supervisors. Their families are counting on it."
Brown intends to file his brief in opposition to an Orange County Board of Supervisors' lawsuit that challenges a 2001 collective bargaining agreement between the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs and the County. The agreement provides deputies with a pension known as "3% at 50," a plan that has been adopted by virtually every public safety department in the State of California. Attorney General Brown is filing his amicus brief on behalf of CalPERS, the state employee pension plan.
The County claims that increasing the sheriffs' retirement pension violates the California State Constitution's debt limit and extra-compensation provisions. The Attorney General, however, has determined that the state routinely authorizes similar retirement plans in which employees obtain benefits from prior years of service.
"The County's lawsuit poses a significant threat to all public employees in California, including local police and other law enforcement officers," added Brown. "This case is about protecting public safety by providing law enforcement with a decent pension plan. If the County's lawsuit is successful, it will discourage young men and women from choosing a career in law enforcement and will hurt the families who relied on the promises the Orange County Board of Supervisors."
The case, County of Orange v. Board of Retirement of the Orange County Employees Retirement System, is currently being litigated in Los Angeles Superior Court.
A copy of the state's amicus brief will be released when available.
CATEGORY:
At The Trough
Mr. Ayer registered as a Republican to be electable in an interim election with no incumbents. He did...
Team Moorlach gets another kick in the shins, I mean ego!!!!
Not surprising. It was Gov. Jerry Brown who installed collective bargaining for government workers in the 1970's. (See here, http://www.sacbee.com/walters/story/1200800.html) The unions have been paying the Dems back for decades in the Long March towards socialism.
Jubal,
Republicans in Orange County should be focusing on cutting spending on social welfare programs and government regulatory bureaucracies, not penny-pinching the pensions of the men and women who protect our families.
This is a smart political move by Brown. If Republicans want to hold onto the governorship in 2010, we might start thinking about BUILDING coalitions--instead of throwing away the support of public safety professionals.
Who would have ever thought GOVERNOR MOONBEAM would be supporting law enforcment more than the so called conservative Lincoln Club and the rest of the Republican Party.
Jubal,
If they're trying to roll back to the retroactive portion, what's your beef? Aren't they already there? Just asking.
Jubal, thanks for the update on this pension issue. In another post related to pensions, someone named Archstone brought up the Coast District race this year - which is less important but still very significant given today's budget realities. Armando Ruiz, a trustee that retired from the board in 2004, triple-dipped and was able to double the value of his annual pension. To make matters worse, he remains on the board and is still collecting his salary as a trustee. So many people have expressed outrage at this that the Democratic party had no choice last week but to endorse Ruiz's opponent for Trustee, Lorraine Prinsky (http://www.lorraineprinsky.com). Even Democrats are now taking actions that support fiscal stability and sanity in public pensions! While the County attempts to reverse the pension spike provided to the sheriff's deputies, hopefully the voters of the Coast community will stand up for ethics and fiscal accountability and remove Ruiz from office.