City Council to Discuss Possible Abolition of Lifetime Retiree Benefits for Council Members

In a 3-1 vote towards the end of Monday night’s City Council meeting, the council agreed to place on the March 12 agenda a discussion about the possibility of eliminating lifetime retiree benefits for current councilmember’s. Councilmember Jeffrey Cooper voted against the proposal.

In raising the topic, Councilmember Andrew Weissman noted that no such discussion has taken place since the sitting City Council in 1974 approved health insurance benefits in line with those of City management employees.

Weissman said he specifically wanted to have a discussion about the possible elimination of lifetime retiree benefits to council members that would serve at most eight years on the council. He said it made sense to provide them while council members were in office but not once they had left.

Both Councilmember Christopher Armenta and Mayor Micheal O’Leary said they had no problem with holding a discussion. However, Cooper said while in theory he was not opposed to a discussion, he did not feel it should happen until after the April 10 elections. He also took issue with the fact that Weissman raised the issue in a political forum during an election season, thereby making it “inappropriate” to discuss at this stage.

However, Weissman countered that the issue was neither an election issue nor a tactic. He also pointed out that the discussion would only apply to the current sitting council, as new council members would not be eligible for lifetime medical benefits under the new agreements negotiated in 2011.

Cooper added that the council had already reduced its benefits during the last negotiating season and also questioned why the discussion had to take place now. Weissman said, “Because medical benefits affect us [the sitting council]. That, he said, makes the issue “relevant and necessary.”

Armenta agreed, noting that the issue “has been bantered about for a number of years.”

Given the financial crunch the City is currently under, particularly with the abolition of the redevelopment agency, Armenta said, “We are leading by example. This is worthy of a discussion particularly with these fiscal challenges we have.”

O’Leary said he had wanted “this discussion for the longest time,” and was satisfied with both Weissman’s and Armenta’s arguments that the discussion needed to take place sooner, rather than later.

The item will now will be placed on the March 12 City Council agenda.

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