Tag: pension

The City of Bell, once marred by scandal following the 2010 indictment of a significant portion of city officials for corruption, released the names of its retired public safety employees who have claimed a work-related disability. Bell sent a list of the names within 10 business days in response to a Dispatch request filed under the California Public Records Act.

Voters in San Diego and San Jose overwhelmingly voted to pare back retirement benefits for city employees, setting the stage for a showdown over public pensions in Sacramento later this year.

As the city of Gilroy happily reports glowing and growing sales tax numbers – “Seven straight quarters of sales tax increases” – and the unions call for new hiring, I wonder if anyone gets it. Or will we turn a blind eye to reality and take the easy way out as Mayor Al Pinheiro did in the last election? Personally, he said, binding arbitration for public safety employees was a horrible burden for the city, but he declined to take on the political fight to overturn it. That could have caused a real election rumble with the firefighters and police unions spending money to save the right for an out-of-town attorney to have the final say on pay and benefits for Gilroy’s public safety employees.