San Jose unions sue to block pension reform

By John Woolfolk

Staff writer

San Jose police officers and firefighters Wednesday made good on promises to legally challenge San Jose's voter-approved pension reform with a pair of lawsuits filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court.

San Jose voters Tuesday approved Measure B by a nearly 70-percent margin. Mayor Chuck Reed championed the measure to control pension costs that have soared from $73 million to $245 million in a decade and are projected to continue rising, outpacing revenues and forcing the city to cut staffing and services to residents to cover the bill.

But unions maintained the measure violates court rulings that prohibit government employers from reducing workers' pension benefits during their career without offering something comparable in return.

"Measure B is unlawful and unconstitutional," said Christopher Platten, an attorney for the firefighters. "Measure B impairs promises made to current and retired San Jose employees for decades."

The unions asked the court to block implementation of Measure B's provisions while the case is decided.

"If we lose, so be it, but we'll at least try to fight it," said San Jose Police Officers' Association President Jim Unland.

Reed said he was not surprised by the union lawsuits. San Jose preemptively filed suit in federal court Tuesday seeking a ruling affirming Measure B's legality.

"This is California," Reed said. "Nothing important happens without litigation."

Reed was confident Measure B will withstand legal challenges because the state constitution and city charter grant its elected leaders authority over employee compensation.

"The California constitution grants charter cities complete authority over employee compensation, and our own charter provides that the council can from time to time amend or change any retirement plan," Reed said. "So I think we're in a strong position on the facts and the law."

Measure B does not change pension benefits employees and retirees earned to date. The measure limits retirement benefits for new hires and requires current employees to either pay up to 16 percent of their salary more for their current pension plan or switch to one that is less generous. It also would allow the city to temporarily suspend cost-of-living pension increases for retirees in a fiscal emergency.

The provisions affecting current employees would not take effect for another year to allow time for courts to weigh in. City officials next week will consider implementing reduced pensions for new hires except for police and firefighters, for whom that will be decided in arbitration. City officials this week also plan to ask federal authorities to approve a reduced pension plan current workers could choose for their remaining years rather than pay more for the existing plan.

Contact John Woolfolk at 408-975-9346.