The Taxpayers contribute about 80% of the money to fund the Police and Fire Pension system.  That’s right 80%!  Police and Fire participants in the pension plan ONLY CONTRIBUTE 10%.  The remainder comes from insurance premiums.

In spite of all this, Taxpayers only have a 40% say in how the Police and Fire Pension Fund is managed.  Of the five members who oversee  Police and Fire Pension Fund (PFPF), only two are appointed by City Council on behalf of the Taxpayer.  The  PFPF is poorly managed.  Administrative costs are high and the funds under perform relative to similar pension funds.

It is no coincidence that the PFPF fights every attempt at transparency as they collect high salaries and enjoy lucrative benefits.

At the very least, Taxpayers deserve to have a proportional representation on the PFPF board of trustees.  To that end, the Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County has adopted the following resolution.

Resolution adopted by Concerned Taxpayers of Duval Co. on January 9, 2012

To the Mayor and City Council ofJacksonvilleFL:

WHEREAS, the City of Jacksonville (“City”) provides about 80% of the funds that are contributed from all sources to the Jacksonville Police & Fire Pension Fund (“PFPF”), and this percentage is projected to increase; and

WHEREAS, the employees participating in the PFPF provide about 10% of the funds that are contributed from all sources to the PFPF, and this percentage is likely to decrease; and

WHEREAS, the remaining contributions to the PFPF principally come from premium taxes collected by the State respecting Duval County properties, and this percentage is also likely to decrease; and

WHEREAS, the PFPF is administered by a 5 member board of trustees, which invests assets, incurs liabilities, hires staff, and makes various expenditures, which in recent years have exceeded $7 million per year, exclusive of benefit payments; and

WHEREAS, employees participating in (benefiting from) the PFPF elect 2 of the trustees of the PFPF, while the City Council, on behalf of the City, appoints 2 of the trustees of the PFPF; and

WHEREAS, those 4 trustees of the PFPF choose a 5th trustee, who the City Council must by law appoint (ratify) as a ministerial matter; and

WHEREAS, the City thus directly appoints only 2 out of 5 trustees of the PFPF, and thereby lacks the power to control the operations of the PFPF; and

WHEREAS, the City needs to have, and deserves to have, the chance to exercise control over PFPF operations, because the City provides 80% of all contributions to the PFPF, and thus all decisions by the PFPF trustees principally affect the City and its taxpayers; and

WHEREAS, State legislation adopted in 2011 empowers the City to modify local law to directly appoint 3 of 5 PFPF trustees (see Curtis Lee’s letter to City Council et al dated Dec. 7, 2011); and

WHEREAS, such a change is not only fair, but proper because the PFPF has very high operating costs, substantial waste and abuse, and poor investment results; i.e., it has a poor track record;

WHEREAS, all existing PFPF trustees and executives have served at least 5 years, and many have served more than 20 years, with the result being that all such incumbents are implicated in the waste, abuse and poor financial results that afflict the PFPF; and

WHEREAS, a failure by the City to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the 2011 State legislation will result in continued harm to City taxpayers, because the PFPF has a poor track record, and is very costly to taxpayers – the PFPF costs the City and its taxpayers over 8% of the City’s General Fund Budget currently, and such percentage is projected to increase;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council and administration should obtain legal opinions and take all necessary action to effectuate such changes in local law, and then should appoint 3 new trustees of the PFPF, with the objective of replacing current management of the PFPF, reducing costs, waste and abuse, and reforming the PFPF.

The City Council Auditor has recently released the results of their audit of the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission.

The audit reinforces what we have been saying all along.  The promises made by the advocates of corporate welfare in the form of the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission are often not delivered.  With over a decade long track record of corporate giveaways, handouts and bailouts, taxpayers have little to nothing to show for millions of dollars that have been “invested” .

We applaud the new mayoral administration’s proposed elimination of the JEDC but are skeptical of the dubious effort to re-brand corporate welfare as “public private partnerships” or P3s or PPPs.  Unfortunately the P3s being touted bear no resemblance to the Navy aircraft flying over the city.  Instead, P3s are just another euphemism for corporate welfare schemes where taxpayers bear all the risk of capital financing for a project and private individuals benefit when there (rarely) is a profit.

Now Mayor Brown has promised to reform the concept and focus on Downtown.   Haven’t we heard the broken promises before? Lavilla Redevelopment?  ? Lavilla BistroRiver City Renaissance?  Courthouse?  Genovar Hall?  Shipyards?  Skyway People Mover? Our own John Winkler has performed his own investigation to summarize the just a few of the failed promises of the sages at city hall.  The investigation is featured on our November show.

We do not doubt the sincerity of those who would like to see the urban core thrive.  In fact, we would like to see downtown turn into a prosperous area where people actually enjoy going.   Unfortunately, taxpayers can not afford to lose any more money on risky giveaways disguised as “investments” for some unquantifiable and intangible public good.

We urge Mayor Brown to reconsider the public dollar giveaway to the aspiring robber barons camouflaged as philanthropists.

Thanks for your past support of Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County (CTDC). It has been an exciting year for your organization. Our non-partisan and non-profit group is continuing to fill a valuable need for transparency and accountability in Jacksonville’s municipal government. This year, because of your generous contributions, the organization has accomplished more than it ever has. I wanted to take a moment to update you this year’s accomplishments by the organization that will hopefully help to renew your commitment to our cause. Here is just a brief list of this year’s achievements.

• The Candidate Committee headed by John Winkler interviewed several dozen candidates as well as obtaining their input from our questionnaire. This information was used by the committee to formulate recommended endorsements for the organization.

• The video interviews of the Candidate Committee were placed on the internet for any and all people to view and form their own opinions. This resource was praised by those in the community was being valuable and informative making voting decisions.

• We printed and distributed a combined 150,000 voter’s guide for this year’s local elections. This was a monumental effort never done by any organization. Although everyone did not agree with our endorsements, his literature was well received by nearly everyone who I spoke with.

• As part of the funding and distribution effort, we reached out and built coalitions with many members in the community that share our values in protecting the interests of Taxpayers. This has allowed us to share our message to a larger audience.

• CTDC has joined as a plaintiff to a lawsuit filed by our own pension expert and member Curt Lee. The suit seeks to stop the Police and Fire Pension Board and the City from continuing to illegally conduct negotiations in violation of state labor and open meeting laws. Recently a favorable ruling to allow the suit to continue forward was rendered by the judge in this case. This project is in need of generous member contributions to see it move forward effectively.

• The Trail Ridge lawsuit is still in the court system. With the new mayoral administration in place, we expect to have some movement in this case when the timing is most advantageous. Other groups have expressed interest in joining this cause as well. Please consider a donation to see that the Taxpayers can have their day in court to avert the injustice of this over $400 million no bid contract.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Concerned Taxpayers of Duval Co. (CTDC) and Curtis Lee, one of its directors and Chair of the Public Employee Compensation Committee, filed an amended complaint on August 23, against the City of Jacksonville, and the Jacksonville Police & Fire Pension Fund (PFPF).

The lawsuit and amended complaint, among other things, allege that all existing agreements between the City and the PFPF, as well as proposed legislation that was presented by former Mayor Peyton and which is still pending before City Council, were negotiated in violation of state labor law, and state Sunshine Law, and are therefore void. The Lawsuit also seeks to enjoin future violations. The agreements at issue provide generous pension benefits to persons employed and formerly employed by the Jacksonville Sheriffs’ Office and the Jacksonville Fire & Rescue Department. These pension benefits have been in the news in recent years, as they are very costly to taxpayers, and because the PFPF has approximately a $1 billion funding deficit.

Mr. Lee stated as follows: “The City and PFPF are badly mismanaging the public pensions resulting in huge costs to City taxpayers. Currently, public pensions cost each Jacksonville resident more than $150 per year, and this cost keeps escalating. It is our goal that this lawsuit will assist in causing a fundamental reconsideration of a broken pension system.”

Joe Andrews, Vice President of CTDC adds, “For years the PFPF and City engaged in clandestine negotiations in violation of State Sunshine and Labor laws. The consequence of these illegal agreements is an unsustainable liability to Taxpayers. Had these negotiations been conducted in accordance to the law, it is doubtless that the results would have been more favorable to Taxpayers.”

More information is available from Curtis Lee (594 – 6192) or Robert Dees (357-3660). Additional information is also available on the CTDC website at www.jaxtaxpayers.org

The Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County, Inc. is a not for profit corporation dedicated to serving the community as a watchdog group, to oppose corruption, waste, and tomfoolery in government.

Paid for by the Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County, Inc., P. O. Box 2307, Jacksonville, FL 32202

904-351-8126

www.jaxtaxpayers.org

Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County, Inc.,

P. O. Box 2307, Jacksonville, FL 32202

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THE CONCERNED TAXPAYERS OF DUVAL COUNTY

904-351-8126
www.jaxtaxpayers.org
Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County, Inc.,
P. O. Box 2307, Jacksonville, FL 32202
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County Inc. (CTDC) filed a lawsuit against the City of Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund (PFPF) on June 3rd 2011.  The lawsuit was filed in Circuit Court, Duval County and is docketed at 2011-CA-004348.   For a copy of the complaint, please go here.

Curtis Lee, Chairman of the Public Employees Compensation Committee (PECC) and Director of CTDC, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit, which seeks declaratory judgment and injunctive relief concerning contract negotiations conducted in violation of state labor laws and the Florida Sunshine Law.

Mr. Lee says that “for more than 10 years, the PFPF and the City have collectively bargained retirement benefits on behalf of PFPF members and future members, in violation of Florida labor law.  Additionally, these negotiations were conducted in secret without public notice or opportunity for the public to observe, as required by the Sunshine Law.  The City’s pension system is broken.  Unless serious pension reform occurs, where pension benefits are negotiated in a transparent fashion as required by state law, the pension crisis will only cost taxpayers more in the future.”

Victor Wilhelm Jr., President of CTDC, adds: “Mr. Lee and CTDC have been attempting to educate the mayor, the administration and the City Council about the unsustainable nature of the public pension status quo, how this harms taxpayers, and what can be done to reduce costs.  Unfortunately, we have what appears to be a pattern and practice of violations of the Sunshine and labor laws, all for the benefit of insiders.”

Mr. Lee and CTDC have retained the services of Robert Dees, Esq., of Milam Howard Nicandri Dees and Gillam to pursue this lawsuit.  Mr. Dees has more than 25 years of experience in Sunshine Law litigation.

Additional information about the suit is available from Mr. Lee at 904-594-6192 or Mr. Dees at 904-357-3660, or at www.jaxtaxpayers.org

The Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County, Inc. is a not for profit corporation dedicated to serving the community as a watchdog group, to oppose corruption, waste, and tomfoolery in government.

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The following is a longer version of articles that have appeared recently in the Folio Weekly and Florida Times Union.

I am a retired attorney, and first started working on private sector pension matters 30 years ago. I have researched Jacksonville’s three public employee pension plans, and am dismayed about the mistakes and fiscal irresponsibility that occurred. Jacksonville is now in the midst of a pension crisis. For example, these public employee pension plans have unfunded liabilities (deficits) totaling about $1.7 billion – about $2,000 per resident. And, in fiscal 2012, more than $140 million will be paid into these plans (over $150 per resident – more than a tripling of costs in about 6 years). About 90% of this payment will come from taxes. The rest will be paid by City residents via JEA bills.

Public pension costs will represent about 14% of Jacksonville’s General Fund budget.

How did things get so bad? There are many reasons, which boil down to the usual suspects – politics, greed, and mediocre investment returns. Let’s now delve deeper.

We’ll start in 1935. The Social Security Act of 1935 (SSA), which has been amended many times, has permitted state and local governments not to pay Social Security (FICA) taxes, and not to have their employees pay FICA taxes or be covered by Social Security. However, many state and local governments then instituted defined benefit pension plans, i.e., traditional pension plans, for their employees. My understanding is that Jacksonville first adopted such a plan in 1937. Jacksonville thus opted out of Social Security and instead provided pension benefits for public employees.

A defined benefit pension plan (DBP) provides benefits that are normally payable under this type of formula: multiply years of credited employment times a stated percentage times final average salary. For long-service employees, DBP plans provide retirement benefits that replace percentages of salary. In Jacksonville, the maximum salary replacement for public employees is 80%, and many public employees retiring in their early to mid 50s get this 80%. Some Jacksonville employees (police, fire and corrections) can and do retire in their 40s at 60% or greater salary replacement levels. Plus, Jacksonville’s retired employees receive what are called cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs). These are, in reality, 3% annual increases, regardless of actual inflation.

And so, in broad brush, this is what Jacksonville’s more than 8,000 public employees get in lieu of Social Security. I will now briefly explain how they greatly benefited because Jacksonville long ago opted out of Social Security.
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