Measure FF | californiachoices.org

My vote

Would amend the City Charter to allow peace officers employed by the Police, Airport, Harbor, and Recreation and Parks Departments to transfer membership and service from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System to the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension Plan; and require the City to pay associated costs, including refunds to certain Airport and Police Department members for prior transfers. Measure FF requires 50%+1 of the vote in order to pass.

Fiscal Impact: The estimated one-time cost is $109,500,000, including $106,000,000 for transfer costs and $3,500,000 for refunds. The estimated annual cost is $6,300,000, adjusted annually proportional to payroll changes. The City’s General Fund, Airport Revenue Fund, and Harbor Revenue Fund will pay all costs for their respective affected members. The General Fund will pay approximately $23,000,000 for the one-time payment and $1,000,000 annually, adjusted annually proportional to payroll changes.

Next Los Angeles County Measure: Measure HH

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Details

Pro/Con

Pro:

Supporters argue that Measure FF is a simple measure that would give all peace officers employed by the City the opportunity to be covered by the same pension plan, regardless of what department they work for. All of these peace officers must meet the same training and licensing requirements, perform similar functions, and face similar risks. They should be eligible for the same benefits.

A YES vote on this measure means you support allowing peace officers to transfer membership and services from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System to the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension Plan.

Con:

No official argument against Measure FF was submitted

A NO vote on this measure means you oppose allowing peace officers to transfer membership and services from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System to the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension Plan.

In Depth

The Los Angeles City Charter (Charter) provides that certain City employees who are sworn peace officers and perform peace officer duties for the City’s Police, Airports, Harbor and Recreation and Parks Departments are members of the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System (herein, referred to as LACERS Peace Officers). Previous Charter amendments have authorized eligible groups of sworn peace officer employees to transfer from LACERS into the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension Plan (LAFPP). The vast majority of the City’s other sworn peace officer employees are members of LAFPP. Tier 6 of LAFPP is the pension plan for eligible LAFPP members.

This measure would amend the Charter to authorize the City Council to provide a process whereby LACERS Peace Officers, who are actively employed on January 12, 2025, may make a one-time election to transfer into LAFPP. This includes LACERS Peace Officers who did not previously elect to transfer into LAFPP pursuant to prior Charter amendments.

This measure is consistent with Letters of Agreement executed between the City and bargaining units represented by the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers’ Association. This measure is also consistent with actions taken by the City’s Executive Employee Relations Committee to include sworn employees of the City’s Police and Harbor Departments who are current LACERS members. The proposed measure amends certain sections of Article XI, Part 3 of the Charter. The measure also authorizes the City Council to adopt an implementing ordinance and amend relevant provisions of the LACERS plan codified in the Los Angeles Administrative Code.

The measure’s four key components are:

Authorize the City Council to provide a process whereby LACERS Peace Officers who are actively employed on January 12, 2025, may make a one-time irrevocable election to transfer their membership from LACERS into Tier 6 of LAFPP, including the transfer of all prior years of service and contributions from LACERS to Tier 6 of LAFPP upon membership.
Authorize the City Council to provide a process by which certain Tier 6 Members would transfer remaining City service and retirement contributions from LACERS to LAFPP.
Require LAFPP to provide tax-compliant refunds of all monies previously made by Tier 6 Members to purchase any portion of their City service or Tier 6 Health Benefits pursuant to the Los Angeles Administrative Code.
Require the City to pay all costs associated with the transfer of LACERS Peace Officers from LACERS to LAFPP Tier 6, and to reimburse LAFPP with the full cost of monies refunded to Tier 6 Members pursuant to any associated ordinances adopted pursuant to this Charter amendment. The City’s General Fund, Airports, Harbor, and Recreation and Parks Departments would cover all costs associated with transferring pension plan membership and prior service.

Source: Measure FF Impartial Analysis

Voter Resources

Los Angeles Office of the City Clerk