A day after Mayor Alvin Brown and Police and Fire Pension Fund administrator John Keane reached final agreement on pension reform, Brown filed the deal in time for it to be introduced Tuesday to City Council.
Along with the bill, Chris Hand, Brown’s chief of staff, sent council members a financial impact analysis from the city’s actuary that says the agreement will save $1.8 billion over the next 35 years.
Other highlights, he said in the email, are current and future employees contributing more, a shortening of the so-called “30-Year Agreement,” and an increase in transparency and accountability in the fund.
In addition, he said, the fund will contribute about $61 million to the city when the deal is agreed upon and another $8 million from chapter funds for the next seven years, all of which will benefit paying down the plan’s unfunded liability.
The city will contribute an additional $40 million above normal payments toward the liability until its 80 percent funded of when the financial aspects of the deal end in 2024, whichever is sooner.
A dedicated funding source is still not identified for the city’s $40 million, but Hand’s email said such a recommendation ”most likely” will come from a recommendation of a new Additional Unfunded Liability Payment Committee the legislation creates.
The 57-page bill, 2014-386, incorporates all of the changes and agreements Brown and Keane came to during more than two weeks of talks that were moderated by former state Sen. Rod Smith.
The bill should be posted online this morning and is slated to be on the council’s agenda Tuesday.