O.C. Prosecutors Sue Retirement Board

Public defenders and prosecutors sued the Orange County Retirement Board on Tuesday, saying its recent decision to raise pension benefits for county employees doesn’t go far enough.

The lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court by the county Attorney’s Assn. seeks increased compensation for association members, including payments that are based on vacations and sick leave.

At issue is the county’s response to a recent state Supreme Court ruling that counties owe their employees pensions based not only on their salaries but also on other perks such as car allowances and bonuses.

In the most generous move by any county in the state, the Retirement Board last month voted to raise pensions for current workers and to make retroactive payments to its retirees. Of the other 18 counties affected by the ruling, 13 have voted to give the windfall to their workers, but not to pay back benefits to retirees. Seven other counties affected by the ruling still are grappling with how to respond.

Retirement Board officials said at the time that they hoped their action would head off lawsuits by former and current workers. Several counties that awarded less generous pension payments already had been sued since the October Supreme Court ruling. That ruling changed the interpretation of a 1937 law that determined pensions based on workers’ salaries but did not include most of their fringe benefits.

But the 7-2 decision by the county’s Retirement Board instantly spawned criticism from both sides.

County officials contend that the board’s decision to award retirees three years of back pension payments is too generous. It could cost the county about $17 million a year, money county officials say might have to come from other projects.

The Orange County Board of Supervisors met in closed session Feb. 24 to consider filing suit against the Retirement Board. No decision has been made.

Assistant Dist. Atty. Jan J. Nolan and former Assistant Dist. Atty. Eric W. Snethen, who also are plaintiffs in the suit, and other attorneys who work for the county have taken the opposite view. They said in the complaint that under the new state ruling, they are owed more than the county is willing to give.

In anticipation of the suit, lawyers for the Retirement Board on Friday asked Orange County Superior Court Judge Ronald C. Kline to uphold the board’s decision.

“The board believes it acted prudently and appropriately in interpreting and applying [the Supreme Court decision] but now believes that with the threat of multiple suits, that direction from the court is the only way to resolve the controversies.”

The attorneys involved work for the district attorney, public defender, alternate defender, associate defender and county counsel.