[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6304713,"mediaKeyId","2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec","parentId",2454972,"title","Scottsdale chief financial officer outlines PSPRS liability, commissioners weigh paydown and trade-offs","audioSeconds",2150,"startMs",5655000,"endMs",7805000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec&start=5655&end=7805","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec/thumbnail_5655000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6304713/Scottsdale/Maricopa-County/Arizona/Scottsdale-chief-financial-officer-outlines-PSPRS-liability-commissioners-weigh-paydown-and-trade-offs","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6304713-8593ae597e456084b04df352f305cc01/orig.mp4?Expires=1771214795&Signature=kAyUCoLpAZtPnzk2ulvN8HuwbNhTZoSXey6yV1MJ0vnbO7IL7IhBnSpWZKhY6g1ZL62k0oMehMQs1W2ay1va9cTilcasoaf9WDzgnUAQkaay9~C4WzKuJAZnkaZPTC95hllcNG9JLyKWygrrwizFSre1CwnTzDGv4E5ghnAvCMju3jkSfFxS6RBLN8mKYAOeW3kdj0h7ymzYS4D0LvRD9XKpF99xZZTxSsZ8wy8YMzF~pTqTiw2fRxlZQ23QOtNSKmnNSeb3Pvq9wGqVVMCvuMCZNfXF3ZcDt7mXFkAddiTP9SUiFVCS~H7LizQe~6wDUM-5bzllY-eZOBlRmP9uew__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Scottsdale, AZ","date","2025-02-28T22:26:58Z","article","Sonya Andrews summarized Scottsdale's pension obligations at the Feb. 28 Budget Review Commission meeting, focusing on the Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) for general employees and the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS) for police and fire.

Andrews said Scottsdale pays about 11% of payroll into ASRS and described ASRS as a state-administered, cost-sharing multiple-employer plan. \"Currently, we are paying about 11, about 12% of our payroll for ASRS,\" she said.

The longer discussion centered on PSPRS, which the presenter described as an agent multiple-employer plan with employer-specific valuations. Andrews summarized the recent history and reforms: investment losses in the early 2000s and 2008, outdated actuarial assumptions (including payroll-growth and mortality tables), and subsequent statutory reforms that reduced actuarial assumptions (investment return assumptions were lowered to 7.2% and payroll-growth assumptions reduced to 2%).

Andrews provided figures for Scottsdale's PSPRS obligations: the city made $59.5 million of additional payments for police above the annual required contributions from 2021 through 2024; those payments and investment returns reduced the police unfunded liability to roughly $143.8 million on the most recent valuation. For fire, the city made about $5.3 million of additional payments and the fire plan currently shows stronger funded status (about the low-80s percent funded). Andrews said employer contribution rates have risen substantially during the period of higher unfunded liability, noting police employer rates rose as high as 63% of payroll and at the time of the meeting were about 52.55%; fire employer contributions moved from around 12% in 2015 to nearly 30%.

Commissioners debated policy trade-offs. Several asked whether the commission should recommend accelerating paydown of the unfunded liability using reserves set aside for that purpose, balanced against the opportunity cost of using those funds for capital projects, maintenance or other priorities. Commissioner Stevens urged viewing funded status (for example, an 80% funded target) over a multi-year trend to manage market volatility and avoid knee-jerk responses to annual valuation swings. City Manager Ketan and others noted legal and structural limits: some PSPRS assumptions and system-level investment decisions are made at the state PSPRS board level and not directly by the city.

Commissioners requested additional data: a breakdown of active and inactive members by PSPRS tier (Andrews provided a count for Scottsdale police: 98 active and 433 inactive in tiers 1/2, and 22 active and 25 inactive in tier 3), historical payroll-growth and contribution-rate trends, and dollar amounts for the city's annual pension expense (Andrews said Scottsdale pays roughly $28 million to $31 million annually in pension expense to PSPRS for police and fire, excluding any additional one-time paydowns). Andrews said the city will provide supplemental schedules and historical charts at a future meeting.

No changes to pension policy were adopted at the meeting. Commissioners signaled they want more analysis on: (1) the costs and benefits of accelerating unfunded liability paydown versus using funds for deferred maintenance and capital; (2) sensitivity of the city's liabilities to PSPRS investment-return assumptions and payroll-growth assumptions; and (3) potential procedural issues such as pension \"spiking\" or high-overtime years that can affect pensionable earnings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Budget Review Commission - February 28, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","City Treasurer Sonya Andrews briefed the Budget Review Commission on Scottsdale's public pension obligations, including PSPRS and ASRS. Commissioners discussed the size of the unfunded liability, current contribution rates, and whether to use reserves to accelerate paydown or prioritize capital and maintenance needs.","taxTitle","Scottsdale, Maricopa County, Arizona","taxId",2563,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6304717,"Commissioners press for concrete asset-maintenance funding after Scottsdale policy review",3178,1239000,4417000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec&start=1239&end=4417","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec/thumbnail_1239000.jpg","/articles/6304717/Scottsdale/Maricopa-County/Arizona/Commissioners-press-for-concrete-asset-maintenance-funding-after-Scottsdale-policy-review","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6304717-ea2df0cdf990de592b331d38abd52b1e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771214795&Signature=HPbb3iVtk-JljNJyLXWJhQkSVJzdBv-RUyRV1mRYZE6S-jPUixruHBe6Uw471mjypmnjLKBVb5Uoi-wx5iPEfUfFG4lgKTEy3knISJRLwZRC~R~MQR~YUn0yDUGs1M01wPsklYvZHbrTNJDSMJMU0TeMl1qdj7JsQ4KCJi6BQV7z1mGyqtlkPjQRT6adZcjgxg95euqMZKb9KZFu9b0PPhYUn0DuInMDrsjIC1ciNNfkwbQmaBWMY03NvsDM2Jqv9CYdthGeNpznaYMCrpaESNV7j86sx7oXdVnr1m38TnDH4TE-qldvykQNW1lG8Dnxl5sdTAx9eC06KuqtYFsctw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Commissioners at the Feb. 28 Budget Review Commission meeting pressed city staff to convert aspirational language on asset maintenance and replacement into actionable funding mechanisms.

Chair Smith and several commissioners said current policy language that requires capital projects to include future operating and maintenance costs leaves a gap on long-term replacement funding. \"If we don't set aside money for doing maintenance and repair and have some reserve to draw, we end up with a larger capital deficit that you have to deal with,\" City Manager Ketan said during the discussion on lifecycle funding.

Commissioners highlighted decades-long challenges: aging parks and public art, deteriorated pavement condition indexes and deferred upkeep that contributed to voter-supported funding measures. Commissioner Carla pointed to the Protect and Preserve Task Force findings on park deterioration and asked why existing policy language requiring maintenance funding did not prevent the backlog.

Staff and commissioners explored options discussed during the meeting: establishing targeted asset-replacement reserves, defining life-cycle funding for mid-sized assets (for example, playground elements with a 20-year life), and creating policy triggers or thresholds that would require analysis when the city outsources recurring maintenance. City Manager Ketan suggested a mechanism that would keep the number of separate accounts manageable while creating a discipline for setting aside funds.

Treasury policy language cited by Sonya Andrews includes an asset replacement reserve provision that currently reads that \"an asset replacement reserve may be considered if needed,\" which several commissioners described as aspirational. Andrews identified policy 6.02 as addressing ongoing funding for critical capital asset maintenance, repair, renewal and replacement but acknowledged the section could be strengthened with specific, enforceable guidance.

Commissioners discussed practical trade-offs: building a dedicated replacement fund for every long-lived asset can create large unspent balances early in assets' life cycles and compete with other priorities. Commissioner Brad Newman urged a city-level aggregate approach, recommending a systematic assessment of the city's entire asset base and an annual allocation that approximates depreciation and prioritized replacement needs.

Multiple commissioners recommended the commission include a formal recommendation to council to tighten policy language and outline implementation options, including life-cycle schedules, minimum reserve triggers for high-priority asset groups and clearer reporting on how capital estimates and contingencies are used when projects come in over budget.","Budget Review Commission members urged the city to translate policy language on maintenance, repair and replacement into a specific funding mechanism. Commissioners and staff discussed lifecycle funding challenges and possible reserve mechanics for parks, roads and other city assets.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6304719,"Scottsdale treasurer reviews city financial policies; commissioners press for clearer maintenance funding",4907,280000,5187000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec&start=280&end=5187","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2454972-47d15eed46402e3368fc3c2f6e7330ec/thumbnail_280000.jpg","/articles/6304719/Scottsdale/Maricopa-County/Arizona/Scottsdale-treasurer-reviews-city-financial-policies-commissioners-press-for-clearer-maintenance-funding","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6304719-7c5a59a848eeaa2eeecaac6aaafd4401/orig.mp4?Expires=1771214795&Signature=UILw2gCaInbHIvjrdsOloTDWPWth6Eb4vnoxzJvT42M4a3kHf-nYSrzhC3eQw7Ny077wVggf3-GxH-nFc4QfJBMpXVZII-63IaqMLm4fpzU2UrUGVF93qSiwfdBL~f7K3wpHeD3O8iI-2FXm6czFPOf09EBxBOYHkRo4Aroa7i~rWyU~5g7LPVLicJSCinuIB-AT~GpyqxPIGhGNLw~gbmQvJbkKcUgS-4Mv4d1xrcPLBFVsV32jJLclLHUcKVamBBRSDk4EZDYBApBs6jWZSInkmyAlEd0G5YX1kzyxQWgIXYmO-Fkr7K5ni1IZt8sJKph2mMK7kz4vGdAEQchn~A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Sonya Andrews, the City of Scottsdale's treasurer and chief financial officer, presented the city's comprehensive financial policies at the Budget Review Commission meeting Feb. 28, outlining rules on fiscal planning, budget controls, reserves and contingency use.

Andrews told commissioners the document is 27 pages and that the policies aim to promote long-term financial forecasting, require a balanced budget and restrict the use of one-time revenues for recurring costs. \"The balanced budget policy relates to making sure that we do not use one-time nonrecurring sources to fund continuing recurring uses or use external borrowing for operational requirements,\" Andrews said.

The presentation highlighted several standing controls: department- and fund-level budgetary control that requires City Council approval for transfers across funds, departments, major expenditure classifications or between capital projects; an operating reserve policy that sets a 20% general fund operating reserve target (excluding transfers out and debt service) and a 5% emergency reserve; and rules that capital projects must have funding for the full project and be accompanied by forecasts of future operating and maintenance costs.

Andrews described the policy difference between reserves and contingencies: \"Reserves are for extraordinary events that are not part of your normal operations,\" she said, while \"contingencies are for unanticipated unexpected expenses that come up in the normal course of operations.\" She added that the use of contingency funds requires separate council approval.

Commissioners asked for clarity on how departments may move budget authority within a fund, how position control operates, and what de minimis thresholds (if any) exist for small transfers. Andrews said transfers within the same department, classification and fund can be approved by department and budget directors, but transfers across those boundaries require council approval. She said departments are expected to find savings to absorb very small overages.

The commission also heard policy specifics for enterprise funds and other reserves: enterprise funds (water, wastewater, solid waste, aviation) maintain required reserve levels (for example, 25% for water/wastewater and aviation, 15% for solid waste); debt service reserves follow state limitations for general obligation debt and minimums for excise-tax bonds; and fleet and PC-replacement costs are recovered through internal rates.

Commissioners requested that staff provide the proposed edits with tracked changes and noted the commission will review the policies before the City Council's May 4 consideration of the annual policy updates. Andrews said the city reviews the financial policies annually and will provide the track-changed draft to the commission.

The presentation closed with calendar and procedural notes on the fiscal calendar and upcoming budget deadlines for the commission.

A few operational topics flagged for follow-up included requests for (1) the tracked-policy edits ahead of the council review, (2) more detail on limits and triggers for midyear capital and operating transfers, and (3) clearer documentation on how the city forecasts and presents operating impacts of capital projects to council.","City Treasurer Sonya Andrews summarized Scottsdale's comprehensive financial policies, emphasizing balanced-budget rules, budgetary controls and reserve and contingency distinctions. Commissioners pressed staff to define and strengthen dedicated funding for long-term maintenance and asset replacement.","actionData","errors"]

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Scottsdale chief financial officer outlines PSPRS liability, commissioners weigh paydown and trade-offs

Commissioners press for concrete asset-maintenance funding after Scottsdale policy review

Scottsdale treasurer reviews city financial policies; commissioners press for clearer maintenance funding