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Committee advances firefighter retirement charter amendment after union testimony on cancer risk; amendments cut projected near‑term costs
Summary
The Rules Committee approved amendments to a firefighter pension measure that would allow eligible fire department members to reach higher age‑factor percentages earlier (including eligibility to reach 90% final compensation at age 55) and continued the item to July 15 after the Controller provided updated cost estimates and sponsors added cost‑saving edits.
Supervisor Stephanie (presented by Supervisor Steffey and staff) introduced a charter amendment to shorten the final compensation period for fire department retirement calculations and to allow some members to reach a higher age factor at an earlier age. Sponsors said the measure responds to elevated cancer and occupational health risks among firefighters and aims to reduce the length of exposure by permitting earlier, financially secure retirement.
Fire union representatives and the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation described elevated cancer incidence and fatalities among active and retired firefighters; Local 798 cited more than 200 active and retired members diagnosed with cancer since 2018 and argued that a lower retirement age and recalculated final compensation would preserve lives and workforce cohesion. Adam Wood and other union leaders urged the committee to advance the measure but also supported amendments to reduce near‑term costs.
Supervisor Steffey and sponsors circulated amendments that change the final‑compensation language from 'earnable' to 'earned' (a change the Controller estimated would save roughly $1,000,000 annually in early years) and asked the retirement board to consider lengthening amortization from 15 to 20 years to reduce annual costs (estimated short‑term savings of about $600,000 if adopted by the retirement board). The Controller computed an initial first‑year cost of approximately $10.2 million under the original configuration, with growth to $21.2 million by FY 2040–41; the sponsor amendments would reduce the near‑term cost by about $1.6 million annually under certain assumptions.
After public comment from firefighters, union leaders, and advocates and a Controller presentation on actuarial estimates, the committee voted to accept the sponsor’s amendments and continue the item to July 15 for final committee action and additional actuarial details.
Next steps: Committee will reconvene July 15 to consider final amendments and updated actuarial numbers before sending the measure to the full Board and the November 5 ballot if approved.
