Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Benefits topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Punta Gorda pension board defers cost-of-living discussion; actuarial study details unclear
Summary
Trustees tabled detailed discussion of a potential cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) until their September meeting after reviewing sample COLA language and noting the need for an actuarial study and clarity on who would pay for it.
The City of Punta Gorda Police Officers Retirement System Board agreed to defer further action on whether to recommend a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and to revisit the issue at its Sept. 17 meeting.
Trustees reviewed sample COLA language from other plans and discussed different approaches — lifetime COLAs, sunsets, and other structures. The board noted that any recommendation to the city would likely require an actuarial study to evaluate cost and funding, and members discussed whether the union (PBA) or the city would pay for that study.
"We agreed to that. That's what we said they should pay for," one trustee said, recalling prior discussion that the union would cover the actuarial study cost. However, staff said the city had contacted their actuary about a study and no specifics had been provided to the board, leaving open whether the board would be asked to approve a study or whether a third party would fund it.
At the meeting trustees also observed that the PBA contract had expired and that the union’s capacity to fund a study was uncertain. For now, the board will keep the COLA topic on future agendas and await additional information before authorizing any actuarial work or recommending changes to the city.
The board did not vote to adopt COLA language or to authorize an actuarial study at the meeting.
