CalPERS $100k club for Highway Patrol up 15% as taxpayer cost hits an all-time high
The number of annualized pension payouts of $100,000 or more received by former California Highway Patrol (CHP) employees increased more than 15 percent last year, according to just-released 2015 pension data posted on TransparentCalifornia.com.
The over 625,000 records — obtained via a public records request to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) — reveals that the average full-career CHP retiree collected an $88,773 pension.
Former assistant commissioner Ramona Murray De Prieto’s $201,727 annualized payout was the highest of any CHP retiree and marks the first time a CHP retiree collected an annual benefit worth over $200,000.
Meanwhile, the retirement costs for active CHP employees just hit an all-time high 50 percent of payroll.
Transparent California’s research director Robert Fellner believes soaring taxpayer-costs illustrate the importance of providing complete and accurate data.
“Defined benefit plans like CalPERS are inherently opaque, which limits the public’s ability to accurately assess its generosity and cost. Transparent California provides complete information so that taxpayers can have a better sense of how their money is being spent.”
Costs soar at the city of Chico
The City of Chico’s new 39% contribution rate for non-safety employees was the second highest statewide and represented a 25% year over year increase, also the second highest statewide. A list of all pension payouts to former Chico employees can be found here.
Fellner noted that Chico’s outsized costs for non-safety employees was likely due to the use of a rare, but extremely generous benefit formula known as “3% @ 60.”
Sacramento Valley
Top 3 payouts to Sacramento Valley retirees went to:
- Donald Gerth, former President of CSU at Sacramento: $317,324
- John Distasio, former CEO of Sacramento Municipal Utility District: $284,673
- Robert McDonell, former Woodland employee: $252,837
There was a more than 13 percent increase in the number of Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District retirees who received an annualized benefit of at least $100,000. The District currently sends 42 cents per dollar of pay to CalPERS, a more than 10 percent increase over last year’s rate.
To view the entire dataset in a searchable and downloadable format, visit TransparentCalifornia.com.
A full-career is defined as at least 30 years of service.
To schedule an interview with Transparent California, please contact Robert Fellner at 559-462-0122 or Robert@TransparentCalifornia.com.
Transparent California is California’s largest and most comprehensive database of public sector compensation and is a project of the Nevada Policy Research Institute, a nonpartisan, free-market think tank. Learn more at TransparentCalifornia.com.
