Costa Mesa police contract gets council’s OK
A gap that lasted more than 600 days was closed Tuesday night when the Costa Mesa City Council approved a new contract that gives the city’s rank-and-file police officers a pay increase while requiring them to pay more into their pensions.
Council members signed off on the deal with the Costa Mesa Police Assn. with little discussion during their meeting. The agreement, which officers approved in January, runs through June 2018.
The council vote was 3-0, with Mayor Steve Mensinger and Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer recusing themselves because they have filed a civil lawsuit against the police association alleging that the union, its former law firm and a private investigator conspired against and intimidated them during the 2012 election season. The union denies those allegations.
Under the agreement, officers will receive three raises totaling 9% by July 2017. They will be required to contribute 14% of their pay into their pensions. That includes a 5% contribution they stopped paying more than a year ago, and an additional 9% by July 2017.
The contract, which covers 127 people, also includes various cuts to officers’ vacation and sick hours.
Though council members didn’t talk about the agreement at a public hearing Tuesday before voting on it, Councilman Gary Monahan previously described the deal as a “compromise” and Councilwoman Katrina Foley said she thought “both sides are somewhat unhappy with the outcome.”
The contract does not add to the city’s unfunded pension liability, Foley said during a public hearing March 15.
In a statement Wednesday afternoon, Nicole Brown, the police union’s vice president, called the contract a “huge plus for Costa Mesa.”
“A signed contract is a welcome ray of sunshine to all of us Costa Mesa police officers,” she said. “We can now be more competitive for the pool of police candidates to fill our vacancies.”
Some residents seemed queasy about the terms of the contract Tuesday.
“I have my qualms with it, no question about it,” said Ralph Taboada, a member of the city’s Pension Oversight Committee. “A 9% increase is a big fat increase over 14 months.”
But, he said, the difficulty of recruiting and retaining qualified police officers means cities and counties have to consider such terms.
City officials have said Costa Mesa police are among the highest-paid in Orange County. Before this contract, the base salary for sworn officers ranged from about $76,000 to $102,000 annually, according to information presented at last week’s Pension Oversight Committee meeting. When the last raise takes effect in 2017, they will earn about $83,000 to $112,000, city documents say.
The deal is expected to cost $26.6 million next fiscal year. All told, it’s projected to cost taxpayers $1.8 million more through June 2018 compared with the previous agreement that expired in June 2014.
--
Twitter: @LukeMMoney
