Amends the city charter to update the governance structure of the Oakland Police and Fire Retirement System Board.
This proposed charter amendment would make two changes to the governance of the Oakland Police and Fire Retirement System (PFRS) Board. First, it would allow the three elected board positions (one retired police member, one retired fire member, and one alternating retired police/fire member) to be filled by non-retirees if no eligible retiree is willing or able to serve. Second, it would reduce the requirement for monthly board meetings to a minimum of quarterly meetings, while allowing the board to meet more frequently if needed.
The Oakland Police and Fire Retirement System is a closed pension plan established in 1951 by the city charter. It covers sworn police and fire employees hired before July 1, 1976, who chose not to transfer to CalPERS. It provides retirement, disability, and death benefits to its members and beneficiaries. The system is currently 90.6% funded based on the July 2024 actuarial valuation, and Oakland is on track to meet its charter requirement to fully fund all PFRS liabilities by July 1, 2026.
The PFRS Board identified two practical governance challenges to the board’s ability to function effectively. The first is an aging membership, which makes board recruitment difficult. With an average member age of 81 and all members retired, many no longer live in the Bay Area or are unable to participate in meetings. Under the Brown Act, board members must attend meetings in person in Oakland, with limited exceptions. The board cannot execute its duties without a quorum present at meetings. As the membership ages and becomes more dispersed geographically, the board faces increasing difficulty finding members willing and able to meet the in-person attendance requirements. Without expanding eligibility, the board may soon be unable to achieve a quorum or function at all.
The second challenge is that monthly meetings are no longer necessary. The charter currently requires monthly board meetings, but the investment and actuarial reports needed for decision-making are produced quarterly or annually. Reducing the mandatory meeting frequency would provide flexibility to assemble when needed while potentially reducing unnecessary costs associated with convening meetings without substantive business.
Because PFRS is set in the city charter, any changes to the system must be approved by the voters.
After reviewing the proposed measure with retiree representatives from the Retirement Oakland Police Officers’ Association and Oakland Firefighters Local 55, the PFRS Board voted to forward it to the City Council for placement on the ballot. The City Council voted to place the measure, introduced by Councilmember Zac Unger, on the ballot. The measure requires a simple majority (50% plus one vote) to pass.
The equity impacts of this measure are minimal. The measure addresses a practical governance problem affecting a closed pension system and does not directly impact equity in service delivery or resource allocation. However, governance reforms to ensure the PFRS Board can continue to function protect the retirement security of 597 retired police and fire personnel, many of whom are now elderly and depend entirely on their pension benefits.
The PFRS Board faces legitimate difficulty recruiting members who can meet in-person attendance requirements under the Brown Act: its members are geographically dispersed and their average age is 81. Expanding eligibility to non-retirees as a final resort ensures the board can achieve a quorum and function to manage more than $400 million in pension assets. Additionally, the measure would improve operational efficiency by reducing the frequency of meetings. With critical reports produced quarterly or annually and the PFRS liabilities 90.6% funded, monthly meetings are often unnecessary. The measure would have no fiscal impact, and it might reduce administrative burdens by eliminating unnecessary monthly meetings.