Presented by Greg Beasley
President
Chesterfield Professional Firefighters Association
IAFF Local 2803
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The information in this presentation is to
demonstrate how the implementation of GASB 45
affected the employees of Chesterfield County,
Virginia.
It will also cover what IAFF Local 2803 is working
on to get back what was taken away from our
members.
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Located in Central Virginia, suburb of
Richmond, Virginia
• Fourth largest county in Virginia
• Population in 2007 estimated at 306,000
• Median household income $69,409
• Metro area $56,739
• State $59,562
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Employs 4,496 people: 3,451 full time/1,045
part time (this does not include the County
school system)
2010 Budget over 1.2 Billion Dollars (includes
school system)
One of fewer than 25 counties in the nation to
hold a AAA bond rating from the top three
rating services
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Once an employee retired from
Chesterfield County, meeting the
requirements set by the Virginia
Retirement System (VRS), the County
would continue to pay the employee’s
portion of any medical insurance
premiums.
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There are now five different eligibility
categories for people retiring after July 1,
2006.
• Grandfathered Benefit
• Capped Benefit
• Access Benefit
• Disability
• No Benefit
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GRANDFATHERED BENEFIT
• Proposed Change
• Employees who will reach a combination of age and service equal
to, or exceeding 60 years as of July 1, 2007, including at least 10
years of service, will be “grandfathered” into the current plan with
slight revisions. The employer contribution will be based on years
of service similar to what is available now.
• Final Change
• More employees may be grandfathered because we have
changed the break-in-service rules. Employees with a break-inservice prior to July 1, 2006 will receive credit for all County
service before and after the break, regardless of the length of
the break. Breaks-in-service following July 1, 2006, will follow the
5-year rule.
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CAPPED BENEFIT
• Proposed Change
• Employees who are not grandfathered as of July 1,
2007 will receive retiree health benefits if they retire at
age 55, or greater, with at least 15 years of service.
The county contribution will be based on years of
service on a sliding scale.
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CAPPED BENEFIT (continued)
• Final Change
• Since full retirement can occur at age 50 with 30 years of
service for non-public safety employees, or 25 years of
service for public safety employees, the following change
has been made to allow retirement before age 55 with
health care benefits: Non-grandfathered employees
who are eligible for full VRS retirement before age 55
are no longer required to work until 55 to receive
retiree health benefits. They will have access to the
County’s group rate, with no County contribution,
from the time of retirement until age 55. Once they turn
55, they will begin to receive the County contribution of
$300 per month + a 3% increase annually for
inflation. Only years of service with Chesterfield County
will be considered. This change will protect public safety
employees’ eligibility to receive the LEOS supplement
during the years before they reach age 55.
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CAPPED BENEFIT (continued)
• Non-grandfathered employees who were hired
prior to July 1, 2006, will receive a contribution
toward retiree health benefits at age 55 or more
with at least 15 years of service. County
contributions:
• 0-14 years of service: $ .00
• 15-19 years of service: $154.50/month
• 20-24 years of service: $231.75/month
• 25+ years of service: $309.00/month
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ACCESS BENEFIT
• Proposed Change
• Employees hired, rehired or reinstated after an
absence of more than 30 days on or after July 1,
2006 who retire at age 55 or more, with 15 or
more years of full-time County service, will be
permitted to purchase retiree health benefits for
themselves and their dependants at the County’s
group rate; however, they will not receive a
County contribution toward the cost.
• Final Change
• None
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For years, County employees were told they
were paid less than everyone in the region
because of the generous retiree health care
benefits offered.
We have worked hard to get the Board of
Supervisors to address our pay issues. The
current Board had started to implement
improvements to our salaries prior to the
economic downturn.
We still need the Board of Supervisors to
approve over $6 million dollars to bring Fire
Department employees salaries up to the
regional average.
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The County needs to close the 5 year gap
for public safety employees who retire at age
50 but are not eligible for retiree medical
benefits until they are 55.
Retirees who opt out of health coverage at
either their initial retirement date or during
an open enrollment period are ineligible to
re-enroll in County sponsored health
coverage.
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More involvement of Local members
and a better understanding of what the
Local can accomplish through political
action.
Four of the five candidates that were
endorsed by the Local were elected to
the Board of Supervisors; only one
incumbent remains on the Board.
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As a Local, we have achieved several
successes because of the change to the
Board of Supervisors:
• Public Safety pay increases
• Union involvement in Regional Pay Comparison
• County hired first outside Fire Chief
• Better working relationship between Union and
Fire Administration
• Regular meetings with Board Members to
address our concerns
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We work in a Right-to-Work state and it
is imperative we are involved in the
political process.
Retiree Benefits (County Policy)
• Introduction – This administrative procedure
establishes policies and procedures
governing healthcare, dental care and
deferred compensation for retirees of
Chesterfield County and their dependents.
The County reserves the right to modify or
eliminate retiree benefits at any time.