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Should the town of Atherton consider outsourcing its police department? If not, how much should the town be willing to pay to keep residents safe, properties secure, and police officers feeling fairly compensated?
Those were questions a handful of residents addressed when the City Council met on May 15 and asked the public to comment on what they think should be considered as contract talks with the police union get under way this month.
The contract talks promise to be contentious, with the police union, the Atherton Police Officers’ Association (APOA), opening the public debate with mailers sent to residents during election season last year and in early spring. The mailers warned residents of a potential exodus of officers if the town demands compensation cuts similar to those recently imposed on non-represented employees, including the police chief and city manager.
Those cuts included caps on health and dental plans, caps on vacation and sick-leave accrual, and a new requirement that employees pay their own contributions to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS). (The town will continue paying the employer costs CalPERS charges all public agencies.)
The mailers also referred to potential moves by the council to outsource police services — an action current council members have said they have no interest in taking.
Only six residents commented during the May 15 session: Three stood in firm support of maintaining a local police force, with competitive salaries that will prevent officers from jumping ship and finding better-paying jobs. Among the three were former councilman Malcolm Dudley and Joe Lewis, Mayor Elizabeth Lewis’ husband.
Resident Steven Goldby told the council that the police department is one of the reasons “this community’s property values are so high and … why we feel the security we do.”
Residents Jim Massey and Sandy Crittenden urged the council to investigate what other agencies, such as the county Sheriff’s Office or the Menlo Park police department, would charge to provide police services to Atherton. Police compensation is “the largest single item in the budget,” Mr. Massey said, adding that he believed the command structure in the department is top-heavy.
Resident John Ruggeiro, who retired from the San Francisco police department after many years in command positions, voiced concern over escalating costs related to retirement and other benefits. He said that police officers in San Francisco, where his son now works, pay 10.5 percent of their salaries into their retirement funds.
“I’m not interested in outsourcing (police services),” he said. “I’m interested that they pay their share” of retirement costs.
Atherton has been one of the few jurisdictions in recent years to pay the entire portion of employees’ retirement costs in addition to the costs billed to the town. Under a resolution passed by the council in January, unrepresented employees will begin paying their own portion in July.
Resident Peter Carpenter, who had encouraged the town to hold the hearing, modeled on the recent hearing before the Menlo Park City Council, was out of town that night, but sent the council an email stating that the town “is already paying far more per capita for police services than Woodside, Portola Valley, Palo Alto or Menlo Park.”
He noted that the town’s CalPERS obligations “will rise significantly in the next five years, and that will be exacerbated by any increases in the base salary levels.” If the APOA is unwilling to make “significant concessions,” he said, the town should begin talks with another police agency regarding contracting out all or most of Atherton’s police services.
No one from the police union spoke at the meeting. The police contract expires Sept. 30, and talks began this month to set guidelines for negotiations, City Manager George Rodericks said.
Mr. Rodericks and staff prepared an eight-page report detailing current compensation and staffing levels of the police department, as well as of non-emergency employees. The report shows that 87.5 percent of the town’s personnel costs go toward police department compensation. The high figure is accounted for, in part, by the fact that the police department has 25 employees; there are only nine non-emergency employees.
With the town’s CalPERS payments dropping because of the recent decision to shift unrepresented employees’ costs to the employees, the town is still facing escalating costs, according to the report. “CalPERS has advised that beginning in 2015, they will begin phasing in a five-year increase to employer rates in order to address the funding gaps within plans,” the report says.
Three residents spoke out against the insane police salaries and benefits in Atherton. Only two spoke out in favor of the APOA.
Since Elizabeth Lewis received money from the APOA, was endorsed by the APOA, and to quote Atherton sergeant Sherman Hall in a meeting with council members last year, actually is entitled to purchase and own council members, Joe Lewis’ comment was just a way to pay the APOA back for their largesse to his wife.
Unfortunately Elizabeth Lewis probably thinks she’s entitled to vote on this matter despite the enormous and clear conflict of interest.
The comment by Lt. Ruggeiro is the elephant in the room. Atherton cops keep demanding competitive pay, 70th percentile of other cops, etc., but try to sweep under the rug that since 10 to 25% of their salary ISN’T going to their pensions costs, they’re already 10 to 25% higher than the highest paid cops in the peninsula.
And they’re still complaining!
How is the city of Atherton planning on paying off the Atherton police salaries, pensions and medical care for the next twenty years? Would Atherton residents like to go bankrupt so that a police department can be funded that spends most of its time citing illegal aliens for driving without licenses through Fair Oaks, on El Camino and by Selby lane school? You ask yourself whether Atherton should pay to perform that function when both the CHP and San Mateo Sheriffs can pull over aliens to determine if they have valid drivers licenses.
The Atherton Police spend too much time out of their area of responsibility. I do not believe Woodside road is w/I the towns patrol area. Ya, I know, they are peace officers in Calif. and I use the term loosely.
W/o the special tax, how would the town pay for a police dept.
Why did the city manager and Mayor insist that this was only a public input session and not allow the Council to speak on the subject? Could there be a differing opinion amongst them? Without knowing what could be gained in outsourcing, how can we agree a parcel tax to pay extra for this boutique service that without it we would be overrun with crime.
You should be grateful that the City Manager and Mayor held Council Members at bay.
The public has such a limited opportunity to express itself. Those citizens who wish to talk should be able to do so without interruption, without confrontation, and without bloviating by politicians pontificating from the dais. Those politicians will have plenty of time to do that – without interruption – in the future as well as having the last word.
You can bet the bought and paid for Lewis will have plenty to say when the time comes.
From: PETER CARPENTER <peterfcarpenter@me.com>
Subject: Item 16 on the 15 May agenda
Date: May 15, 2013 7:43:56 AM PDT
To: Elizabeth Lewis <lizlew08@gmail.com>, William Widmer <billwidmer4atherton@gmail.com>, Cary Wiest <Cwiest4council@gmail.com>, Theresa DellaSanta <tdellasanta@ci.atherton.ca.us>, Jerry Carlson home <raljer@ix.netcom.com>, Jerry Carlson <jcarlson@ci.atherton.ca.us>, James Dobbie <jdobbie@ci.atherton.ca.us>, George Rodericks <grodericks@ci.atherton.ca.us>, Ed Flint <eflint@ci.atherton.ca.us>
Dear Council,
I am in Wash, DC and unable to attend tonight’s meeting so please accept these comments for your consideration regarding:
16. PUBLIC INPUT REGARDING: INFORMATION ON UPCOMING CONTRACT
NEGOTIATIONS – ATHERTON POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
The Council faces an interesting dilemma — the APOA insists that its members receive even better compensation and benefits than they currently enjoy while the Town is already paying far more per capita for police services than Woodside, Portola Valley, Palo Alto or Menlo Park. While I have total confidence in Chief Flint’s ability to provide the best possible services with the resources he has available he is severely constrained from doing that in the most cost effective manner by the APOA labor agreement and the small size of the department. It is certain that the Town’s CalPERS obligations will rise significantly in the next five years and that will be exacerbated by any increases in the base salary levels.
If the APOA remains intransigent regarding making significant concessions then I do not believe the Town has any option but to begin discussions with a larger police agency regarding contracting out all or most of our police services. I believe that the Town could contract for a higher and a customized level of service at a significantly lower cost than we are currently paying. The residents don’t care that the fire engines that respond to their 911 call are not operated by the Town of Atherton and, just as in Woodside and Portola Valley, they will not care what name is on the door of the police car that responds to their 911 call.
Peter Carpenter
I agree with Peter, who cares what name is on the police vehicle. I am sure that the Sheriffs Department can police Atherton for less money. Qualified Atherton officers should be able to be hired, or can they.
That’s the thing – as with the San Carlos merger, if the event Atherton opts for police services from the Sheriff’s Department, most of Atherton’s police officers will be absorbed by the Sheriff’s Department. That’s usually how it works.
There are lots of advantages that have previously been discussed – the elimination of lots of layers of management, the ability to staff up quickly, economies of scale, better training and equipment, better coverage, etc.
If our experience in Woodside is any indication, Atherton residents should be assured that they will get excellent, personalized service from these deputies. We’ve had the same deputies for years and know most of them on a first name basis. They could not be more accommodating!
San Carlos has had an excellent experience in going from SCPD to the Sheriff’s Department.
The more I think of this, why is APOA have a dispatcher as the president. Should it not be a police officer? Atherton could also save money by having county communications take over the phones and dispatching of calls for service. This will reduce their retirement bill also to calpers
Here’s the problem, at least as I understand it. If Atherton brings in SMSD and the Atherton officers are absorbed, they will start having to pay their portion of their retirement contribution. The deputies pay that now. Can you say pay cut? That’s the last thing APD officers want. Why? When they have a cushy, minimally demanding job and are getting paid a ridiculous salary? If it would be a good thing for APD officers to be absorbed into the Sheriffs Dept., don’t you think they’d be helping push residents toward that? No, instead they using scare tactics to try to maintain APD. Wonder why?
Lt. Ruggiero and Menlo Voter have figured out why Atherton cops are willing to pay so much of their own earned money to influence Atherton politics so as not to outsource.
The days of Atherton making their pension contribution for them would be over.
NO OTHER police department in the bay area does this.
And Atherton cops have a much less dangerous job, no matter what they might say.