Which Modesto advisories will measure up?

Beside the races for mayor and City Council, Modesto voters will see five measures on the Nov. 8 ballot regarding public employee pensions, local taxes on telecommunication services and a sewer line extension.

The pension-related advisory measures — Q, R and S — have stirred debate about city employee retirement benefits, which are a growing cost burden for Modesto.

Measure N is the only binding initiative. It involves the local taxes found on cellular phone and cable service bills, revenue that helps to pay for public safety and other government services.

Measure P asks voters if the city should extend sewer service to the Rouse- Colorado neighborhood in southwest Modesto.

What follows are descriptions of the five measures. An impartial analysis of each measure can be found at www. stanvote.com under "Candidate/ Measure Information Guide."

Pension reform

Councilman and mayoral candidate Brad Hawn's proposal to put three pension questions before voters received council approval on a 4-3 vote in July.

Measures Q, R and S are intended to give the public a voice in city negotiations with employee unions.

Funding pensions through the California Public Employees Retirement System costs Modesto about $20 million a year, not counting the cost of retiree health benefits. There's a growing consensus that public safety pensions — allowing retirement at age 50 with up to 90 percent of pay — will drain government coffers and that pension "spiking" should be curtailed.

Measure Q asks if the city should move from traditional pensions for employees to defined contribution accounts similar to 401(k) plans, which have become the standard private sector benefit.

Supporters, including representatives of the Modesto Chamber of Commerce and Stanislaus Taxpayers Association, said the city would avoid the unpredictable increases in yearly payments to CalPERS, the investment portfolio of which is affected by financial markets. The city could create retirement nest eggs for employees by paying set amounts into the 401(k)-style plans; employees would have the option of contributing as well.

The Modesto Police Officers Association counters that Measure Q supporters have failed to disclose the costs of leaving CalPERS. The union is running a YouTube video, titled "Hawn vs. Hawn," in which the councilman tells the council July 12 the buyout would cost $106 million.

The city can't take vested benefits from retirees and workers, so it would have to make a lump sum payment to CalPERS to cover the pension benefits those people have earned. The city also would face the costs of restoring Social Security benefits for workers.

"Mr. Hawn did not include all those costs in the ballot statement," said MPOA President Tony Arguelles. "We understand there needs to be pension reform. We have been bargaining over most of those issues (in Measures Q, R and S)."

According to the rebuttal, doing away with traditional pensions can't be done without state approval or a court decision. Sheriff Adam Christianson and Tim Tietjen of the Modesto City Firefighters Association helped write the rebuttal.

Hawn said the city could gradually move toward hybrid benefits mixing pensions with other types of retirement plans.

Regardless of how voters mark their ballots, none of the pension-related measures will obligate the city to take a position in negotiations.

Measure R asks whether a three-year average of salary should be used for calculating pensions, instead of the highest salary earned in one year. A three-year average would minimize "spiking," or the practice of claiming unused vacation and extra pay items toward pensions.