In an effort to balance the county’s budget, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved at its Sept. 15 meeting a retirement incentive program that would provide credit for more years of work time to eligible county employees.
According to the ordinance, all county employees who reach age 60 on or prior to Jan. 24, 2010—excluding senior prosecutors in the District Attorney’s office—are eligible to receive an extra two years’ total service credit toward their retirement pension. Employees must accept the package by Nov. 13 of this year to qualify.
“They’re trickling in right now,” said Jeri Muth, assistant human relations director for the county. “We expect more of them to come in as the window starts to close.”
A county staff report indicates 279 employees are eligible for the program. The report also said another five staff members from the District Attorney’s office are eligible for a separate program.
“The DA faces some significant financial challenges,” Muth said. “The program is really tailored to meet the department’s fiscal and organizational needs.”
The DA program has a shorter, month-long acceptance period beginning in October, and is open only to senior deputy district attorneys. The rest of the department’s staff can opt for the first program if eligible, Muth said.
The ordinance is expected to yield benefits for both the county and its retiring employees, according to Santa Barbara County spokesman William Boyer.
“It’s one of many tools the county is trying to use to take prudent and fiscally responsible actions to help maintain the budget,” Boyer said.
Boyer explained that the money saved by the program will help preserve public services, as well as maintain staff positions in the long run.
The program will cost the county approximately $13.55 million to set up. However, county staffers estimate that 100-percent participation in the program could yield exactly the same amount in first-year savings, and about $27.1 million in annualized savings. At the low side of the spectrum, 1 percent participation would yield approximately $135,500 in first-year savings and an additional $271,000 in annualized savings.
To make the program feasible, the county must keep the positions vacated by retiring employees open for at least six months.
For more information, visit countyofsb.org.
This article appears in Sep 24 – Oct 1, 2009.
