Whitmire

This case is yet another installment in the herky-jerky development of a viable comprehensive retirement system for firemen and policemen employed by the City of Eureka.

Historical Background

In order to isolate and explain our resolution of the fundamental issue here involved it is necessary to briefly outline the legislative and judicial history pertaining to the Firemen’s and Policemen’s Retirement Fund System of the City of Eureka (“System”).

The System was first established in 1943 by Ordinance No. 2262 enacted by the voters of the city. Under the provisions of this ordinance, a commission (“Commission”) consisting of the president of the city council, the city treasurer, the chief engineer of the fire department, the chief of the police department, and one member elected from each of the departments, i.e., police and fire, was created “for the purpose of supervising the funds” and was charged with the duty of providing “for the collection and disbursement of the Fund and to designate the Beneficiaries thereof, as hereinafter provided, and to establish rules and regulations not inconsistent therewith.”

Section 16 of the ordinance, which is pertinent in this…