Opinion No. (2005)

BILL LOCKYER Attorney General SUSAN DUNCAN LEE Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE JEROME E. HORTON, MEMBER OF THE STATE ASSEMBLY, has requested an opinion on the following question: May a city charter require that the board of retirement of a city's employee pension system (1) place the cost of the past service liability associated with a new retirement benefit on a specified amortization schedule and (2) place the cost associated with net accumulated actuarial gains and losses on a time specific amortization schedule? CONCLUSION A city charter may not require that the board of retirement of a city's employee pension system (1) place the cost of the past service liability associated with a new retirement benefit on a specified amortization schedule or (2) place the cost associated with net accumulated actuarial gains and losses on a time specific amortization schedule. ANALYSIS The Constitution allows a city to adopt a charter for its own governance. (Cal. Const., art. XI , § 3 , subd. (a).) Section 5 of article XI of the Constitution specifies what a city charter may contain: "(a) It shall be competent in any city charter to provide that the city governed thereunder may…