Opinion No. (2000)

BILL LOCKYER Attorney General GREGORY L. GONOT Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE JACKIE SPEIER, MEMBER OF THE CALIFORNIA SENATE, has requested an opinion on the following question: Does a city have a contractual obligation to provide paid health benefits to two former city council members who have served more than five years and more than twelve years respectively, where each was a member of the council in 1994 when the council adopted a resolution providing paid health benefits to former council members who serve at least five consecutive years, with the benefits continuing up to twelve years based upon the number of years served? CONCLUSION A city has a contractual obligation to provide paid health benefits to a former city council member who has served more than twelve years, but not to one who has served less than twelve years, where each was a member of the council in 1994 when the council adopted a resolution providing paid health benefits to former council members who serve at least five consecutive years, with benefits continuing up to twelve years based upon the number of years served. ANALYSIS We are informed that in 1994, the city council of a general law city…