City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: OCTOBER 3, 2023
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER /s/
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of Appointment of a Police Officer Representative and Alternate to the City of Alexandria Firefighters and Police Officers Pension Board.
BODY
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ISSUE: Appointment of Police Officer Representative and Alternate to the City of Alexandria Firefighters and Police Officers Pension Board.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council appoint the following individuals to the City of Alexandria Firefighters and Police Officers Pension Board:
• Shirl Mammarella as Police Officer Representative
• Ryan Klein as Police Officer Alternate
Assuming City Council appointment, the effective dates of these terms will be October 10, 2023, to enable participation in the scheduled Firefighters and Police Officers Pension Board meeting scheduled for October 12, 2023.
BACKGROUND: Firefighter and Police Officer Pension Board.
The Firefighter and Police Officer Pension Board consists of eight members and three alternates who serve as the trustees of the trust and fiduciaries of the Plan and its assets. The Board acts for the City on matters concerning the assets of the Plan, including selecting and monitoring investment funds and appointing investment managers, custodians, and advisors. The Board is also charged with consulting with City management to recommend modifications to the Plan. The Plan requires Board meetings to be held each quarter of the calendar year, but meetings are generally held more often.
City Council has the authority to appoint Board members to the Firefighter and Police Officer Pension Board. The Board members are either nominated by the City Manager or elected by the Voting Participants, which include both active sworn Firefighters and Police Officers as well as retired and deferred vested Plan Participants who were sworn Firefighters or Police Officers. The City Manager nominates four representatives and one alternate to represent City management. Firefighters nominate and elect through secret ballot two Participant Representatives and one Alternate. Police Officers also nominate and elect through secret ballot two Participant Representatives and one Alternate. In the event that City Council does not appoint a representative nominated by the City Manager or the Voting Participants, the nomination and election process must be repeated until all Board member positions are filled. The chairman and secretary are elected by the Board members.
Participant Representatives and Participant Alternates serve four-year terms, which are staggered so that members’ terms overlap but are not concurrent.
Current Participant Representatives and Alternates for the Firefighters and Police Officers Pension Board are as follows:
Participant Representatives and Alternates nominated and elected by Firefighters:
Name Term Expires
Dylan Kempton (Representative) 12/31/2024
Patrick Evans (Representative) 12/31/2026
Ricky Muse (Alternate) 12/31/2026
Participant Representatives and Alternates nominated and elected by Police Officers:
Name Term Expires
Proposed - Shirl Mammarella (Rep) once appointed, term will end 12/31/2026
Proposed - Ryan Klein (Alternate) once appointed, term will end 12/31/2026
Management Representatives and the Management Alternate serve until they resign, are removed from the Board by City Council or end their employment with the City.
Current Management Representatives and Alternate for the Firefighter and Police Officer Board are as follows:
Name
Julian Gonsalves, Assistant City Manager, City Manager’s Office
Jean Kelleher, Director, Office of Human Rights and Interim Deputy City Manager
Katherine Key, Performance Analyst II, Office of Performance Analytics
Jesse Maines, Division Chief, Transportation & Environmental Services (Alternate)
Kendel Taylor, Director of Finance and Interim Deputy City Manager.
DISCUSSION: In accordance with Plan rules, the Firefighter and Police Officers call for nominees was issued and the nomination period closed on Friday, August 17, 2023. The nomination period produced a pool of two interested candidates. One of the nominees was serving as an alternate to the Board so we ended up with two nominees for two positions to serve on the Board through December 2026. The terms will begin effective October 10, 2023.
Voting was done electronically through a secure online voting system called Election Runner. Each eligible Voting Participant was sent a personalized username and passkey. They were also given the option to request a paper ballot if they could not access the online election software. No paper ballots were requested or submitted. Votes were received via Election Runner (election software) through September 5, 2023, at 5:00pm. After the voting period closed an analytical report of the votes were pulled.
FISCAL IMPACT: None.
ATTACHMENTS: None.
STAFF:
Kendel Taylor, Finance Director
Kadira Coley, Retirement Administrator