Rene Rodriguez’ Presentation to the Board of Trustees, Sept 19, 2019

Regarding the Proposed CalPERS Choice Supplemental Plan for Retirees

My name is Rene Rodriguez, president of the Ventura County Community College District Retiree’s Association.

I understand that the Board has called this emergency meeting to decide on whether to declare an impasse in negotiations with the AFT.

This seems quite abrupt to retirees, since the Exec Board of the retirees only first met with the Chancellor on the subject of healthcare on July 15, or about two months ago. We considered that meeting an informational meeting on a proposal that the Chancellor was favoring involving CalPERS.

However, on September 5, just 14 days ago, retirees received an email from the Chancellor, stating more definitely, that the District was proposing entering into an agreement with CalPERS to purchase medical benefits in July of 2020. And through this same email, we learned that this change would require

1. that all Medicare eligible Tier I and Tier II retirees enroll in Medicare parts A and B, and
2. that retirees would be covered by a CalPERS Medicare Supplement Plan.

The leadership of the Retirees’ Association requested information regarding CalPERS, before it could adequately notify retirees about what this proposal was about, and we never received all of the requested information, even though the Chancellor promised it to us.

The Board of Trustees cannot possibly agree that retirees have had adequate time to study and digest a major change in their health benefits, particularly when not all the requested materials have been provided to give the Retirees’ Association leadership adequate time to inform the general membership about this impending change.

However, the Retirees’ Association leadership has learned enough from the materials received thus far, that a change to CalPERS would necessitate the District to breach contract and settlement agreement language, namely,

1. If the District tries to force Tier I retirees to accept a supplemental plan and NOT the same plan as active employees, and
2. If the District tries to force Tier I retirees to enroll in Medicare when they are not required to do so.

Retirees were once the exceptional employees that you have come to expect of all faculty, classified and administrative staff, who have helped make the three colleges and this District the premier institutions that they are today. We deserve the same consideration now, as retirees, that the Board once accorded us as active employees.

Thank you.