Will Buividas: Vote 'yes' on Prop 125 to reform state pension system

If passed, Proposition 125 would save taxpayers an additional $275 million over the next several decades. As the vice chairman of the state’s Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS), and as a career police officer in the city of Phoenix, I know firsthand how much those millions in savings mean — not only to families across the state — but also to cities, towns and state agencies, organizations that can use these tax savings to fund services residents rely on, such as public safety, education, safer roads and better infrastructure.

That’s why the PSPRS Board of Trustees has endorsed a “yes” vote on Proposition 125, as have Republican and Democrat state legislative leaders, and the state’s Chamber of Commerce. We all agree: Proposition 125 offers taxpayers significant savings and helps preserve the secure middle-class retirement promised to current and retired corrections officers and elected officials such as judges, county attorneys and others. By coupling savings and retirement security, Prop. 125 represents a “win-win” for all concerned.

The Great Recession of the last decade created enormous damage to PSPRS, a pension underfunding crisis that has since rippled all over Arizona. In the same manner as Proposition 124 did in 2016, Proposition 125 seeks a small, meaningful change to the Arizona Constitution, this time to shore up the state’s underfunded Elected Officials’ Retirement Plan and the Corrections Officer Retirement Plan. This tweak will put these pensions plans back on the path to good financial health by replacing a poorly designed system of near-annual benefit increases with a reasonable, sustainable cost of living allowance for retired members. This tweak will be tied to Consumer Price Index changes for the Phoenix and Mesa metropolitan area as determined by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

All told, the plans comprising PSPRS serve more than 59,000 members across our state. These members are public servants, many of whom stand between us and danger in our jails and prisons, on the street, or in our courtrooms. In return for decades of public service, our state has promised these men and women and their families a safe, stable retirement they can rely on in the future. Proposition 125 represents another important step to solving Arizona’s pension crisis. Just as importantly, it will help ensure that those who serve our communities have the secure retirement they have been promised in return for a valuable career of work.

Proposition 125 is a smart, fair measure crafted by one of the broadest stakeholder groups in Arizona political history. The measure will help taxpayers, Arizona communities and the thousands of members who depend on our agency to secure their future. Please, join us in voting “yes” on Proposition 125.