FEBRUARY 2023 ACTIVE/DROP NEWSLETTER
GENERAL MANAGER’S MESSAGE
WINTER 2023 EDITION OF PENSION PERSPECTIVES
At the January 19, 2023 meeting of the Board of Fire and Police Pension Commissioners, the Board appointed me as the new General Manager of LAFPP (NOTE: This appointment is currently pending confirmation by the City Council and Mayor.). Having worked at LAFPP for the past 15 years, I will continue to do my best to ensure the fund is protected, and we never lose sight of our sole purpose here, which is to provide the retirement benefits promised by the City to our sworn members.
I would like to thank the Board for entrusting me to lead the Department and I would also like to thank our staff for their continued dedication and encouragement over the past several months while I served as Interim General Manager.
One of my goals as General Manager is to ensure that you are informed about the status of your retirement plan. There are various measures that can be reviewed to determine the overall health of a retirement plan. One such measure is the plan’s funded status, which is the ratio of a retirement plan’s assets to its liabilities (i.e., the pension or retiree health benefits we expect to provide to members). I am pleased to report that for the year ending June 30, 2022, the combined funded ratio for LAFPP’s pension and health benefits is 95.0%, up from 92.5% the previous year. This marks the fifth consecutive year that the combined funded ratio has increased for LAFPP. The pension benefit funded ratio is now 98.0%, up from 96.8%, and the retiree health benefits funded ratio increased from 64.7% to 74.3%. This increase in the plan’s funded ratio is excellent news and reflects the continued strength and stability of your retirement plan.
Thank you all for your continued support. Should you have any questions, please contact us at (213) 279-3000 or via email at pensions@lafpp.com.
I will continue to do my best to ensure the fund is protected
Respectfully,
Joe Salazar
Interim General Manager
LAFPP BOARD APPOINTS GENERAL MANAGER – JOSEPH SALAZAR
On January 19, 2023, the Board of Fire and Police Pension Commissioners announced the selection of Joe Salazar as the permanent General Manager, following a nationwide executive recruitment process which began in June 2022. Click here to read more.
LAFPP SERVICES UPDATE
As of February 1, 2023, our offices are now open to members without an appointment. At this time, we do not have parking available for members and paid parking near our building is limited. We encourage you to continue to take advantage of our enhanced virtual services which offer a more convenient alternative to in-person visits. Click here for a complete list of our virtual services.
HOW TO ENROLL IN DROP
To enroll in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP), you must attend a scheduled group counseling session. One-on-one appointments are available upon request, virtually or in-person. Contact the DROP/Service Pensions Section to make an appointment (no more than 60 days or no less than 5 days prior to your intended DROP effective date).
For more information on how to enroll in DROP, click here. To view or download the DROP Handbook, please click here.
2022 VALUATION REPORTS APPROVED
For the Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2022, on an actuarial basis, LAFPP is 98.0% funded for pension benefits and 74.3% funded for health benefits, an increase of 1.2% and 9.6% respectively over the prior year. Click here to read more.
UPDATE YOUR BENEFICIARY DESIGNATION ONLINE
As an active member, it is very important to maintain a current beneficiary designation with LAFPP. Doing so ensures that your pension contributions and accrued interest will be paid to the person(s) of your choice. Update your beneficiary designation online via your MyLAFPP account.
BOARD OF FIRE AND POLICE PENSION COMMISSIONERS NEWS
LAFPP BOARD MEETINGS
The Board of Fire and Police Pension Commissioners holds regular meetings on the first and third Thursdays of the month at 8:30 a.m. Please review the respective Board Meeting Agenda for the most current information and meeting details.
COMMISSIONER MEGAN M. HERNANDEZ APPOINTED TO THE BOARD
Effective November 30, 2022, Megan M. Hernandez was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti and confirmed by the City Council to serve the remaining term ending June 30, 2023, for the seat vacated by former Commissioner Brian Pendleton. This is Commissioner Hernandez’s first appointment to the Board of Fire and Police Pension Commissioners.
In every edition of the newsletter, we will include information to educate you on retirement benefits. In this edition, we’d like to educate you on Purchasing Your Recruit Training Time. Watch the video to learn more, then visit our Pensions Toolkit Page for more tools and videos:
Purchasing Your Recruit Training Time
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