Police Benevolent Association Files Suit Against Retirement Systems of Alabama
Feb 16, 2012
The Southern States Police Benevolent Association, Inc., has filed suit last week against the Board of Control of the Retirement Systems of Alabama. The civil action was filed February 6, 2012, in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County. The lawsuit is in response to the R.S.A.’s recent decision to end employee retirement contributions from accumulated earnings that consisted of overtime and/or subsistence pay earned by law enforcement officers. Additionally, R.S.A. advised county, municipal, and local agency participants to cease such deductions, also telling them R.S.A. would not accept any such deductions taken from officer pay.
“These improper actions were based on an Attorney General’s opinion, as opposed to the law,” said J.D. Hobbie, executive director for the Alabama division of Southern States PBA. “Just like that, law enforcement officers are seeing their retirement benefits shrink because their contributions are no longer based on the total pay that the officers receive.” Many Alabama law enforcement officers routinely work overtime as part of their normal schedule and now will not have their retirement calculated on the total pay that they earn.
The lawsuit asks, among other things, that the Court declare: (1) the Attorney General’s opinion is contrary to the law, and contrary to the rights of law enforcement members of the R.S.A.; (2) the actions of the R.S.A. pursuant to the Attorney General’s opinion are null and void; and (3) that preliminary and permanent injunctions are issued to enjoin the R.S.A. from refusing to accept or allow a deduction from hours worked in excess of 40. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Southern States PBA and its members by attorneys Joe Espy III and J. Flynn Mozingo of Montgomery.
Alabama Division
