Monrovia leadership raises questions

• Published in: San Gabriel Valley tribune (West Covina, Calif.)
• Main Author: Parry, Robert C J
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: West Covina, Calif Los Angeles Newspaper Group 21.07.2008
• Subjects: Ochoa, Scott

IN late May, as negotiations between the Monrovia Police Officers' Association and the city of Monrovia were once again heating up, I authored a column in this space urging the city to abandon its method of calculating police officer pay ("Monrovia clouds officer pay raises," May 20). I argued that their method misrepresented the amount that truly ended up in cops' pockets because it included the city's contribution to the state retirement pool - the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). While expensive - in fact far more expensive than what most other cities pay - that calculation placed Monrovia at a severe disadvantage in recruiting and retaining officers. Because no other city counts those funds that are sent to Sacramento as part of an officer's paycheck, MPD cops live on less than their counterparts. Days later, Monrovia City Manager Scott Ochoa shot back with a letter to the editor ("Retirement money counts," May 23) dismissing my claim as "failing in both its grasp of the facts and the ultimate consequences of what it advocates." He described my position as "irresponsible at best" with "the potential of being fiscally suicidal." Unfortunately, these incidents are not the first attacks on me or other citizens by Monrovia's leadership. Ochoa recently stated in an official city publication: "I suppose that if I had ... Mr. [Robert Parry]'s support I'd be worried I was doing something wrong."