San Francisco Proposition F
Police Staffing and Deferred Retirement
Prop. F would amend the city charter to give tenured police officers the option to delay their retirements in exchange for receiving pay bumps for as many as five years. The measure would reestablish a program called the Deferred Retirement Option Program, which The City used from 2008 to 2011, through which eligible officers could both earn their current salary and pension payments they would have received had they retired. The latter funds will be set aside and accrue interest each year. All full-duty officers, sergeants, and inspectors who have worked on the force for at least 25 years and are at least 50 years old would be eligible to enroll in the DROP program.
The amendment would also define “full duty sworn officers” — which is not defined in the current charter — as full-time officers except those on long-term leaves of absence, recruits who are training at the police academy, and officers assigned to San Francisco International Airport.
Argument for: Proponents say Prop. F will help alleviate The City’s dire police shortage by keeping officers on the force who would otherwise retire and potentially join other Bay Area police departments. The City is currently short of its target of 2,074 officers by more than 500, and it has lost more officers than it can recruit every year since 2019, according to Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who co-authored the legislation.
Argument against: Opponents say Prop F will add more steep costs amid a budget shortfall and provide another raise for police officers, who are already among the highest-paid city employees and just received a pay bump last year. The measure would force taxpayers to pay individual officers up to a half million dollars by allowing them to double dip into their salary and retirement benefits, according to Supervisor Hilary Ronen.
https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/politics/2024-sf-voter-guide-local-propositions-measures-on-ballot/article_97615262-7776-11ef-913a-ebf36660f047.html