DETROIT – The city of Detroit and the Retired Detroit Police and Fire Fighters Association (RDPFFA) have reached an agreement that ensures retirees will not see any cuts to their current pension benefits.
Under the agreement, retired Detroit police officers and firefighters will receive a 1 percent cost-of-living allowance. A separate voluntary employee beneficiary association (VEBA) for retiree healthcare will be established.
View: RDPFFA's release on agreement
Detroit had been proposing a 6 percent pension cut and no cost-of-living payments.
The mediated agreement was approved Tuesday with an 11-0 unanimous vote from the RPDFFA board. They met at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the association's offices in Sterling Heights.
"If you had told me 6 months ago that we would get this deal, I would have said you were crazy," said Ryan Plecha, an attorney for RDPFFA.
Moreover, the RDPFFA is in full support of Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr's plan of adjustment. The group represents 6,500 retirees. That's more than 80 percent of Detroit's eligible retired police officers and firefighters, according to the RDPFFA.
The deal is subject to review by the retirees and a bankruptcy judge.
This is the 1st of three deals the city is trying to reach with its pensioners in bankruptcy.
Complete coverage: Detroit bankruptcy