This week, the Cranston City Council approved a three-year contract that my administration negotiated with local members of the IAFF. Unfortunately, a few in the media and political commentators have falsely accused my administration of negotiating a contract that includes a pension giveaway to the firefighters. This could not be farther from the truth. Anyone with a genuine interest should take time to learn the facts about this contract, many of which have not been reported.

This contract includes structural changes and first of their kind reforms that will provide savings to Cranston taxpayers for years to come. For the first time ever, civilian employees who are members of the IAFF will have the option to participate in a defined contribution retirement plan, rather than the state pension system, which can lead to significant future savings for taxpayers. Pursuant to this contract, Cranston firefighters will begin to contribute to the cost of dental coverage and they will continue to make larger contributions to offset the cost of health insurance for both active employees and retirees.

Unfortunately, media reports instead have focused on misinformation about the status of pension benefits for city firefighters. In 2013, we passed an ordinance that cut firefighter pension benefits. There was a lawsuit challenging these cuts and eventually a settlement was reached to resolve the lawsuit. This settlement saves taxpayers $6 million per year. The new contract preserves and locks in these savings through reduced pension benefits for current and future retirees.

For decades before my pension reforms, COLAs were set at a minimum of 3 percent and there were escalation clauses that increased the annual COLA above 3 percent in some years. These escalator provisions had been in place for years before I was elected mayor, but we eliminated them and our new agreement does away with these escalator provisions permanently and caps the compounded COLA at 3 percent. Additionally, the proposed agreement eliminates all COLA increases in every other year for 10 years and cuts the COLA to 1½ percent for the two following years. Afterwards, the COLA will be capped at 3 percent and yes – that is a significant savings the taxpayers of our city.

The current contract proposal locks in both a temporary reduction and a permanent cap on COLAs, which save $6 million per year for city taxpayers. These savings are essential to the stability of the city pension fund and represent a portion of the savings for Cranston taxpayers included in this contract proposal.

Allan Fung is mayor of the city of Cranston.