Scope item E · benefits and employer cost

The package behind the paycheck, from Atwater's own agreements

Base pay is only part of what the City spends on an employee. Retirement, health coverage, leave and premium pays make up the rest, and the RFP asks the study to value all of it. This page reads the City's three labor agreements; the study surveys the same items at every comparator.

Atwater's benefit terms by unit, as written

Sources: Atwater Police Officers Association MOU, July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2027; Miscellaneous Unit MOU and Mid-Management MOU, July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2027 (updated); Mid-Management bilingual pay side letter, Council packet of September 14, 2026. Section numbers are given so each line can be checked.
ItemPolice (APOA)MiscellaneousMid-Management
CalPERS retirement, classicSafety: 3% at 50, single highest year; employees pay 12% of reportable compensation toward the City's plan (§8.1.1)3% at 60, single highest year (hired by Nov. 24, 2011); 2% at 60, three-year final compensation (Nov. 25, 2011 to Dec. 31, 2012) (§8.1)Miscellaneous tiers as in the Miscellaneous Unit; safety tiers (3% at 50; PEPRA 2.7% at 57) for sworn mid-managers
CalPERS retirement, PEPRA2.7% at 57, three-year final compensation; employees pay half the normal cost (§8.1.1)2% at 62, three-year final compensation; employees pay half the normal cost (§8.1)2% at 62 (miscellaneous); 2.7% at 57 (safety)
Sick leave at retirementUp to 2,000 hours credited as CalPERS service (§8.1.3)Terms in each MOU's retirement article; confirmed at kickoff
Active employee medicalTwo rates, set by hire date. The City pays 90% of CalPERS medical premiums for the employee and dependents for earlier hires, and 70% for later hires (police: hired on or after March 1, 2015; miscellaneous and mid-management: hired after September 30, 2014). Both are capped at a benchmark plan, currently Blue Shield Access+ HMO (APOA §8.2.A; Miscellaneous and Mid-Management §8.2.A). Reduced-hour employees receive 75% or 50% of the full-time benefit by hours worked.
Retiree medicalThree tiers by hire date. Earlier tiers receive a share of the benchmark premium that rises with years of service (for safety retirees, up to 90% for the retiree and 75% for a spouse after 14 years). The newest tier receives the PEMHCA minimum for the retiree only. Retiree medical is a long-term liability the study values separately from current cost.
Dental, vision, lifeCity dental and vision plans; life and AD&D equal to annual base salary rounded up to the next $1,000 (APOA §8.2.B and parallel sections)
Longevity2% after 10 years, 5% total after 20 (§9.12)2% after 15 years, 5% total after 20 (§9.10)2% after 15 years, 5% total after 20 (§9.8)
Education and POST incentive2.5% for an associate degree or POST Intermediate certificate; 5% for a bachelor's degree or POST Advanced certificate (§9.8)Confirmed with HR at kickoff
Special assignment paySet by assignment category for officers performing the assignment at least half the time (§9.9)Confirmed with HR at kickoff
Deferred compensationNone of the three MOUs provides an employer match. Peer agencies that match will show the gap in the survey.
Bilingual pay$125 a month for conversational Spanish or another approved language (§9.11.I)City interpreters: 5% for those selected before the MOU took effect, $100 a month after (§9.9)Added by side letter, September 2026 (new §9.11)
We transcribed these terms from the City's posted MOUs and summarized them; the MOU text governs. Benefits for the Confidential group, department directors and the City Manager are set by resolution or agreement and are confirmed with HR at kickoff.

What retirement costs the City, from its CalPERS valuations

Source: CalPERS Actuarial Valuations as of June 30, 2025 for the City of Atwater, Miscellaneous and Safety risk pools (CalPERS ID 1114344965), page 4 of each. Payroll is the annual covered payroll at June 30, 2025; the payment is for fiscal year 2027-28, so the ratio is approximate.
ItemMiscellaneousSafety
Employer normal cost rate, FY 2027-28, by plan19.13% (3% at 60) · 10.41% (2% at 60) · 8.05% (PEPRA)30.79% (3% at 50) · 14.93% (PEPRA)
Unfunded liability payment, FY 2027-28$1,435,851$1,606,611
Unfunded liability, June 30, 2025$12,125,790$14,410,470
Funded ratio, June 30, 202575.8%76.0%
Active members / annual covered payroll74 / $4,534,71325 / $2,481,779
Unfunded liability payment as a share of covered payrollabout 32%about 65%
The unfunded liability payment pays for service already earned, so the study reports it beside the comparison and keeps it out of the per-employee value of current benefits. It still belongs in the fiscal picture Council sees, because it competes with pay for the same dollars.

What we collect from every comparator

The RFP lists the items in scope E.1. Our survey asks each agency for each of them, in dollars where possible:

  • CalPERS formula by tier, employer normal cost rate, and any cost sharing employees pay
  • Employer medical, dental and vision contribution at employee-only, plus-one and family levels
  • Retiree medical formula and vesting
  • Life and disability coverage
  • Vacation, sick leave, holidays and administrative or management leave, in hours a year
  • Deferred compensation match, uniform allowance, education and certification pay (including POST), bilingual, longevity, specialty assignment, on-call and call-back

How we put a dollar value on it

  • Retirement at each agency's employer normal cost rate from its latest CalPERS actuarial valuation, net of any employee cost sharing. Unfunded liability payments are reported separately because they pay for past service and do not buy current employees anything.
  • Health at the employer's contribution for the coverage level most employees actually choose, from Atwater's enrollment data, so the comparison reflects the real workforce.
  • Leave converted to paid hours a year and valued at each class's hourly rate.
  • Premium pays valued at typical eligibility, with the assumption stated beside each one.

The result is a total compensation figure per benchmark class at each comparator, set beside base pay, so Council can see where Atwater trails on salary but leads on benefits, or the reverse.

One finding from the agreements alone

Two employees in the same class can carry very different medical costs. Someone hired in 2013 pays 10% of the premium (up to the benchmark plan); a colleague hired in 2016 pays 30%, and retires with only the PEMHCA minimum, where the earlier hire earns a share that grows with service. Everyone hired since late 2014 (police: since March 2015) is on the lower tier. The market survey shows whether Atwater's newer-hire package still competes; the recruitment and retention analysis (scope H) shows whether it costs the City people.

Why this matters in Atwater now

Two current items depend on this work. The 2026-2030 Strategic Plan directs staff to evaluate employee health plans for cost savings while keeping quality coverage (strategy 1.10), and all three MOUs end on June 30, 2027. A benefits survey that values each item the same way at every comparator gives the City one set of numbers for both conversations.