The Little Rock Board of Directors on Tuesday approved an ordinance setting a half-salary pension for outgoing Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola but tabled discussion of his accrual of paid time off to the end of January.
The approved ordinance cites Arkansas Code Annotated 24-12-123, which states that any mayor who has served for at least 10 years and is over the age of 60, or any mayor who has served for at least 20 years regardless of age, shall receive half of the mayor's salary at the time of the mayor's retirement for the remainder of his life.
That means Stodola, who will have served 12 years next month and who receives a $160,000 salary, will receive $80,000 annually. Stodola is 69, and his last day in office is Dec. 31.
That yearly amount will come from a combination of contributions that Stodola made to his retirement plan and payments from the city.
Jody Carreiro, an actuary and the city's consultant on its employee retirement plans, said at last week's agenda meeting that paying off that plan would cost the city $60,268 annually for 10 years.
That money would come from the city's pension fund. City Manager Bruce Moore said the proposed $210.6 million budget, which city directors also approved Tuesday, will be amended to take that payment into account.
The provisions of the ordinance apply to Stodola as well as all future Little Rock mayors who meet the qualifications set by state law, according to the document.
That ordinance does not deal with whether Stodola will receive pay for the accrual of unused vacation days, which City Attorney Tom Carpenter said the board would need to address in a separate ordinance.
The half-salary pension requirement set by state law applies to Pat Hays, the former North Little Rock mayor. Hays receives $51,743 annually, city spokesman Nathan Hamilton said.
Hays' successor, Joe Smith, will also receive half of his ending salary, if the North Little Rock mayor runs for a third term in 2020 and has more than 10 years as an elected official, or if he "buys" two additional years with credit from his previous two decades of service as a North Little Rock city employee, Hamilton said. Smith's current salary is $125,093.
The state law applies to "cities of the first class" -- cities with populations greater than 2,500, per the statute. It applies to salaried and unsalaried mayors in the state, with a provision that they receive at least $250.
The ordinance puts the Little Rock mayor's retirement plan in line with a defined benefits plan to which the city moved its other employees in 2014, Carpenter said, though Stodola's pension would be a higher percentage of his salary because of the state law.
Upon leaving employment, most employees other than the Little Rock mayor and city manager annually receive 2 percent of their salary per year of service. For instance, if an employee retires after working for the city for four years, his annual payment is 8 percent of his salary at the time he leaves.
The 2 percent multiplier does not apply to years of service worked before 2014, when the defined benefits plan was adopted, unless employees themselves contribute money to "buy" those years of service, said Stacey Witherell, the city's human resources director.
The proposed ordinance also allows for certain cost-of-living increases and provides for spousal survivor benefits. For instance, Stodola's wife would be provided benefits if he predeceases her.
The mayor will be able to choose a spousal benefit plan from a list provided to other employees. The spousal plan deals with splitting benefits should the former employee predecease his spouse, so it does not require the city to contribute money. Instead, that benefit comes from contributions Stodola himself paid into the plan.
The ordinance passed with six votes from city directors Dr. Dean Kumpuris, Gene Fortson, Joan Adcock, Capi Peck, Lance Hines and Doris Wright. Later, Wright tried to change her vote to no after being told that the ordinance did not address Stodola's accrual of paid time off, but was told she needed unanimous consent of the board to do so.
City directors B.J. Wyrick and Kathy Webb voted against the ordinance's passage. Ken Richardson voted present. Erma Hendrix was absent.
The board then discussed Stodola's ability to accrue paid time off.
Because of a city ordinance that strengthened the mayoral office in 2007, Stodola's salary and benefits must be "comparable" to those of the city manager. Moore's employment contract allows for the accrual of all paid time off to be paid at severance.
Elected officials in the North Little Rock and Pulaski County governments do not receive or accrue paid time off.
Stodola is allotted 33 paid vacation days each year. He recused from the discussion, but later said in an interview that he estimated he had taken 12 weeks of vacation over the past 11 years.
He pointed out that the city attorney's accrual was uncapped before he -- Stodola -- became mayor. The city board moved last week to align Moore's employment contract with Carpenter's.
Stodola added that the role is not a typical job and that he works on city business around the clock.
"I've worked my heart out for the city," he said.
Witherell, the city's human resources director, said the number of hours he has accrued is more than 2,200.
Hines said he had no qualms about Stodola receiving pay for unused time off.
"This is probably the lesser of the two evils for us not giving him pay raises over the last 12 years," he said.
Other city directors said they were concerned that the cap on his accrual of hours had been removed administratively, without board approval.
"There needs to be a cap on this stuff," Wright said. "I don't like setting precedents unless we got policy to back it up."
Shortly after 9:30 p.m., Peck moved to table the discussion until the agenda meeting scheduled for Jan. 29. The motion passed.
"I just think it's regrettable that here on the last meeting of the year, that this all comes to a head," she said. "I think there's so many questions, so much confusion."
A Section on 12/19/2018