Missouri Supreme Court Affirms City of St. Louis Firefighter Pension Reform

The Missouri Supreme Court has affirmed the City's authority to create a new pension plan for firefighters with fair, but less expensive benefits.

"I proposed changes that are both fair to firefighters and to taxpayers," Mayor Francis Slay said. "I thank the aldermen, who stood up under enormous pressure to fight for taxpayers and sponsor legislation to create the new plan."

Today, the Missouri Supreme Court rejected an application to hear a contest to the City's pension reform bill. The Missouri Supreme Court's denial effectively affirms a previous decision by the Missouri Court of Appeals. That decision allowed the City to terminate the state-controlled Firemen's Retirement System and start the new, locally-controlled Firefighters Retirement Plan. Last year, the new pension plan resulted in a total savings of $10.7 million to taxpayers.

"We have managed to get the skyrocketing cost of the firefighters' pension under control and also keep our credit rating strong," Mayor Slay said. "We did so by being fair to firefighters for the extremely important job they do while protecting our citizens."

Today's affirmation finalizes all state court proceedings.