EDITORIAL
Fire chief's retirement plan needs tweaking

Somewhere along the line, someone in City Hall made the sensible judgment that pulling hose, climbing ladders and eating smoke is just too much for firefighters beyond a certain age. The result was a disincentive for firefighters to stay on the job beyond that point.

Firefighters are allowed to retire after a minimum of 25 years of service and a maximum of 32 years. After 33 years, a firefighter's pension package actually diminishes with each year he continues to work. So most firefighters retire sometime in their 50s.

The system works well in most cases. But it also has a terrible loophole that can leave the taxpayers paying double for a single set of services. That loophole became apparent in the case of Attilio Leonardi, chief of the Honolulu Fire Department. His duties are clearly administrative. At 58, he says, "I'm too young to retire, I love my job, I'm not done with what I want to do."

But under the current system, staying on the job would actually reduce the income he and his family count on for retirement.

In Leonardi's case, the retirement penalty is obviously counterproductive. He should be able to serve as long as the Honolulu Fire Commission wants him.

What the City Council needs to do is tweak the pension system to exclude administrators from the retirement penalty. Council members must decide if that should include the chief only, or deputy, assistant and battalion chiefs.

What we must try to avoid is the double-dipping arrangement the commission has worked out to keep Leonardi on the job. He will retire on Dec. 31, but continue to work on an 89-day renewable contract. At the end of 89 days, the commission can vote to extend the contract or not. Presumably he could keep working that way for years.

The good news is the commission has found a way to keep a good man on the job. The bad news is that he will begin drawing his pension while continuing to draw his salary at the rate of $110,200 a year.

We're not suggesting Leonardi is gaming the system to double up on his income. He is dealing with the hand he has been dealt. But this loophole must be closed.

The council should change the system so that Leonardi (and other similar administrators) can continue to draw salary as long as they serve, and continue to build their pension without penalty until the commission decides it's time for retirement.

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