MINUTES OF GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING – 06/2019

by | Jun 12, 2019 | Meeting Minutes

June 12, 2019 @ 11:01 am The Board of Directors, Dallas Police Retired Officers Association, met at the offices of the Dallas Police Association, 1412 Griffin Street East, Dallas, TX 75215.

Present:

  • President David Elliston
  • Vice President Dwight Walker
  • Treasurer Crista Walker
  • Director Boux Bland
  • Director Louis Felini
  • Director Dale Erves
  • DFR Advisor Larry Williams
  • Communications Director Carol Richtsmeier

Absent:

  • Secretary Ken Seguin

Discussion:

  1. President David Elliston called the meeting to order without the Pledge of Allegiance as the flags had been removed from the room.
  2. Director Dale Erves delivered the invocation.
  3. The minutes from the May 2019 meeting had been previously posted on the DPROA website. A motion was made by member Sally Lannom to accept the minutes as posted; seconded by member Bill ?_. Motion carried by acclamation with none opposed.
  4. President Elliston discussed the letter sent to the IRS on behalf of the DPROA, written with the help of Larry Eddington. Basically, Larry’s original letter was modified, asking the IRS to look at our pension system and how the pension was changed for DPFPS’s benefit into an annuity, which we believe violated the construction of the pension plan. The IRS replied with a form letter identical to the one Larry received in his case saying ‘thank you for providing us this information but we have an ongoing process in which we review all pension plans and we cannot disclose whether we will open an investigation or not but thank you for your interest.’ Sergeant James McElroy (Retired) had advised President Elliston, after the letter was posted on the website, that the proper authority to receive the letter would be the Department of Labor. Sergeant McElroy has had firsthand experience working with pension plans, 401k and 457 plans. President Elliston advised that the address was changed, and another letter was sent to the Department of Labor. No response currently.
  5. President Elliston discussed the mayoral election results and DPROA’s intention of reaching out and introducing ourselves to the new mayor and offer our expertise and input into whatever plans he has in place to address the public safety issues in Dallas. We feel like we need to continue being a voice for good and for change in the police department. Members were advised to read the Dallas Observer article written by Jim Schutze about the election results.
  6. President Elliston engaged in an open discussion on the complex issue of having the DPS patrolling the streets of Dallas and that it may be a surprise to citizens as troopers saturate an area and begin writing tickets for every violation without much discretion.
  7. Treasurer Walker gave the treasurer’s report. As of May 31st:
    • A balance of almost $500,000 in the bank
    • 912 people have chosen to participate in the annual adjustment lawsuit
    • $364,800 raised and designated for that lawsuit
    • The last large batch of mail that has been picked up after May 31st has not been processed or deposited, which could add another 100 participants
    • 2nd installment check is being written to Attorney Feldman as part of our agreement
    • We have received our 990 2018 Tax Returns. Once approved by the board, it will be made available to the members
    • Printed lists from the annual adjustment lawsuit database for police/fire were made available for member review at the meeting
    • An extension for the taxes extended the due date to November but ours was completed by May which is good for a 501c
  8. Vice President Walker took a moment to recognize the firefighters and the role DFR Advisor Williams played in advocating for their participation. Currently, firefighters make up 40% of our membership
  9. President Elliston advised that regarding the DPFP nominations committee, there were 10 people put in for those positions and he narrowed down his list to 5 in the following order:
    • Gilbert Garza
    • Robert French
    • Jason Bird
    • Tina Patterson (concerns related to votes against the pension and claw back)
    • Rhonda Smith (CEO Houston Police and Kelly wanted to hire her)
    They will be conducting the election the same way as last time by presenting a slate of 3 candidates. When you get your ballots, you will vote yes or no. If any candidate does not get more than 50% of the vote, then they will bring the next candidate. We are going to pick 5 and we will put 3 on the slate. Blaine Dickens will not be running for re-election and left a vacancy for us to fill. More information will be provided at a later date
  10. Director Bland provided the legislative update from the Ratcliff Company:
    • State Senator Joan Huffman (Houston) wanted to exclude state responsibility in pension obligation bonds. This attempt was shot down.
    • State Senator Paul Bettencourt (Houston) tried to include 8 or 10 bills that would have negatively impacted us, but those were also non-starters.
    • Property Tax has now been limited to 3% which could hurt the ability to fund the pension as it limits the city on raising taxes in the long term for benefits and hiring officers. If we win the lawsuits, this tax change may impact the city’s ability to pay.
    • State Senator Bettencourt wanted to put forth a constitutional amendment before the voters to limit pension obligation bonds to $50 million, but it never got a hearing. This passed the Senate but fell apart in the House.
    • Huffman and Bettencourt are NOT our friends
  11. Director Erves discussed the availability of current merchandise and new items to which the membership can be looking forward to seeing.
  12. DPROA Guest Greg Garcia, with HALOS, discussed upcoming events and was seeking volunteers and participants. HALOS is a non-profit foundation for police survivors created by the police cycling team. https://www.dallasfof.org/ The events can be seen on their Facebook Page and is also on the DPROA website
  13. President Elliston opened Q&A with members to clarify information on the lawsuit. All questions asked, however, are currently addressed on the website.
The meeting was adjourned at approximately 11:45 am. //s// Louis C. Felini Director (Acting Secretary)

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