UPDATED: Prov Court Judges Caprio, Lombardi Eligible for Three City-Funded Pensions

Friday, February 20, 2015

GoLocalProv News Team

Part-time Providence Municipal Court Judge Frank Caprio -- and newly elected Municipal Court Judge and State Representative John Lombardi -- are eligible for three different city-funded pensions. Both were approved by the City Council to serve as Providence Municipal Court Judges Thursday night.

For Caprio, who lives in a multi-million home on the water in Narragansett and registers six luxury automobiles at the Narragansett address, the disclosure of the pensions raises questions about the city's pension system and who benefits.

"He gets a pension from the city through the Providence Municipal Retirement System Pension, he gets a 1033 pension, and he's eligible for the elected officials pension," said Evan England, spokesperson for Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza.  

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Caprio, who claims Providence as his primary address on some disclosure forms, also claims he lives in his office on other state disclosure forms filled with the RI Ethics Commission.

Current State Representative Lombardi, who represents District 8 in Providence and had previously served as President of the Providence City Council, is one of four candidates along with Caprio for the three paid court positions. 

"Yes, I'm eligible for three pensions -- the city, the union, and the elected officials pension," said Lombardi.  Caprio has refused to respond to repeated calls.

According to a recent MINDSETTER™ columns by Michael Riley, the city of Providence has one of the most fragile public pension system in the country. The unfunded liability puts the system at risk and continued efforts to over-inflate the cities rate of return on investments is only further adversely impacting the system.

Pension Amounts Undetermined

"Judge Caprio is a non-bargaining member of the 1033 for pension purposes only," England told GoLocalProv, of Caprio's pension through the Local 1033 of the Laborers' International Union.  

The Local 1033 did not respond to request for comment on Thursday as to when Caprio and Lombardi became eligible for such pensions, how much they will get upon retirement, and if that includes full health care.  

"Judge Caprio entered the City’s Municipal Retirement System in 1983 and has been eligible to receive retirement benefits since turning 55," said England. "An exact amount cannot be determined until retirement.  He gets full health benefits now -- and typically retirees after that many years of service get full benefits, but again, that is not determined until retirement."

Not 1, not 2, but 3

Caprio and Lombardi are also eligible for the elected officials' pension.  

Caprio served on the Providence City Council in the 1960s. Lombardi was on the Providence City Council from 1984 to 2006, serving as Council President starting in 1999, and then served as Interim Mayor of Providence for four months after then-Mayor Vincent "Buddy" Cianci was sentenced to federal prison on one count of corruption.    

An Access to Public Records Act request for non-union employees showed that Municipal Court judges Catherine Graziano and Anthony Gianinni as non-union employees making $33,436 for the part-time position, but this list provided by the city did not include Caprio leading to the GoLocal Investigation sparked last month.

Thursday's Council Vote

The City Council on Thursday voted to elect Caprio, Lombardi, and Lisa Bortolotti to the Municipal Court.  Bortolotti has been serving on the court as an unpaid alternate judge.  

"There was a separate election for Chief Justice, and Caprio was elected again to the post," Aponte told GoLocalProv.  Aponte noted that the council was slated to take up the candidacy of Providence State Representative Dan McKiernan next week, and that current judge Anthony Gianinni's application was still pending.  

Questions had arisen surrounding Caprio's Providence residency, including his last two ethics filings which listed his office address as his home address.  Previously, Caprio stated he lived on Vinton Street in Providence

"I raised the questions, but the majority of my colleagues believed he demonstrated he is a Providence resident," said Aponte. 

The Council also voted on Thursday to approve Cranston resident Luis Peralta to the city's licensing board.  Aponte noted that he voted in opposition.  

"We will be addressing broaching residency requirements for certain boards at a council meeting in the near future," said Aponte.  

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Related Slideshow: Top Providence Pensions

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