Providence Taxpayers to Pay Nearly $400K for Police Officer’s Leave to Work in Central Falls
Monday, January 18, 2021
Providence Police sergeant Anthony Roberson who has been named to serve as the police chief in Central Falls is being extended a leave of absence by the City of Providence.
The cost?
A city of Providence memo from Internal Auditor Gina Costa pegs the price tag of the leave of absence at approximately $383,300.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTRoberson's leave was approved by Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza's administration and is unprecedented.
In similar situations, Providence employees would have to resign their posts to take a job in another city.
Central Falls Mayor Maria Rivera named Roberson to the position on December 22 before she took office, as part of her leadership team.
Internal Memo Reveals More Details
According to the memo, “Sgt. Roberson was hired on August 4, 2002 at the age of 25. Based on the contract when hired, he is eligible to retire after 20 years of service or the age 55. He has 18 years and 5 months of service and is 43 years of age, therefore he is ineligible to receive retirement benefits until he attains the age of 55.”
“The cost to allow this leave of absence is approximately $383,000. (Age 43 – 55 of pension benefits, not including medical). Of this amount, approximately $310,000 is directly drawn on the pension fund, which already has a $1.2 billion unfunded liability,” according to the document.
The memo goes on, “The total above is based upon the officer receiving an annual retirement for eleven years, with a 3% annual compounded COLA after three years. The salary is estimated on the average of the highest four years of service. There are many assumptions used to arrive at this number and recommend that it be sent to an actuary to determine the actual amount.”
The Elorza administration did not respond to a request for comment at time of publication.
