RIVERSIDE - A committee made up of representatives from various departments and unions will spend the next five months reviewing alternatives to Riverside County's pension system, which one supervisor called "unsustainable."

The Board of Supervisors today approved formation of a Pension Reform Advisory Committee, whose main objective will be identifying what type of retirement plans future county employees will be offered.

"The state and local pension systems' structure is unsustainable," said Supervisor John Tavaglione, who, with board Chairman Marion Ashley, introduced plans for the advisory committee.

"It doesn't matter where you go, who you talk to, everybody's looking at ways to reform the current public pension system," the supervisor said.

As of June 2008 -- the latest period available -- Riverside County's pension fund was roughly $4.6 billion, according to the Treasurer-Tax Collector's Office. The fund, which is managed by the California Public Employees Retirement System, had an unfunded liability of $620 million.

Some 38,000 current employees, retirees and former county workers have claims on the pension fund's assets, said Treasurer-Tax Collector Doug Kent.

Tavaglione and Ashley said the county's defined-benefit pension system could not support growing obligations. In 2005, the county issued pension guarantee bonds to make up the retirement fund's growing shortfall. Some $375 million in bond debt remains outstanding. The county is also facing dwindling reserves and a $71 million structural budget deficit.

"Rather than wait for pension reform at the state level, we ought to try to get ahead of the curve," said Tavaglione.

Ashley agreed: "We need to work to develop a system for the future ... We can give everybody a chance to get their thoughts in. It's Advertisement

[ Chatton and Associates ] important to get moving as soon as possible."

The supervisors said current and former employees vested in the defined-benefit plan could not be moved to a new retirement system, such as a 401k or other defined-contribution plan, which 90 percent of U.S. businesses utilize.

Any changes would only apply to new employees, hired after the county's financial woes are resolved.

The Pension Reform Advisory Committee will be composed of one representative each from the Treasurer-Tax Collector's Office, Executive Office, Department of Public Social Services, Regional Medical Center, Transportation and Land Management Agency, Sheriff's Department and District Attorney's Office.

An "at-large" member would represent other county agencies and special districts.

Members from county labor unions, including the Service Employees International Union, Deputy District Attorneys' Union, Riverside Sheriffs'

Association and Laborers International Union of North America, would also be included.

An independent facilitator, probably a labor attorney, will moderate the committee meetings, according to Tavaglione.

Supervisor Bob Buster, meeting with lawmakers in Washington, D.C., sent

a representative to ask for a postponement on the committee vote, expressing concern that the new panel might "duplicate what has already been established" by the county's Pension Advisory Review Committee, on which the supervisor sits.

The PARC is scheduled to release a report on pension reform in the next month.

But Tavaglione said the new committee would "complement" PARC's work by incorporating the opinions of union members, which make up the bulk of the county government workforce.

The new committee will be expected to issue a report on its findings by Sept. 10.

The Human Resources Department will provide the necessary staff to support the committee, according to Tavaglione.