CalPERS Elections are in Progress;
Your Pensions and Health Care Benefits are at Stake

As an SEIU Local 1000 represented worker, you should already have received your ballot for the CalPERS Board of Administration elections, which conclude September 27, 2021. If not, it should arrive soon. Why is this important? Put simply, CalPERS is the agency who administers your hard-earned pension and oversees the health care benefits for you and nearly 100,000 of your fellow state employees. As a result, the decisions made by the CalPERS Board of Administration affect you, your family, and your future.

This year there are technically two elections taking place. The At-large Seats A and B on the CalPERS Board of Administration are both open for election.

Seat A Candidates: David Miller and Tiffany Emon-Moran

David Miller, the incumbent, is one of the CalPERS board administrators who voted ‘Yes’, making him responsible for increasing your health plan premiums by as much as 23% and our long-term care premiums by 90%. These premium increases also mean higher co-pays and deductibles.

And for those of us who have Kaiser health insurance, you will be paying an additional $45 per month solely because the majority of the CalPERS Board voted to impose a surcharge on Kaiser for controlling costs too well.

Tiffany Emon-Moran is running against David Miller for Seat A. As a Certified Financial Fraud Examiner, Tiffany successfully uncovered massive fraud inside the Dignity Health Care system in 2013 and 2014. Given that she is already asking questions and trying to find the reasons for health care increases, a vote for Tiffany will ensure that proper scrutiny is given to our health plans and their costs. That’s why Local 1000 is backing Tiffany!

CalPERS Seat B Candidates: Margaret Brown and Jose Luis Pacheco

Margaret Brown, the CalPERS Seat B incumbent, voted NO on all the above increases. She has spent the past 4 years protecting our retirement savings from bad investment strategy, and voted to hold down costs on health and long-term care premiums. In fact, Margaret has fought so hard for us that she is now being attacked for her tenacity by the players who do not want more scrutiny given to the issues that affect our retirement and health care plans. That’s why Local 1000 supports Margaret!

Jose Pacheco is opposing Margaret for this seat. We have little information on Mr. Pacheco beyond what we have seen online, but we do know that according to his staff, he refused our invitation to the CalPERS debate because he felt answering questions from our members in a live debate was akin to an ambush.

Regardless of how you choose to vote, the most important thing is to participate in the process, whether by mail, phone or online. Remember, voting concludes September 27, 2021, so be sure to get your vote in today!