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More than 8,800 city of San Diego retirees — a record number — recently got a controversial year-end retirement bonus that gets doled out when the investment portfolio of the city’s pension system has a strong year.
The bonuses, dubbed a “13th check” by some critics, have been doled out every fall since 1984 except in 2003, 2009 and 2012. They come in addition to the retirees’ usual pension checks.
The total paid out this year in bonuses was $7.5 million, another new record. But because more retirees were eligible, the average size of the checks was lower than it has been in at least six years at $703.
The size of each check varies by retiree based on several factors. The largest this year was $1,594 and the smallest $13.
While the bonus is actually included in the monthly check retirees receive in November, some critics call it a 13th check because it is a payout that goes beyond the 12 usual monthly pension payments retirees receive each year.
The bonuses have cost the pension system more than $167 million in total since the 1980s. Critics say the system, which is facing $3.5 billion in unfunded debt, should invest the bonus money to help reduce that debt instead of doling it out to eligible retirees.
The board of the city’s pension system, the San Diego Employees Retirement System, approved the payouts at its most recent meeting in November with no discussion or debate.
The amount each retiree can receive was capped in 20...
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