Tuscaloosa Co. Voters To Decide If Full-Time Mayors Can Join RSA: What To Know

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Tuscaloosa County voters will soon decide on a measure to allow full-time mayors in the county to participate in the state's retirement system, a change that would directly affect longtime Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox.

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If it's successful at the ballot box on Nov. 3, the amendment to the Alabama Constitution would allow full-time municipal mayors in Tuscaloosa County to enroll in the Employees' Retirement System of Alabama (RSA) under the same terms and conditions as other participating public employees.

Maddox, who is currently the only full-time mayor in Tuscaloosa County, would be eligible to join the system if voters approve the measure.

The amendment would also allow Maddox to purchase retirement credit for his previous years in office, although city officials confirmed to Patch that he would be personally responsible for the entire cost of purchasing that service credit.

The City of Tuscaloosa said in a statement to Patch that the proposed change would bring the mayor's retirement benefits in line with those already available to other full-time elected officials.

"If the constitutional amendment is approved by voters, Mayor Maddox would join all other full-time elected officials (Judges, Probate Judge, Sheriff, Circuit Clerk, Tax Assessor, and Tax Collector) as well as the County Commission in participating in state retirement."

The measure requires a simple majority of "yes" votes cast for the amendment to pass.

Maddox told Patch that passage of the amendment would ensure that the City of Tuscaloosa will continue to attract the best candidates to lead the community.

“Serving my hometown as mayor for more than two decades has been one of the greatest honors of my life," he said. "I am grateful to the Tuscaloosa City Council and our state legislators for advancing this amendment to the ballot for voters to consider next week."

How does the mayor's retirement currently work?

Maddox currently participates in a 403(b) retirement plan, a tax-advantaged retirement savings account commonly offered by public employers and nonprofit organizations.

Under the existing arrangement, the City of Tuscaloosa matches the mayor's contributions up to 5%.

The Tuscaloosa City Council unanimously approved to establish this benefit on Oct. 2, 2012, following a recommendation from the council's Finance Committee.

If voters approve the constitutional amendment, RSA would replace Maddox's existing 403(b) retirement plan.

Unlike a 403(b), which is generally based on contributions and investment performance, RSA is a defined-benefit pension system that provides retirement payments calculated using factors such as years of credited service and compensation.

Would the amendment cost taxpayers if passed?

City officials say the amendment would not require taxpayers to pay for Maddox's previous years of service.

Under the legislation, mayors holding office when the amendment is ratified would be eligible to purchase retirement credit for time already served in their current positions.

For Maddox, that could mean purchasing credit for previous years as Tuscaloosa's mayor, a position he has held since 2005.

However, city officials emphasized that the mayor would be responsible for paying for any eligible prior service credit himself.

"Mayor Maddox would be solely responsible for purchasing any eligible years of prior service, and the City would not contribute toward that buyback," Executive Director of Strategic Communications Sarah Bridger Gilmore told Patch.

The distinction is important because purchasing years of service in a pension system can represent a substantial financial commitment, depending on the employee's salary, years of service and the system's requirements.

The amendment itself does not specify the cost of purchasing those years.

Although city officials say the purchase of prior service would not come at taxpayer expense, the amendment would place the mayor under RSA's regular retirement contribution structure in place of the current city-matched 403(b) plan.

Why is the amendment being considered now?

Maddox has long maintained that he has delayed pursuing his own individual participation in RSA until the city had made the retirement system available to all municipal employees.

He then pointed out to Patch that the aforementioned milestone was reached Oct. 1, when Tuscaloosa's public safety employees became eligible to participate.

The transition means all City of Tuscaloosa employees are now eligible to participate in the state retirement system.

District 1 City Councilor Joe Eatmon, who supports the amendment, told Patch he believes the mayor should have access to the same retirement benefits as other full-time public officials.

"I support the amendment allowing the mayor to buy into RSA," Eatmon said. "This amendment comes at no cost to the city or taxpayers."

Eatmon also mentioned the city's recent expansion of retirement eligibility to public safety employees as a reason to extend the same opportunity to the mayor.

"With the conversion of public safety, the City of Tuscaloosa has done a great job making sure all city employees have access to a great retirement system," Eatmon said. "I hope the citizens of Tuscaloosa would afford its full time Mayor that same opportunity."

Is this unusual in Alabama?

The proposed amendment is not the first of its kind in Alabama.

Since 2022, eight similar pieces of legislation involving retirement eligibility for elected officials have passed through the Alabama Legislature.

Those measures involved St. Clair, Tuscaloosa, Jackson, Dale, Geneva, Dallas, Franklin and Montgomery counties.

The proposed amendment, sponsored by Republican State Rep. Bryan Brinyark of Northport, was approved by the Alabama Legislature earlier this year as House Bill 92.

Polls will open at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and will close at 7 p.m. Visit the Alabama Secretary of State's website for sample ballots and other election information.

Click here for a full list of polling places in Tuscaloosa County.

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