A retired accountant endorsed by Local 1889 of the International Association of Fire Fighters is challenging Bonnie Stegman in her April 7 re-election bid to the Mehlville Fire Protection District Board of Directors.

P.J. Polizzi is looking to oust Stegman, who was elected in April 2005 to a four-year term on the Board of Directors. In the April election, Polizzi and Stegman are vying for a board seat that carries a six-year term.

Asked to identify the most important issue in the race, the candidates responded:

• “Dipping into reserves to meet current budget,” Polizzi said.

• “Being able to permanently lower the tax ceiling for the residents of the area. I believe that we have proven we don’t need the level of taxes that are available currently and if in the future there is a need to increase taxes, we should be required to go to the taxpayers and ask for that increase. Especially in this depressed economic time, the taxpayers should be able to keep their money and not have it go to the district to sit in a bank account,” Stegman said

Polizzi, 60, 5953 Shortleaf Court, 63128, is a retired accountant. He and his wife, Jan, have a grown son.

Polizzi, who has not held elective office, said he is seeking election to the fire board because of the “loss of experienced personnel and 30-percent loss of new hires since 2005.”

Stegman, 55, 6039 Cardinal Creek Drive, 63129, is a registered nurse educator at St. Anthony’s Medical Center and adjunct instructor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Central Methodist University. She and her husband, John, have two grown children.

Stegman twice ran unsuccessfully for the Board of Directors before being elected in 2005 when she defeated Dave Gralike.

Gralike had been appointed in August 2003 to fill a vacancy created by the death of former Chief Joe Gaterman, who was elected in April 2003. Stegman said she is seeking re-election “to continue to advocate for the residents of the district and provide excellent services while at the same time being fiscally responsible.”

The candidates gave the following responses to a Call questionnaire:

What is your position on Proposition 1 and Proposition 2?

Polizzi said, “While I would be interested in lowering a tax ceiling, I think that as elected officials, we must do so after serious consideration and open discussion. At this point, I have more questions than answers, but I certainly do not disagree with the concept. For example, does the district project a higher or lower assessment in the coming years? All the homes in south county are over assessed right now and the correction of this will affect district revenue.

“There was little to no public discussion on this matter before a vote to place this issue on the ballot was taken. I believe that in the general fund a reserve of 6 cents was left over what was being currently used. But in the pension fund, it appears there was no reserve figured. If these propositions pass and as a board, if a miscalculation was made, I am afraid it will be our fire and EMS personnel who will suffer. But the residents will decide and my accounting background will help me enact whatever changes the taxpayers dictate.”

Stegman said, “I voted in favor of putting this on the ballot and support both propositions 100 percent. As I said earlier, rather than taking our residents’ tax money and putting it in our bank, it should stay in the residents’ bank.”

How do you envision the relationship between the Board of Directors and the firefighters’ union?

Polizzi said, “I understand that I work for the taxpayers and I am committed to improving the relationship between the district and its employees. I believe this is possible without any tax increases and I think all the taxpayers and residents of the district would like to see this relationship improve.”

Stegman said, ” I am still hopeful that the union will work with the board to continue to build an excellent environment for the staff and the residents of the district. I have always stated that I am willing to talk to the union at open meetings to discuss all concerns. It is a shame that the union has continually refused to negotiate and insisted on an all-or-nothing attitude and constantly filed lawsuits which were beneficial to no one, most of all the residents of the district.

“There is a new union president and I am looking forward to perhaps a change of attitude from the union. Only time will tell.”

How many meetings of the MFPD Board of Directors have you attended?

Polizzi said, “None. Currently, board meetings have been not on a regular schedule. When I planned to attend, the time was changed. This is a frequent occurrence and meetings should be on a regular schedule for the public to plan to attend.”

Stegman said, “I attended almost all meetings over the last four years. Without checking the records for an exact count, I may have missed a total of about three meetings.”

Do you support the reforms that have been enacted by the Board of Directors since 2005?

Polizzi said, “These changes have been enacted in countless fire districts in St. Louis County without the extraordinary financial cost to the district in the form of lawsuits, the constant hiring of new applicants and the continual stream of recruits in the St. Louis County Fire Academy. A prime example of this is to question how many firefighters have quit the Affton Fire Protection District in the past four years versus the Mehlville Fire Protection District. I believe the number is zero vs. 30 percent for our district.”

Stegman said, “Very much so. I look forward to continue bringing enhancements to programs of the district, increased training for staff and equipment and quality services for the residents of the district. I will continue to be fiscally responsible and mindful of economic conditions of the community.”

Do you believe the Board of Directors has faithfully adhered to the letter of the Missouri Open Meetings and Records Law, also called the Sunshine Law? What would you do as a board member to ensure the board’s compliance with this law?

Polizzi said, “I do not know if the current board has complied because there are only certain items that can be discussed in closed session. I pledge to you that if elected, the Sunshine Law will be adhered to and if the current board is abusing this law, they will be exposed for doing it.”

Stegman said, “Yes, that was one of my goals for the board. I had been at meetings prior to being elected that consisted of mostly closed session. I will make sure that we only go into closed session when absolutely necessary. I think we should be open about the business of the district. I welcome the press and residents to the meetings. Every year, I go to the ethics workshop put on by the Missouri attorney general and a large part of the workshop speaks to the Sunshine Law and how to make sure you are following it. I would rather have something in open session than to err by having it in closed session.”

Do you agree with the Board of Directors’ decision to change the district’s pension plan from a defined-benefit plan to a defined-contribution plan?

Polizzi said, “From the beginning of this issue, I have always thought that I would have tried to change the pension to allow the current employees at the time to keep the pension that they and the district agreed to and implement the defined contribution to the newly hired employees.

“This is common practice and I believe may have saved the taxpayers legal fees and helped retain employees and kept so many newer employees from leaving to go to other districts in St. Louis County, all at the expense of the taxpayers of the Mehlville Fire Protection District.”

Stegman said, “Yes. This was a campaign pledge to the residents of the district to make sure we were not burdening residents with an unfunded plan that would require huge tax increases. With a defined-benefit plan, the pension plan was completely funded by tax dollars; the employees did not contribute to it. The plan was based on an unrealistic assumption of a 7.5-percent return per year on investments.

“As most institutions that have this type of plan are finding out, they are going to be burdened by trying to fund payouts of up to $700,000 or more per retiree similar to what the district had been paying. By changing to a defined contribution, we were able to gain control of costs and payouts of the plan. Employees now also contribute to the plan and are now able to bring the plan with them no matter where they work. This type of plan is more individualized and more secure for the employee.”