Executive Director's Message

The Executive Board

It has been my privilege and honor to be the Executive Director of the LVPPA for five years now. During those five years, the Executive Board has worked very hard on behalf of the membership, I believe. Over the past few weeks, I have heard a rumor that some of the membership believes this is a “cake” position. I don’t believe that is true, so I am writing this article to tell you what the day-to-day operations of the PPA look like and what each member of my executive team does individually.

Let’s start with the things we all do every day. Most of you know that we represent our members in IAB interviews. What you may not know is that as of press time, we had covered approximately 1,050 IAB interviews. As we are open five days a week, that works out to about four IAB interviews per day. And while most of those interviews are conducted Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., some interviews are done at the bureau level, which means the interviews can be done on the weekend at any time of day or night. But you don’t have to worry, because if you want a PPA representative to be there we WILL be there, regardless of the day or hour.

Now let’s talk about the other interviews we do: We also provide representation for diversity interviews, Critical Incident Review Team (CIRT) interviews, Accident Review Board (ARB) hearing meetings, Use of Force Board hearings and officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths. We help you out in diversity complaint investigations. These are difficult because most times they involve one employee against another employee. If both parties are members of the PPA, we will provide a separate representative for each member. The two representatives will not discuss the case so that both parties get fair and impartial representation. We also help you out with CIRT interviews, which are typically conducted some 48 hours after an event that warrants a CIRT investigation. This obviously means that if you are involved in an event on a Thursday or Friday, the CIRT interview will likely be conducted over the course of the weekend and a PPA representative will be there with you. Additionally, we send a representative to the ARB so that each member who appears before the Board can rest assured that their best interests are being protected. We accompany all members to the Use of Force Boards, and I can assure you that it is critical that we are there for you because often we are able to use our years of experience and other positions we have held on the Department to help you best articulate and explain whatever situation you have been involved in.

Now for the 800-pound gorilla: OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTINGS AND IN-CUSTODY DEATHS. We respond to all officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths, no matter the time of day or location. Not only does an Executive Board member respond, but one of the PPA attorneys comes out as well. For officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths, the PPA goes above and beyond the call of duty by representing members and nonmembers at the time of a critical incident. Leaving a nonmember standing there by him or herself at this very difficult time simply would not be the right thing to do. Be aware, however, that the PPA will not assist a nonmember with all the other interviews that take place after a shooting or an in-custody death. As for the members, you will have the help of one of the PPA representatives at your CIRT interview and the Use of Force Board hearing, and one of our attorneys will be at your inquest (should they start having them again). And while we are on the subject, let’s talk just a little more about the Use of Force Board hearings in reference to officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths. I am sure you all still remember the five-part article written in the Review-Journal this past November. Several of the citizens who have been on the Use of Force Board, as well as past members of our own Department, were quoted as saying the Board was a joke and that the hard questions were not asked. While I disagree with that assessment, I would not be surprised if in response to these criticisms the Department makes changes to the Use of Force Board. And if they do, I am sure that from our members’ perspectives they won’t be for the better.

The next thing I want to address is the collective bargaining agreement. You may not be aware, but we work on the contract every day. Negotiating and enforcing the contract are probably the most important things we do for the membership. And even though they do not pay dues, nonmembers receive the same benefits from the contract as do all of you dedicated, dues-paying members of this Association. You should know that we monitor the local economy and its many factors. We stay informed on the consolidated tax, sales tax and property tax. We work with an out-of-state CPA firm and watch the financial health of the City, the County and Metro itself. By tracking this information, we have the needed facts to make good decisions about upcoming negotiations. Those may be things you all know we do on a daily basis.

Now, let’s talk about the things many of you may not know we are involved in.

• If the Department wants to make changes to a policy, they first send out a draft of the new policy. The PPA receives a copy of this draft and we circulate it around so that everyone up here can review the draft and send in their recommended changes. I won’t tell you that all our recommendations are put in place, but many are; the policy manual would look very different if not for our input.

• Members of the Executive Board sit on many committees throughout the Department. When you want to get money out of your Hartford account, you must fill out the paperwork which is sent out to the Hartford committee. The PPA has three seats on that committee.

• We also have a seat on the uniform committee. Once again, I won’t tell you that we get all the changes we want put in place in the uniform policy, but we have been successful on many occasions.

• We also have a seat on the hardship overtime committee.

• The PPA has one seat on the Post-Retirement Trust.

• The PPA has two seats on the Health & Welfare Trust. The seats on these trusts are very important to all of us. They allow us to help protect your benefits and keep your out-of-pocket P# 7323 expenses down.

• Historically, the PPA has had a seat on the Nevada Public Employees Retirement System board. The Governor appoints people to this board, so we may not always have this seat, but currently we do.

• The Executive Board also runs the PPA Charities. It is our job to make sure the Charities will be able to meet its obligations. This includes helping pay for college for the children or spouses of our member officers who were killed in the line of duty. The PPA Charities also pays for holiday and birthday presents for the children of our fallen heroes. How can we do this? We have many officers who donate money from their biweekly paychecks. We also have businesses that donate money to the PPA Charities. Lastly, we attend events around the Valley selling PPA logo wear, challenge coins and other items. Most of the events take place on the weekends, so the Executive Board members who generally attend are there on their days off.

• We meet with citizens’ groups all over the Valley in an effort to educate them about what our officers do and help them understand how difficult your job is.

• We meet with local, State and national politicians on a regular basis. Why? Metro receives funding from both the City and the County. When we negotiate a contract, it must be approved by both the City and the County, which means the City Council members and the County commissioners are the ones who ultimately vote on these agreements. The local politicians control the purse strings, so they are important to all of us. State politicians make the laws we have to enforce. They also control your retirement benefits, which I am sure is important to all of you. National politicians put monies in the national budget for grants that allow Metro to pay overtime, retain or hire officers and purchase equipment. This is a very simple look at a very complicated process.

• Every member of my executive team is expected to answer phone calls and e-mails within 24 hours of receiving them, including on their days off.

• You would be surprised how many members just walk into the office looking for assistance. They may need something as simple as theme park tickets, or they may have a complicated insurance matter. Most of the time they are there with a problem at either the squad or bureau level. Many times we are able to talk to them and make a phone call on their behalf that settles an issue before it becomes a big problem.

• The last thing I want to tell you about is how involved the PPA has become on the national level. Because you are PPA members, you are all members of the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO). NAPO lobbies on Capitol Hill on behalf of all law enforcement. Amongst many other things, NAPO was very instrumental in getting H.R. 218 passed, which, as you know, allows officers to carry concealed weapons in all states. NAPO has paved the way for the PPA to have face-to-face conversations with President Obama, Vice President Biden, Attorney General Holder and other members of the President’s cabinet. We are able to get information from unions around the country that helps us address concerns here at home. We know we have a fight coming over our pensions. This fight has already taken place in many states. We will be able to use tactics that have worked in other jurisdictions to address these same issues in Nevada. There is no need to spend a lot of money reinventing the wheel when you can get help from others who have already been there.

The above is only a sample of the things that are being done on your behalf on a regular basis; I am sure I have left out many things.

Now, I am going to give you a very brief overview of what each member of the Executive Board is responsible for in addition to the day-to-day activities already noted above. I hope this helps you know whom to contact should you have any questions.

Mark Chaparian is one of two Assistant Executive Directors. Mark is in charge of the PPA in my absence. Mark also sits on the Health & Welfare Trust and does a great job of acting as your voice when fighting against rate increases or benefit reductions.

Tom Reid is the other Assistant Executive Director. He is in charge of the PPA whenever Mark and I are not available. Tom also sits on the Health & Welfare Trust, where he has acted as the Chairman of the Board. Tom has been on the Trust longer than any other labor representative. In fact, Tom has dedicated much of his own time to becoming a Master Trustee.

Michelle Jotz is our Director of Governmental Affairs. This means that Michelle is the person who spends long nights at political functions eating rubber chicken. She also moves to Carson City every other year during the legislative session. She spends countless hours in political action committee meetings listening to politicians tell you what they think you want to hear. Michelle also sits on the Hartford committee.

Ken Lochner is our Treasurer. Ken has the difficult job of keeping the money straight and the bills paid. In his position, he also administers all the PPA insurance policies and the Catastrophic Leave Bank. Ken also sits on the Post-Retirement Trust, which helps pay for your health insurance after you retire.
Darryl Clodt is the Sergeant-At-Arms. It is his job to maintain order at all PPA meetings and functions. His expertise as a firearms and defense tactics instructor has been very helpful to the membership at Use of Force Boards. He also sits on the Hardship Overtime Board.

Paul Bigham is the Secretary. Paul’s job is to keep all the minutes of the meetings and documents of the PPA in order. Beyond that, Paul takes care of the ARB, and his prior experience in traffic makes him the perfect fit for that job. Paul also spent time as a homicide detective, which can be a big help at officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths.

Kirk Hooten is the Director of Communications. Kirk has the difficult task of helping the PPA communicate with our members. We have heard from the membership that you want better communication from us. I have asked Kirk to help solve this problem.

Now me, I am the Executive Director. As the Executive Director of the PPA, it is my job to oversee the entire PPA every day, as well as look forward to the long term. I currently sit on the PERS board. I am also an officer on the elected board of NAPO, where I hold the position of Sergeant-at-Arms.

What I want all of you to know is that it has been a privilege for me to work with the members of my executive team. During my 28-year career here at Metro, I have had the good fortune of working with many exceptional people, but I have to tell you that the folks here at the PPA are the finest group of people I have had the honor of working with. These men and women do their jobs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, knowing they will not receive overtime or callout pay. They do it because they believe in the mission, which is to protect your rights and benefits. However, no one is perfect, and I understand that we all have shortcomings. If you believe that a member of my executive team has failed you in some way, please contact me so I can address the issue. I cannot address issues I am not aware of. The PPA is ultimately my responsibility, and if we have in some way let you down I need to be aware of it so that I can fix any problems that exist. I hope this gives you a little insight into the Executive Board. As always, be safe and fight the good fight.