FROM: Barbara Hannah, Chief Counsel
SUBJECT: Disability Retirement Application of Robert R. Yglesias
RECOMMENDATION:
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Refer the matter back with instructions to the hearing officer for further proceedings regarding the application for Service-Connected Disability Retirement of Robert R. Yglesias - San Bernardino County - Sheriff.
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BACKGROUND:
This matter is in closed session to consider whether to refer the matter back with instructions on the basis that the hearing officer applied the incorrect legal standards in determining the Applicant's date of application. The hearing officer concluded that the Applicant "made [the] application" in December 2021, when he signed the disability retirement application, rather than on April 8, 2022, the date SBCERA deemed the application received. The proposed decision does not cite legal authority supporting the collusion that the signing date controls. Moreover, although SBCERA's counsel objected and cited multiple authorities supporting the position that the operative date of application is the date the application is filed or received, the hearing officer rejected that argument.
The hearing officer also determined that Applicant date of discontinuance of service was February 16, 2018, a finding that SBCERA's counsel contends is not supported by the records.
If the hearing officer's recommendation is approved as written, the earlier application date could result in an increased retroactive benefit period. Additionally, adoption of an unsupported legal standard regarding the filing date may create a precedent affecting future disability retirement determinations and result in inconsistent application of statutory requirements. For these reasons, staff recommends that the Board refer the matter back with specific instruction identifying and applying the correct legal standard f...
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