Today I learned NHFD Union President and Wallingford Resident Frank Ricci entered into a secret agreement with the Harp Administration in 2019. Six months ago I referenced the secret MOU when I testified before the Board of Alders regarding the latest NHFD Fire contract. I urged the Board of Alders to demand a copy of the MOU and I filed FOIA requests with the Harp administration to obtain a copy. The BOA never followed through and the Harp administration never provided the documents. I still don’t have a copy of the MOU, but it is referenced in the image at the end of this post.
I am told the secret MOU will provide Ricci with a custom pension that will provide an additional $600,000 ($20,000/Yr x 30 Yrs) to his personal pension payout.
I’m told this special MOU was signed at a time when the City was negotiating a new contract with the NHFD and Mayor Harp was desperate for political support from the City’s Labor Unions. I believe the taxpayers deserve an independent investigation into this agreement.
This is one more example of how people pretend to have the best interest of New Haven at heart and then betray the trust of our residents and abuse our hardworking taxpayers. Make no mistake about it - Mr. Ricci is no friend of New Haven.
My sources tell me that the MOU still needs to be approved by the pension board and it MAY, repeat MAY, require approval by Mayor Elicker. I trust Mayor Elicker will make the right decision. Please join me in asking the BOA and Mayor Elicker to block this special agreement.
Dennis Serfilippi
Join 700 of your fellow New Haven residents by clicking here to sign up for our newsletter.
