Opinion
Argued November 2, 1977
January 24, 1978.
Retirement — Court stenographers — Compensation, — Contribution to retirement fund — Transcript fees — Second Class County Code, Act 1953, July 28, P.L. 723.
1. In computing contributions to the county retirement fund under the Second Class County Code, Act 1953, July 28, P.L. 723, the compensation of court stenographers includes not only salary but transcript and folio fees received. [344]
Argued November 2, 1977, before President Judge BOWMAN and Judges CRUMLISH, JR., WILKINSON, JR., ROGERS and BLATT.
Appeals, Nos. 9, 10 and 11 C.D. 1977, from the Order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County in cases of William F. Vodde v. Retirement Board of Allegheny County, No. 3314 July Term, 1974; Mario M. Dentino v. Retirement Board of Allegheny County, No. 3695 July Term, 1974; and Richard E. Powers, Ralph E. Shuster, Robert E. Kennelly, John O. Ingles, Theodore J. Babin, Hymen Morwitz and Jack Zinaman v. Retirement Board of Allegheny County, No. 1862 January Term, 1975.
Complaints in mandamus in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County to compel inclusion of additional fees received in computing retirement fund contributions. Relief granted. WEKSELMAN, J. Defendant appealed to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. Held: Affirmed.
Anthony J. Martin, with him Martin and Finnegan, for appellant.
David R. Cashman, with him Franklyn E. Conflenti, and Cauley, Birsic Conflenti, for appellees.
The Retirement Board of Allegheny County (Board) has appealed from an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County which held that Court Stenographers' transcript fees were to be included as "compensation" for retirement benefits determination.
The Appellees, William F. Vodde, Mario M. Dentino, Richard E. Powers, Ralph E. Shuster, Robert E. Kennelly, John O. Ingles, Theodore J. Babin, Hymen Morwitz and Jack Zinaman instituted and consolidated actions in mandamus to compel the Board to include county transcript and folio fees in computing their contributions to the county retirement fund.
The Employes' Retirement System Act provides that:
The retirement allowance paid under the provisions of this article shall equal fifty per centum of the amount which would constitute the average monthly compensation as received by the county employe. . . .
Act of July 28, 1953, P.L. 723, as amended, 16 P. S. § 4712(a).
Appellees argue and the lower court hold that "average monthly compensation" includes both court stenographer's salary and transcript folio fees as decided by the Supreme Court in Rockwell v. York County Retirement Board, 405 Pa. 406, 175 A.2d 831 (1961). This Court recently followed Rockwell, supra, and held that the term "compensation" does include fees as well as court stenographer's salary and we, therefore, affirm the decision of the lower court. See Joseph H. Newhouse v. Board of Pensions and Retirement of the City of Philadelphia, 33 Pa. Commw. 81, ___ A.2d ___ (1977).
ORDER
AND NOW, this 24th day of January, 1978, the order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County in the above-captioned matter is affirmed.