The city has again prevailed in a legal case involving local pension changes adopted in 2013.

In an opinion issued Monday, the Rhode Island Supreme Court upheld Superior Court Judge Sarah Taft-Carter’s 2016 ruling in favor of the city in the case Cranston Police Retirees Action Committee v. The City of Cranston.

Taft-Carter had found that the pension changes – which were adopted through a pair of ordinances and included a 10-year freeze on cost-of-living adjustments, or COLAs, for fire and police retirees in the city’s pension system – were undertaken or a “significant and legitimate public purpose.”

Mayor Allan Fung has said the changes, which received the support of the city’s police and fire unions through a settlement agreement, will save millions of dollars.

The retirees who opted out of the agreement and formed the action committee argued that the city had under-funded its pension liabilities and that the COLA freeze constituted a breach of contract.

Fung issued the following statement Monday afternoon:

“This is a historic day for Cranston, as by the Supreme Court upholding these changes, we are ensuring the long-term solvency of our locally administered police and fire pension plan. I cannot thank enough the union members and retirees who came to the table, saw the math in front of us, and worked with us to right the ship so that the funds will be there for them in the future. As Mayor, I have ensured that we fully funded our ARC and 100% of our OPEB obligations so that we are doing right by our workers. Today’s ruling ensures that the Cranston taxpayers continue to receive the over six million dollars in annual savings from these reforms.”

The Supreme Court’s full opinion can be found here, and complete coverage will appear in this week’s edition of the Cranston Herald.