Annual Leave Redemption Limits Under New MOA Provisions

The County Board of Supervisors approved new Memorandums of Agreement (MOA) on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, affecting SEIU, IUOE, VCPPOA-Probation, VCSCOA, and County Management employees. The changes include increases to the number of vacation and annual leave hours redeemable for cash in future calendar years beginning in 2027. Some MOAs also increase the number of leave hours employees may accrue.

Annual leave redemption (i.e. vacation buydown) earnings are includable in compensation earnable for Legacy members. The Earnings included in a member’s Final Average Compensation (FAC) are limited to that which is both “earned and payable” in each 12 months of the member’s FAC measurement period (Government Code Section 31461(b)(2)). “Earned” refers to the number of leave hours an employee is able to accrue. “Payable” refers to the maximum cashout limit permitted by each member’s MOA. VCERA can include the lesser of these two values in the FAC.

When an MOA increases the number of leave hours an employee may cash out per year, it may increase the hours VCERA can include in the FAC. However, the higher limit only applies to years in the FAC measurement period that end after the new limit takes effect. This ensures that only hours that were actually payable during each specific year are included in FAC earnings. VCERA determines the maximum that may be included based on the MOA and the applicable calendar year limits and then includes the hours the member actually redeemed during the measurement period, up to that limit. The resulting limit applies to the entire measurement period, regardless of the calendar year in which the redemptions occurred.

Example 1 (36-month measurement period):

If your three-year (36-month) measurement period ends within 2027 and the cashout limit for 2027 increases from 100 hours to 200 hours, the FAC can include up to 400 hours of leave redemption. VCERA calculates the maximum includable annual leave redemption hours by applying 100 hours for 2025, another 100 hours for 2026, and 200 hours for 2027, for a total of 400 includable hours or the leave hours the member is eligible to accrue during those years, whichever is less. VCERA then includes only the hours you actually redeemed during the measurement period, up to that calculated limit, which applies to the entire period regardless of the year in which redemptions occurred.

Example 2 (12-month measurement period):

If you have a one-year (12-month) measurement period ending within 2027 and the cashout limit for 2027 increases from 100 hours to 200 hours, the higher cashout limit applies because the period ends after the new limit takes effect. VCERA calculates the maximum includable leave redemption for that period using the 200-hour limit or the leave hours the member is eligible to accrue during the year, whichever is less. VCERA then includes only the hours you actually redeemed during the measurement period, up to that calculated limit, which applies to the entire measurement period regardless of the year in which the redemptions occurred.

For more information about the specific provisions of your union’s current Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), please visit and search for the MOA for your bargaining unit: https://hr.venturacounty.gov/policies-memorandum.