(ST. PAUL, Minn.) – Today, the Minnesota Senate passed a bipartisan pension reform bill that makes meaningful improvements to retirement benefits for the people who keep our state running and our communities safe. The reforms will improve retirement benefits for Minnesota’s teachers, firefighters, paramedics, State Patrol officers, and public employees across the state.
“Public employees like our teachers, paramedics, and state troopers don’t do these jobs for the money, they do it because they care about their community,” said Senator Hauschild. “That’s why these reforms are so important. While we can’t compete with the private sector, we can make sure that our public employees have retirement benefits that deserve for their years of service for our state.”
Thanks to the new “career rule” established in the bill, public school teachers will be eligible to retire sooner with lower early retirement penalties at age 60 if they have 30 years of service. These proposals are a variation of ones included in legislation co-authored by Senator Hauschild in SF 2000.
Other measures included in the bill:
- Cost-of-Living-Adjustments (COLAs):
- Retired public safety employees are provided improved COLAs to ensure their pension benefits aren’t eroded by inflation, including PERA Police and Fire, which will receive a one-time, compounded three percent COLA.
- Additional funding will allow police officers and firefighters in this plan to receive a COLA one year sooner than under current law.
- State Patrol Troopers will receive a permanent 1.25 percent annual COLA.
- Other retirees will benefit from strengthened COLAs that help maintain purchasing power over time.
- Various pension reforms intended to strengthen our public employee pensions and ensure a stable retirement is available for generations to come.
The bill passed in a bipartisan vote of 55-12 and now awaits action in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
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Learn more about Sen. Hauschild.
