Legislature(2007 - 2008)BELTZ 211
02/14/2008 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE
Audio | Topic |
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Start | |
SB183 | |
SB187 | |
SB230 | |
HB233 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ | HB 233 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | TELECONFERENCED | ||
+= | SB 230 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+= | SB 187 | TELECONFERENCED | |
= | SB 183 | ||
SB 183-REPEAL DEFINED CONTRIB RETIREMENT PLANS 1:31:13 PM CHAIR ELLIS announced SB 183 to be up for consideration. SENATOR ELTON, sponsor of SB 183, reminded the committee that this bill hires new employees into Tier III PERS and Tier II TRS. It gives them a chance to earn a guaranteed benefit pension and retiree health coverage at no cost to the system. He said they had talked in the past about how the defined benefit is expensive and when you aggregate Tiers I, II and III on the PERS side, it is more expensive, but you have to remember that prior to the passage of the defined contribution all new employees were going into Tier III. Now data from the state's actuaries shows that the Tier III is slightly more expensive on the PERS side and slightly less expensive on the TRS side so it's kind of a wash for the state, but it does give new employees a better benefit. He stated that most of the state's public employees don't have a safety net, the defined benefit, of social security under them. Also our retiree economy in this state is almost $1.5 billion/year. One of the reasons it is so strong is because the defined benefit plan has a cost of living adjustment (COLA) that encourages people to stay here and spend the money here. The defined contribution plan does not have that COLA. He thought that lack would actually encourage some retirees to move south especially since one of the consequences of the defined contribution system is that some families could run through their health benefit account in as little as 18 months. SENATOR ELTON ended by saying there are some things this bill doesn't do. In the review of the defined contribution plan some things made sense and those things won't change. Among them are the requirement for a second actuary to check the work of the first actuary, mandatory experience studies, elected officials are still out of the system, the ARM board having the important financial experience of disinterested members, the 2010 buy back deadline and no employer under this bill paying less than the normal cost. CHAIR ELLIS reminded the committee that the bill has a long way to go. He personally thought the discussion about recruitment and retention of employees and teachers was worth having because the state learns more as it goes along and hears not just the anecdotal experiences, but the statistics as well. 1:36:57 PM SENATOR DAVIS moved to pass SB 183, version M, from committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes. SENATOR BUNDE objected. He said he understood both sides of the issue, but he opined that in the pipeline era the state couldn't match salaries so it provided "pretty lucrative benefits" and we're having to pay for those now. A roll call vote was taken. Senators Hoffman, Davis, and Ellis voted yea; Senator Bunde voted nay; so SB 183 passed from committee.
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