Session Laws

Whereas, The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to immediately provide for a fair and orderly manner in which the number of employees of the commonwealth can be reduced in order that state agencies will be able to keep expenditures within the amounts appropriated, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter thirty-two of the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, the state board of retirement, established under the provisions of section eighteen of chapter ten of the General Laws, shall establish and implement a retirement incentive for public employees, hereinafter referred to as the retirement incentive program, in accordance with the provisions of this act; provided, that, in order to be deemed eligible by said board for any of the benefit options under the retirement incentive program, an employee (i) shall be an employee of the commonwealth on the effective date of this act or shall have been a member in active service of the state retirement system on January first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two; (ii) shall be classified in Group 1 or Group 2 of said retirement system in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (g) of subdivision (2) of section three of said chapter thirty-two; (iii) shall be eligible to receive a superannuation retirement allowance in accordance with the provisions of subdivision (1) of section five of said chapter thirty-two or subdivision (1) of section ten of said chapter thirty-two upon the date of retirement requested in his written application for retirement with said board; (iv) shall have filed such written application with said board in accordance with section two of this act.

The total number of Group 1 employees who can receive the benefit of such early retirement program shall be limited to five thousand six hundred; the total number of Group 2 employees who can receive such benefit shall be limited to one thousand four hundred provided, however, that the total number of employees in either Group 1 or Group 2 paid through federal grant, trust fund, bond account, or capital fund account who can receive such benefit shall be limited to six hundred. The state board of retirement shall stamp the date and time of receipt on each application filed for retirement under this act and process early retirement approvals in order of receipt of such application, from the earliest date to the latest date; provided, however, that said application may be delivered in person or by mail. No employee shall be eligible for more than one of the incentives offered herein; and no employee may become eligible for one incentive by virtue of the application of a different incentive.

Words used in this act shall have the same meaning as in chapter thirty-two of the General Laws, unless otherwise expressly provided or unless the context clearly requires otherwise. Any employee of the commonwealth who retires and receives an additional benefit in accordance with the provisions of this act shall be deemed to be retired for superannuation under the provisions of said chapter thirty-two and shall be subject to any and all provisions of said chapter.

Employees of the system of public institutions of higher education, as defined by the provisions of section five of chapter fifteen A of the General Laws, employees of the judiciary, and elected officials shall not be allowed to participate in the retirement incentive program established by this act.

SECTION 2. Notwithstanding so much of the provisions of section five of said chapter thirty-two of the General Laws that require a retirement date within four months of the filing of an application for superannuation retirement, in order to receive the retirement benefit provided by this act, an eligible employee, except as otherwise provided in this section, shall file his application for retirement under the provisions of this act with the state retirement board after May first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two and no later than June fifteenth, nineteen hundred and ninety-two; provided, however, that the retirement date requested shall be July first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two.

In an effort to encourage the continuity of direct care in health care institutions that are scheduled to be closed and to reward workers who choose to remain in the service of any such institution or an eligible employee in a position that is scheduled to be privatized and has been listed by the secretary of administration in a report filed in accordance with section ten of this act, shall file his application for retirement within the period hereinabove required, but the retirement date requested shall be either July first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two or the closing date of such institution or the effective date of the privatization of such position and in no event later than June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three.

A retired employee of the commonwealth whose former position shall be listed by said secretary in a report filed in accordance with section ten of this act and who retired on or after January first, nineteen hundred and ninety-one, and prior to the effective date of this act upon the closing of such institution or the privatization of such position may file an application to retire for superannuation and be eligible for the additional retirement benefits provided under the provisions of section three of this act; provided, however, that such application shall be filed with the state retirement board after the effective date of this act and no later than June first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two; provided further, that upon the acceptance and approval of such application by the state board of retirement in accordance with the provisions of this section, the retirement allowance of such employee shall be recalculated as of the date on which such employee retired to reflect such additional benefit and such employee shall thereupon receive such increased allowance together with an amount equal to the difference between the allowance that the employee actually received from the date of retirement to the date of recalculation and the amount of the allowance that the employee would have received had such recalculated allowance been paid to such employee from the date of his retirement.

The retirement date requested by an employee under the provisions of this act, except as otherwise expressly provided, shall be approved by the employee's appointing authority, if any; provided, however, that neither the employee's application nor any other provision in such application shall require such approval.

SECTION 3. An employee who is eligible for the retirement incentive program in accordance with the provisions of section one may request in his application for retirement that the state retirement board credit him with an additional retirement benefit in accordance with the provisions of this section; provided, however, that each such employee shall request and receive a combination of years of creditable service and years of age, the sum of which shall not be greater than five years, for the purposes of determining his superannuation retirement allowance pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivision (2) of section five of chapter thirty-two of the General Laws.

Notwithstanding such credit, the total normal yearly amount of the retirement allowance, as determined in accordance with the provisions of said section five of said chapter thirty-two, of any employee who retires and receives the retirement benefit provided by this act shall not exceed four-fifths of the average annual rate of his regular compensation as determined in accordance with said section five of said chapter thirty-two.

SECTION 4. For any married employee who retires and receives an additional benefit under the provisions of this act, an election of a retirement option under the provisions of section twelve of said chapter thirty-two shall not be valid unless (i) it is accompanied by the signature of the member's spouse indicating the member's spouse's knowledge and understanding of the retirement option selected, or (ii) a certification by the state board of retirement that such spouse has received notice of such election as hereinafter provided. If any member who is married files an election which is not so signed by his spouse, the state board of retirement shall within fifteen days notify the member's spouse by registered mail of the option election, and the election shall not take effect until thirty days following the date on which such notification is sent, and such election may be changed by the member at any time within thirty days, or at any other time permitted under said chapter thirty-two. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to affect the effective date of any retirement allowance, but in the event of any election having been filed which is not so accompanied, the payment of any allowance so elected shall not be commenced earlier than thirty days after the sending by the state board of retirement of the notice required hereunder.

SECTION 5. The state board of retirement shall provide retirement counseling to employees who choose to consider retiring or who choose to retire under the retirement incentive program established by this act. Such counseling shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (i) a full explanation of the retirement benefits provided by this act; (ii) a comparison of the expected lifetime retirement benefits payable to such employee under the retirement incentive program and under the existing provisions of chapter thirty-two of the General Laws; (iii) the election of a retirement option under the provisions of section twelve of said chapter thirty-two; (iv) the restrictions on employment after retirement; (v) the provision of health care benefits under the provisions of chapter thirty-two A of the General Laws; (vi) the provisions of law relative to the payment of cost of living adjustments to the retirement allowance, in years in which there is such an adjustment; and (vii) the effect of federal and state taxation on retirement income. Each such employee shall sign a statement that he has received such counseling or that he does not want to receive such counseling prior to the approval by the state board of retirement of such employee's application for superannuation benefits and the additional benefit provided by this act.

SECTION 6. No executive branch position vacated as a result of an applicant's participation in the retirement incentive program may be refilled unless the secretary of administration determines that the position is vital to the public health, public safety, or other critical operations of the commonwealth; provided, however, that the total number of positions which may be refilled under the provisions of this section shall not exceed fifteen percent of the total number of positions vacated under the provisions of the retirement incentive program; and, provided further any position funded by a federal grant, trust fund or bond account may be refilled in excess of the fifteen percent of the total number of positions so vacated by transferring a person from a state funded position and not refilling the position of any person so transferred. The provisions of this section shall not apply to positions under the control of the general court.

SECTION 7. The secretary of administration and finance shall list each position made vacant by the retirement of an employee receiving an additional benefit in accordance with the provisions of this act and shall list each position made vacant by the transfer of a person from a state funded position to a federal grant, trust fund or bond account funded position in excess of the fifteen percent rehiring limitation pursuant to section six of this act and shall file such list with the house and senate committees on ways and means and the comptroller of the commonwealth within three weeks of the effective date of this act and may supplement such list as may be deemed necessary through May thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three; provided, that, for each such position, such list shall include the line item of appropriation from section two, two A or two B of chapter 138 of the acts of nineteen hundred and ninety-one in which such position is funded, the name of the state agency, as defined by the provisions of section one of chapter six A of the General Laws, which is funded by such line item, the classification title of such position, the salary range for such title, and the salary payable to the person who so retired from such position.

SECTION 8. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, no person shall be hired by a state agency, as defined by the provisions of section one of chapter six A of the General Laws, on a permanent or temporary basis to fill any position made vacant by the retirement of an employee receiving an additional benefit in accordance with the provisions of this act or made vacant by transferring a person to fill a vacated federal grant, trust fund or bond account funded position pursuant to section six of this act and the comptroller shall not authorize the payment of any regular compensation, including paid leave, vacations, salary in lieu of vacation, payments in lieu of maintenance, holiday pay, overtime pay and salary differentials from any account funded by an appropriation or federal grant, trust fund or bond account to any such person on or after January first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two until June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three; provided, however that if the secretary of administration and finance determines that a position is critical and essential to the operations of or services provided by the commonwealth and provided further, that the number of such positions shall not exceed fifteen percent of the total number of positions vacated under the provisions of the retirement incentive program pursuant to section six of this act he may include such position in a schedule which shall include: (i) the classification title of each such position, (ii) the number of such positions listed in such schedule with such title, (iii) the salary range payable to each such position and, (iv) the approximate date during said fiscal period of January first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two until June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three that said secretary shall have determined that such position shall be filled; and provided, further, that said secretary shall prepare one or more supplementary schedules in the same form if he shall determine that any such supplementary schedule shall be necessary. Such schedule shall be filed with the house and senate committees on ways and means and said secretary may, subject to the approval of said schedule by the house committee on ways and means, fill any such positions prior to June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three.

The secretary of administration and finance shall not create any position title or similar position title within the same item of appropriation as those contained in the list filed pursuant to sections six and seven of this act, before June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-three.

The Comptroller of the commonwealth shall authorize the payment of any regular compensation, including paid leave, vacations, salary in lieu of vacation, payments in lieu of maintenance, holiday pay, overtime pay and salary differentials for position titles on file pursuant to sections six and seven of this act only pursuant to said schedule approved by the house committee on ways and means.

SECTION 9. The commissioner of the public employee retirement administration shall analyze, study, and valuate the costs and actuarial liabilities attributable to the additional benefits payable in accordance with the provisions of section three of the retirement incentive program established by this act; provided that said commissioner shall file the report with the joint committee on public service and the house and senate committees on ways and means on or before December thirty-first, nineteen hundred and ninety-two.

SECTION 9A. The secretary of administration shall prepare a funding schedule which shall reflect the costs and actuarial liabilities attributable to the additional benefits payable under the retirement incentive program in accordance with the provisions of section three of this act and said schedule shall be designed to reduce the commonwealth's additional pension liability attributable to such costs and liabilities to zero on or before June thirtieth, two thousand and eight; provided, that in preparing such schedule, the secretary shall consider the analysis of the commissioner of public employee retirement administration filed in accordance with the provisions of section nine of this act; and provided further, that said secretary shall annually update such schedule until said June thirtieth, two thousand and eight. Said secretary shall file such funding schedule with the joint committee on public service and the house and senate committees on ways and means on or before March first, nineteen hundred and ninety-three, and shall file updates thereto annually on or before March first of each year; provided that, if within forty-five days of each such filing, none of the committees shall have taken action to disapprove such schedule or update thereto, such schedule or update shall be deemed to be approved; provided further, that if such schedule is not so approved, said secretary shall review any comments made by such committees and prepare and submit for approval in like manner another schedule. In each of the fiscal years until the actuarial liability determined under this and the preceding section of this act shall be reduced to zero, it shall be deemed an obligation of the commonwealth to fund such liability and there shall be appropriated to the pension reserve investment trust fund in each such fiscal year the amount required by the funding schedule and the updates thereto approved under the provisions of this section.

SECTION 10. The secretary of administration shall prepare a list of each position that has been or shall be abolished and vacated on or after January first, nineteen hundred and ninety-one, due to the scheduled closing of any institution within any state agency, as defined by the provisions of section one of chapter six A of the General Laws, or due to plans for the contracting for, or the privatization of, services performed by an employee of the commonwealth in such position; provided, however, that such report shall include the number of positions so vacated or abolished, the title of each such position, the agency within which such positions are funded, and the date upon which such position has been scheduled to be so vacated or abolished; provided, further, that such report shall be filed with the joint committee on public service and the house and senate committees on ways and means on or before April twenty-second, nineteen hundred and ninety-two; and provided, further, that said secretary shall prepare one or more supplementary lists in the same form and submit such supplementary lists in the same form and submit such supplementary lists in the same manner, if he shall determine that such supplementary list or lists shall be necessary.

SECTION 11. Section twenty-two A of chapter four hundred and ninety-nine of the acts of nineteen hundred and ninety-one is hereby repealed.

SECTION 12. The secretary of Administration and Finance shall prepare, after consultation with appropriate bargaining units, secretariats, and department heads, a plan providing for early retirement for employees of the judiciary and public higher education. Said secretary shall report to the general court the results of said plan, together with drafts of legislation necessary to carry out said plan by filing the same with the Clerk of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives within sixty days after the passage of this act.