Committee advances bill letting certain retired peace officers return to state work without increasing pension benefits

The Appropriations & Finance committee voted to advance House Bill 336, which would allow retired public employees who held peace-officer status to return to state employment and exercise peace-officer powers under specified conditions without accruing additional retirement benefits.

Belinda Garland, executive director of the New Mexico Livestock Board, said her agency had tried to hire a retired peace officer but found it could not under current law and asked the Legislature to expand eligibility to include smaller state agencies. "We would like to ask you to include not only ourselves, but other small agencies around the state," Garland told the committee.

Greg Trio, executive director of the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA), testified the PERA board was neutral on the bill and that the draft contains features meant to protect the pension fund. Committee members asked whether a returning retired member would collect both a pension and a salary and whether contributions would be required. Trio and other presenters clarified that returning retirees would receive their pension and a salary while employed, would make nonrefundable contributions during the reemployment period and would not accrue additional service credit or increase their pension benefit during that reemployment.

The committee moved the bill to a due pass on a voice/consent motion. Ranking member Chatfield moved for do-pass, seconded by Representative Brown and Representative Norbert Sanchez; the motion was not opposed in the transcript excerpt.