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Senate Bill 56 would add modest employer contributions to shore up four public pension systems, PERA supports bill
Summary
Senate Bill 56 would extend and increase supplemental employer contribution rates by 0.1 percentage point annually for 10 years across PERS and three public‑safety systems; PERA and investment officials said the change shortens amortization schedules and strengthens actuarial soundness.
Senator Mike Cuff presented Senate Bill 56 to the State Administration and Veterans Affairs Committee as a pension funding measure that incrementally increases employer contribution rates to improve funding and shorten amortization schedules for several Montana retirement systems.
The bill would extend and increase a supplemental employer contribution by 0.1% per year for ten years beginning fiscal year 2026 for the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) and add comparable increases for the Highway Patrol Officers Retirement System (HPORS), the Sheriffs’ Retirement System (SRS) and the Game Warden/Peace Officer system. The sponsor said the change would raise employer contribution rates modestly and reduce each system’s unfunded liability amortization period under current actuarial assumptions.
William Hollahan, executive director of the Public Employees Retirement Administration, testified as an informational witness and said the measures would improve funding: under the bill’s assumptions, Hollahan summarized the effects as reductions in amortization periods (for example, PERS from 27 to 26 years; HPORS from 24 to 21 years; SRS from 24 to 18 years; and the game warden/peace officer system from 24 to 12 years, as cited in testimony).
Labor and public employee groups supported the bill. Kim Popham of the Montana Federation of Public Employees said reliable pensions aid recruitment and retention. The Montana Association of Retired Public Employees and several unions, including AFSCME and the Montana AFL‑CIO, also supported the measure. Dan Villa, executive director of the Board of Investments, added the board’s support and framed the bill as consistent with prior funding steps taken to stabilize systems.
The committee posed technical questions about benefit effects and who bears the increased employer cost. Hollahan and the sponsor clarified the bill does not change benefit formulas or employee contribution rates; it increases employer contribution levels to improve the plans’ funded positions. No opponents appeared in the transcript and no committee vote is recorded.
Senator Cuff closed by urging passage, calling the bill a modest, prudent step to preserve pension stability.
