Senate passes bill clarifying retirement tiers; SB 28 moves to House

Senator Weiler, sponsor of Senate Bill 28, told the Senate the bill clarifies how employees and elected officials are classified as Tier 1 or Tier 2 when they change retirement systems and that grandfathering depends on whether a member has service credit prior to 07/01/2011. He apologized for a prior misstatement about the state auditor’s status, saying, “I gave the incorrect answer…If he is participating in URS right now, then he'd be tier 1, because he started off as a tier 1.”

The bill revises existing retirement language to ensure a member with Tier 1 service credit in any system remains a Tier 1 participant in a new system; this applies to hires and elected officials who accrue service credit through election rather than a hire date. After Senator Weiler waived summation and called the question, the Senate conducted a roll-call vote. The clerk announced, “Senate Bill 28 having received 25 yay votes, 0 nay votes, 4 being absent passes and shall be sent to the House for their consideration.”

Proponents said the change resolves ambiguity for members transitioning between systems and clarifies application of Tier 1 status for elected officials. No amendments or substantive floor amendments were recorded during the discussion. The measure will now proceed to the House for consideration.

The Senate also recorded an explicit apology from the sponsor for an earlier incorrect answer regarding a named official’s tier status; the sponsor corrected the record on the floor before the final vote. The committee of origin and any House action will determine next steps and implementation details.