Bill would let Catawba Nation join state police retirement system to boost officer recruitment

A Senate retirement subcommittee on Finance voted unanimously to send S.127, a bill allowing the Catawba Nation to join the state police officers retirement system, to the full committee after hearing testimony that membership would help the Nation recruit and retain law-enforcement officers.

Olivia, a staff member who briefed the panel, told senators that S.127 would add the Catawba Nation to the statutory definition of "employer" for the police officers retirement system under sections 9-11-43 and 9-11-40, provided the Nation applies to the retirement board and complies with existing statutory and board requirements. The bill requires that a Nation employee may become a member only if "substantially all" of the employee's time is devoted to governmental police service per section 27-16-70(c), and it conditions participation on the Nation's agreement to be subject to state laws, rules and plan provisions and to waive sovereign immunity for disputes arising from participation. The act would take effect upon the governor's approval.

Senator Johnson, sponsor of S.127, said the change is designed to address a recruitment and retention problem. "They want to be a part of their system," Johnson said, adding that the Nation is "just simply asking to be allowed to join in so that they can attract and most importantly retain law enforcement." He told the committee that allowing access to the retirement system is essential for smaller employers that otherwise lose officers to jurisdictions that can offer retirement benefits.

A Catawba Nation representative, who spoke repeatedly during the hearing, said the Nation has about 4,200 enrolled members in South Carolina and confirmed that the tribe agreed to waive sovereign immunity only in the limited context of participation in the retirement system. "We are a sovereign nation because we are federally recognized and we waived our sovereign immunity," the representative said, explaining the waiver was necessary so the retirement board could enforce contribution and administrative requirements; the representative emphasized the waiver would be "siloed in this venue of the law" and that sovereign immunity would remain intact outside the retirement system.

Justin Warner, general counsel at the Public Employee Benefit Authority (PEBA), told senators the mechanics of membership would be like those for any small municipality that chooses to join the police officer system. "This just allows them to join the system like any other municipality in the state," Warner said. He added that officers with prior credited time in the state system could have that service recognized for vesting; officers with no prior service would start accruing service when the Nation elects to join.

Committee members pressed for operational and jurisdictional details: the representative said the Nation sometimes processes matters off-reservation, is building a courtroom and expects it to be finished by year-end, and that Nation officers can and do coordinate with county law enforcement. The Nation also operates two Kings casinos in North Carolina and partners with neighboring counties on off-duty security and regional anti–human trafficking efforts, the representative said.

The Chair expressed caution about altering pension coverage but acknowledged PEBA's explanation that joining would functionally mirror other small employers joining the system. After discussion the Chair entertained a motion for a favorable report; the committee moved the bill to the full committee on a unanimous voice vote, with Senators Gambrell and Hembry recorded as having sent proxies.

The subcommittee did not debate specific fiscal figures on the record; staff told senators that the Nation must apply to the retirement board and comply with existing contribution and administrative rules, and that participation would be conditioned on those statutory and board requirements. The full committee will next consider S.127.