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Witnesses urge expanding PERS police classification; PERS warns of federal qualification risk
Summary
Senate Bill 15‑69 would add several classes (forensic staff, fingerprint technicians, force protection officers, certain prosecutors) to the PERS "police and fire" classification. Many witnesses described trauma and safety risks; Oregon PERS cautioned that some added roles may not meet the federal definition of qualified public safety employees and could jeopardize plan qualification. Committee scheduled an informational session and possible work session Monday.
Senate Bill 15‑69, which would expand the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) "police and fire" classification to several non‑sworn and civilian roles, drew extensive testimony on Feb. 4 from affected workers and agency representatives — along with a caution from Oregon PERS about federal tax‑qualification risks.
Whitney introduced the measure and Heather Case, senior policy advisor at Oregon PERS, told the committee that reclassifying certain employees to police and fire would change retirement reductions and multipliers, producing roughly a 20% increase in benefits for…
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