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Board begins study of DNR wildland and aviation firefighter enrollment, flags definitional and actuarial issues
Summary
A legislatively mandated study will examine whether DNR wildland and aviation firefighters should be enrolled in the enhanced public-safety plan; staff noted 359 positions identified by DNR, cross-jurisdictional definitional issues, and the need for data-sharing and actuarial pricing before policy recommendations can be made.
Dave Dunlap, staff to the board, presented a follow-up on a legislatively mandated study to evaluate enrolling Department of Natural Resources wildland and aviation firefighters into the enhanced public-safety pension program. The study is due by 01/01/2027 and will analyze eligibility, definitions, data and fiscal impacts.
Dunlap said DNR provided a list of 359 positions across 14 job classifications that are currently in PERS 2; the study excludes seasonal unlimited-term wildland crews. He reviewed other statesapproaches, noting Oregon amended its definition last year to include certain state forestry employees who meet duties/hours thresholds. Dunlap underscored definitional questions—whether positions are year-round, how to treat pilots and dispatchers, and whether an hours threshold (e.g., 600 or 600+ hours per year) is the right metric.
Board members pressed on the apparent omission of "boots on the ground" wildland firefighters from DNRs list and raised concerns about seasonal work, how service credit and final-average-salary calculations would be handled for variable-hour workers, and the actuarial unpredictability of adding a potentially variable workforce.
Dunlap said a data-share agreement between DNR and DRS is close to finalization; once data are received, actuaries will price the change and the study will address collateral impacts. Trustees emphasized the need for a crosswalk between DNR titles and structural-firefighter duties and for careful analysis before any statutory proposal.
Next steps: finalize data-share agreement, obtain detailed employment and hours data from DNR and DRS, run actuarial pricing, consult affected unions, and include findings in the legislatively mandated report due by January 2027.
