Committee advances bill to remove mandatory retirement age for first responders

The Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety moved the print and report for Bill 20-63-58, the First Responder Retention Efforts Amendment Act of 2026, to eliminate the mandatory retirement age of 60 for Metropolitan Police Department and Fire and EMS personnel.

"This bill would eliminate the mandatory retirement age of 60 years old for both MPD officers and fire and EMS members," Chairwoman Brooke Pinto said while introducing the measure. Pinto noted staffing pressures across public safety agencies, saying that "as of September of last year, the Metropolitan Police Department has had just under 3,200 sworn officers, continuing the lowest sworn staffing level the department has seen in over 50 years." She also said 239 MPD members and 93 Fire & EMS members are in the 55–60 age range and that removing the statutory cutoff would allow experienced personnel to choose to remain on duty, subject to existing physical examinations.

Pinto told the committee the bill preserves the current requirement that all members must pass regular fitness and duty physicals administered by the police and fire clinic, so continued service would depend on medical fitness rather than age alone. She also said a proposed expansion of MPD’s senior officer rehiring program was omitted from the committee print after public testimony raised concerns about promotion opportunities for active officers.

Pinto moved the print and report with leave for staff to make technical edits; the committee approved the motion unanimously. The committee indicated other retention measures remain under consideration.