Retirement cleanup bill approved

Lawmakers gave final approval April 25 to a bill that makes a number of changes to the state’s various retirement systems.

Among other changes, LB295, introduced by the Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee, provides a process for the Public Employees Retirement Board to waive repayment of retirement benefits if the board determines that those benefits were the result of an inadvertent overpayment and repayment would cause a significant hardship.

The bill also:
• updates eligible types of identification documents under the retirement systems statutes;
• includes the Class V School Employees Retirement System in the definition of statewide public retirement system under the Spousal Pension Rights Act;
• includes leave of absence pay in the definition of compensation under the School Employees Retirement Act;
• provides that lump-sum payments to multiple beneficiaries under the School Employees Retirement Act can be made independently of each other;
• clarifies the definition of early retirement under the Class V School Employees Retirement Act;
• provides that employees deemed full-time under the Class V School Employees Retirement Act remain full-time employees once they are deemed as such;
• extends from 60 days to 90 days the deadline for beneficiaries to elect a lump-sum distribution under the Class V School Employees Retirement Act; and
• ensures that school employees who are members of the retirement system under the Class V School Employees Retirement Act receive leave with pay to attend preretirement planning programs sponsored by the PERB.

The bill includes provisions of LB420, also sponsored by the committee, which strike existing language in state law requiring that state contributions to the judges’ retirement fund be done by administrative transfer to the state treasurer.

LB295 passed on a 46-0 vote and takes effect immediately.