Enacted 2024 PERS Legislation

Introduction

The Oregon State Legislature enacted three bills impacting PERS in 2024.

Senate Bill (SB) 5701

PERS budget adjustments

Lawmakers typically work on state agency budgets during the Legislature’s longer, odd-year sessions. In between those long sessions, agencies sometimes experience changes that require budgetary adjustments by lawmakers during the Legislature’s short sessions. SB 5701 makes interim budgetary adjustments for PERS. The bill corrects budget allocation in different areas of the agency’s modernization program and makes required changes to position classifications.

Full text of SB 5701

House Bill (HB) 4034

Federal tax reconnect bill

HB 4034 updates the “connection date” to Internal Revenue Code to December 31, 2023. This code is federal tax law, and a connection date helps identify the version of the code that the state of Oregon references in its own laws, including the Oregon statutes governing PERS.

Full text of HB 4034

HB 4045

Public safety workforce stabilization act

HB 4045, also known as the “Public Safety Workforce Stabilization Act,” makes the following three changes to the PERS Program:

• Adds elected district attorneys, as well as forensic scientists and evidence technicians at the Oregon State Police, to the definition of “police officer” for PERS purposes, giving these positions Police and Firefighter (P&F) benefits under PERS. This provision is effective for service performed on or after January 1, 2025.
• Lowers the normal retirement age for Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (OPSRP) P&F members with less than 25 years of service credit from age 60 to age 55. For P&F members with 25 years or more of service credit, their retirement age will remain the same at age 53. This provision is effective for retirement dates on or after January 1, 2025.
• Creates a new member classification for OPSRP members, in addition to General Service and Police and Firefighter. The new classification will be called “Hazardous Position.” The Legislature will determine which job positions within PERS qualify for Hazardous Position classification based on requirements laid out in the statute: “(7)(a) ‘Hazardous position’ means a position that does not meet the definition of a qualified public safety employee under section 72(t)(10)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code, but that: (A) Requires the person holding the position to work with or manage emergency or traumatic events in the regular course of work; or (B) Carries a high risk of physical harm.” HB 4045 also adds two groups of employees whose jobs fit within the Hazardous Position classification: Oregon State Hospital employees who have direct contact with patients and 911 telecommunicators as defined in Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 181A.355. More positions can be added to the new classification by the Legislature in future sessions. HB 4045 also includes the following rules:
  • Hazardous Position members’ normal retirement age will be age 60, or age 58 with 25 years of service. Their early retirement age will remain 55 (the same as General Service members). Pension benefit calculations for Hazardous Position members also will use a 1.8% multiplier (the same as P&F members).
  • This portion of the bill is operative on January 1, 2030, which means that any members in a hazardous position will not be able to retire as a member of the Hazardous Position classification until January 1, 2030, at the earliest, and will receive hazardous position service credit from January 1, 2030, onward .

Full text of HB 4045