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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2660 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3857
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Carmine Lawrence Gentile
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act to provide retirement incentives in public higher education.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Carmine Lawrence Gentile13th Middlesex1/19/2023 1 of 8
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2660 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3857
By Representative Gentile of Sudbury, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3857) of
Carmine Lawrence Gentile for legislation to provide retirement incentives in public higher
education. Public Service.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
An Act to provide retirement incentives in public higher education.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. For the purposes of this act, the following word shall, unless the context
2clearly requires otherwise, have the following meaning:
3 “State employees retirement board” or “board”, the board established in section 18 of
4chapter 10 of the General Laws for the purposes of administering the state employees’ retirement
5system.
6 “State university”, an institution listed in section 5 of chapter 15A of the General Laws.
7 “State universities retirement incentive program” or “program”, the program established
8in section 3.
9 SECTION 2. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the state
10universities shall achieve direct payroll savings in fiscal year 2025 and beyond through
11implementation of this act. 2 of 8
12 (b) To achieve the savings required by subsection (a), a state university may: (i) offer 1-
13time incentive payments to encourage employees to resign or retire; or (ii) implement the
14retirement incentive program as described in sections 3 to 7, inclusive.
15 (b) The state universities shall, not later than March 20, 2024, provide notice to the state
16board of retirement on the number of employees anticipated to separate from state service, and
17anticipated timing, under clauses (i) and (ii) of subsection (b).
18 SECTION 3. (a) Notwithstanding chapter 32 of the General Laws or any other general or
19special law to the contrary, the state board of retirement shall establish and implement a
20retirement incentive for employees of state universities, to be known as the state universities
21retirement incentive program.
22 (b) To be considered eligible by the state board of retirement for any of the benefit
23options under the program, an employee shall: (i) be an employee, as of the effective date of this
24act and through the date of retirement established in section 4, of a state university, the board of
25trustees of which has approved participation in this program by January 1, 2024; (ii) be a
26member in service of the state employees’ retirement system pursuant to clause (i) of paragraph
27(a) of subdivision (1) of section 3 of chapter 32 of the General Laws as of the effective date of
28this act and have 25 years or more of creditable state service at the time of their program
29application; (iii) be classified in Group 1 of the state employees’ retirement system pursuant to
30paragraph (g) of subdivision (2) of said section 3 of said chapter 32 as of the effective date of
31this act; (iv) be eligible to receive a superannuation retirement allowance in the absence of the
32program pursuant to subdivision (1) of section 5 of said chapter 32 or subdivision (1) of section
3310 of said chapter 32 as of the effective date of this act; (v) have not notified, in writing, as of 3 of 8
34January 1, 2024, either the state university or the state board of retirement of their planned
35retirement or separation from the university within the next year; and (vi) file a timely
36application with the board pursuant to section 4.
37 (c) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), the following employees shall not be eligible
38to receive any benefit from the program: (i) employees whose compensation is funded from a
39capital appropriation or federal grant, as each is defined in section 1 of chapter 29 of the General
40Laws, as of the filing date for the application pursuant to section 4; (ii) elected officials; and (iii)
41employees or members of the state employees’ retirement system who, as of the effective date of
42this act, are not contributing to the retirement system or have not completed reinstatement
43pursuant to section 105 of said chapter 32.
44 SECTION 4. Notwithstanding section 5 of chapter 32 of the General Laws, an eligible
45employee shall submit an application to the state board of retirement on or before April 1, 2024
46in order for the
47 employee to be eligible to receive the retirement benefit provided in this act. The
48retirement date requested in an eligible employee’s application shall be June 30, 2024 or, upon a
49state university’s local board of trustees’ approval for delay resulting from multiple employees
50from the same division choosing to participate in this program or university need, a delayed
51retirement date of no later than December 31, 2024. Employees may rescind their notice of
52retirement, up to the earlier of: (i) 1 week prior to their submitted retirement date; or (ii) 1 week
53prior to an offer of employment for a replacement hire in situations where a replacement hire has
54been approved. The application for retirement may be delivered to the state board of retirement
55in person, by mail or in a manner as the board may approve, including by electronic means. 4 of 8
56 SECTION 5. (a) An employee who is eligible for the state universities retirement
57incentive program may request in the application for retirement that the state board of retirement
58credit the employee with an additional retirement benefit pursuant to this section. Each such
59employee shall request and receive a combination of years of creditable service and years of age,
60in full-credit increments; provided however, that the sum of the years of creditable service and
61years of age shall not be greater than 6 total credits for the purposes of determining the
62employee’s superannuation retirement allowance pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision (2) of
63section 5 of chapter 32 of the General Laws. The employee’s state university of record shall pay
64to the state board of retirement 2.5 per cent of the participant’s highest 3-year annual average
65salary for each purchased credit up to a maximum of 6 purchased credits towards their retirement
66benefit, with 6 credits representing the aggregate payment of 15 per cent of the participant’s
67highest 3-year annual average salary. The program participant shall pay to the state board of
68retirement 4.5 per cent of the participant’s highest 3-year annual average salary, plus an
69additional 1.0 per cent of the participant’s highest 3-year annual average salary above $30,000,
70for each purchased credit (year of age or year of service) up to a maximum of 6 total purchased
71credits. Such payment, upon the participant’s approval, may be directed from the state university
72directly to the state board of retirement from compensated absences payouts at the time of the
73participant’s retirement. Failure of participants to make such payments for the purchase of credits
74to the state board of retirement shall result in no addition to the participant’s creditable years
75being considered in the determination of retirement benefits until payments are made.
76 Notwithstanding the credit, the total normal yearly amount of the retirement allowance,
77as determined pursuant to said section 5 of said chapter 32, of any employee who retires and 5 of 8
78receives the program benefit shall not exceed 80 per cent of the average annual rate of the
79employee’s regular compensation as determined pursuant to said section 5 of said chapter 32.
80 (b) An employee shall not: (i) be eligible for both of the 2 different retirement incentives
81as noted in clauses (i) and (ii) of subsection (b) of section 2 (b); (ii) become eligible for 1
82incentive by virtue of the application of a different incentive; and (iii) utilize the incentive to
83qualify for any other rights or benefits under chapter 32 of the General Laws. An employee who
84retires and receives an additional retirement benefit pursuant to this act shall be considered
85retired for superannuation purposes under said chapter 32 and shall be subject to said chapter 32.
86A married employee who retires and receives an additional benefit under this act shall be subject
87to the requirements of the second paragraph of subdivision (1) of section 12 of said chapter 32.
88 (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of subdivision (2) of section 5 of chapter 32 of the
89General Laws, an eligible employee retiring under the state universities retirement incentive
90program who has served in
91 more than one group shall receive a retirement allowance as if the employee served only
92as a Group 1 employee for the entire length of state service and shall not receive a retirement
93allowance consisting of pro-rated benefits based upon the percentage of total years of service that
94the employee rendered in each group.
95 SECTION 6. The state board of retirement shall provide retirement counseling to
96employees who apply to retire under the state universities retirement incentive program or to
97eligible employees who request retirement counseling. Counseling services shall be scheduled
98between December 1, 2023 and April 1, 2024. Counseling by the board shall include, but need
99not be limited to: (i) a full explanation of the retirement benefits provided by the program; (ii) a 6 of 8
100comparison of the expected lifetime retirement benefits payable to an employee under the
101retirement incentive program and under chapter 32 of the General Laws; (iii) the election of a
102retirement option under section 12 of said chapter 32; (iv) the restrictions on employment after
103retirement; (v) the laws relative to the payment of cost-of-living adjustments to the retirement
104allowance; and (vi) the effect of federal and state taxation on retirement income. The group
105insurance commission shall provide counseling regarding the provision of health care benefits
106under chapter 32A of the General Laws. Each employee shall sign a statement that the employee
107has received counseling or has elected not to receive counseling prior to the approval by the
108board of the employee's application for superannuation benefits and the additional benefit
109provided by this act.
110 SECTION 7. Notwithstanding any general or special law or any collective bargaining
111agreement or other employment contract to the contrary and in consideration of the benefits
112conferred in this act, an employee who elects to retire under this act shall receive payment for
113accrued vacation time, buyback of pro-rated unused sick leave, and other benefits under the
114collective bargaining agreement or other employment contract. The board shall deny an
115application for the state universities retirement incentive program under this act by an employee
116who belongs to a bargaining unit for which a collective bargaining agreement inconsistent with
117this section is in effect at the time of the application unless the employee organization
118representing the employee has filed with the board and the secretary of administration and
119finance a statement waiving any inconsistent provisions of the agreement on behalf of all
120members of the bargaining unit who file applications for the retirement incentive program
121pursuant to this act. 7 of 8
122 SECTION 8. Notwithstanding section 91 of chapter 32 of the General Laws, an employee
123retired under this act may teach on a part-time basis or accept part-time state employment subject
124only to the limitations provided by law. A member who retired under the state universities
125retirement incentive program shall be eligible for reinstatement under section 105 of said chapter
12632. If an individual who receives an incentive through this program subsequently accepts full-
127time employment with any state agency, including a state university, the employee shall: (i)
128repay the cash incentive payment; or (ii) lose the additional creditable years of service or age. If
129the employee loses the additional creditable years of service or age, the state board of retirement
130shall repay the state university and employee, as appropriate, for any purchased service and age
131credits, with no interest, as determined by the state board of retirement.
132 SECTION 9. Not later than June 1, 2024, the secretary of administration and finance
133shall file with the house and senate committees on ways and means a report detailing: the
134number of employee applications received for the state universities retirement incentive
135program; the anticipated dates of
136 retirement for each participant; the official positions of the employees; and the impact of
137program participation on each state university’s ability to carry out its responsibilities as
138provided by law. Further, this report shall detail the implementation of clauses (i) and (ii) of
139subsection (b) of section 2, including: (i) the number of employees who plan to separate from
140state service pursuant to each clause; (ii) the timing of each planned separation; (iii) the official
141positions of the employees; (iv) the impact that all completed and anticipated separations will
142have on each state university’s ability to carry out its responsibilities as provided by law; and (v)
143the estimated net cost-savings in fiscal year 2025 through fiscal year 2028 for each state
144university associated with implementation of this program. 8 of 8
145 SECTION 10. Participating state university shall certify, to the state comptroller and the
146state board of retirement, the following information 15 days prior to the various dates of
147retirement: (i) the current annual salary as well as the salary at date of retirement of each
148individual who has enrolled in the state universities retirement incentive program; (ii) the item of
149appropriation in which the position is funded; (iii) the classification and title of the position; (iv)
150the retirement date for the person who will retire from the position; and, (v) the amounts of
151projected accrued vacation time, unused sick leave buyback or other accrued benefits for each
152employee as of the employee’s date of retirement.
153 SECTION 11. The executive director of the public employee retirement administration
154commission, established in section 49 of chapter 7 of the General Laws, shall analyze, study and
155evaluate the costs and actuarial liabilities attributable to the additional benefits payable pursuant
156to this act. Not later than September 30, 2028, the commission shall file a report with the
157secretary of administration and finance, the joint committee on public service and the house and
158senate committees on ways and means regarding its findings.
159 SECTION 12. Not later than November 30, 2028, the secretary of administration and
160finance shall file with the house and senate committees on ways and means a subsequent report
161detailing: (i) the number of employees participating in the state universities retirement incentive
162program; (ii) the estimated costs and savings in fiscal year 2025 through fiscal year 2028 as a
163result of the employees’ participation; and (iii) the number of positions that have been either
164refilled or not refilled during those periods. For each position that has not been refilled, the report
165shall detail how the duties and expertise associated with the position have been fulfilled or
166otherwise accounted for by the state university.