Wisconsin 2025-2026 Regular Session

Wisconsin Senate Bill SB170 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
2	2	LRB-2369/1
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4	4	2025 SENATE BILL 170
5	5	April 3, 2025 - Introduced by Senators MARKLEIN, CABRAL-GUEVARA, FEYEN,
6	6	HABUSH SINYKIN, PFAFF and QUINN, cosponsored by Representatives WITTKE,
7	7	KITCHENS, RODRIGUEZ, NOVAK, BROOKS, KNODL, KREIBICH, KURTZ, MELOTIK,
8	8	MURPHY, O'CONNOR, ORTIZ-VELEZ, PENTERMAN, STEFFEN and MOSES.
9	9	Referred to Committee on Transportation and Local Government.
10	10	AN ACT to repeal 40.26 (5m), 40.26 (6) and 323.19 (3); to amend 40.22 (1),
11	11	40.22 (2m) (intro.), 40.22 (2r) (intro.), 40.22 (3) (intro.), 40.26 (1m) and 40.26
12	12	(5) (intro.); to create 40.04 (5) (am) and 40.26 (7) and (8) of the statutes;
13	13	relating to: rehired annuitants in the Wisconsin Retirement System.
14	14	Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
15	15	Under current law, certain people who receive a retirement or disability
16	16	annuity from the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) and who are hired by an
17	17	employer that participates in the WRS must suspend that annuity and may not
18	18	receive a WRS annuity payment until they are no longer in a WRS-covered position.
19	19	This suspension applies to an annuitant who 1) has reached his or her normal
20	20	retirement date; 2) is appointed to a position with a WRS-participating employer;
21	21	and 3) is expected to work at least two-thirds of what is considered full-time
22	22	employment by the Department of Employee Trust Funds.
23	23	This bill allows such an annuitant who is hired by a WRS-participating
24	24	employer as an employee or to provide employee services to not suspend his or her
25	25	annuity for up to 60 months. The bill also requires WRS-participating employers
26	26	that hire such annuitants to make payments to ETF equal to what they would have
27	27	paid as required contributions for each rehired annuitant if the rehired annuitant
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31	31	4 2025 - 2026 Legislature
32	32	SENATE BILL 170
33	33	- 2 - LRB-2369/1
34	34	MIM:wlj
35	35	SECTION 1
36	36	had suspended his or her annuity. Under the bill, these payments are deposited
37	37	into the employer reserve account.
38	38	If the annuitant does not suspend the annuity and does not become an active
39	39	WRS-participating employee, in the case of state employment, the annuitant is not
40	40	eligible for group insurance benefits provided to active WRS-participating
41	41	employees and may not use any of his or her service in the new position for any WRS
42	42	purposes. If the annuitant opts to again become an active WRS-participating
43	43	employee, the annuitant is eligible for all group insurance benefits provided to other
44	44	participating employees and may accumulate additional years of creditable service
45	45	under the WRS for the new period of WRS-covered employment.
46	46	The bill also repeals two obsolete provisions related to WRS annuitants
47	47	returning to WRS-covered employment during the public health emergency
48	48	declared on March 12, 2020, by executive order 72, which ended on May 13, 2020.
49	49	Because this bill relates to public employee retirement or pensions, it may be
50	50	referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems for a report to be
51	51	printed as an appendix to the bill.
52	52	For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
53	53	printed as an appendix to this bill.
54	54	The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
55	55	enact as follows:
56	56	SECTION 1. 40.04 (5) (am) of the statutes is created to read:
57	57	40.04 (5) (am) Credited all employer payments made under s. 40.26 (8).
58	58	SECTION 2. 40.22 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
59	59	40.22 (1) Except as otherwise provided in sub. (2) and s. 40.26 (6) (7), each
60	60	employee currently in the service of, and receiving earnings from, a state agency or
61	61	other participating employer shall be included within the provisions of the
62	62	Wisconsin retirement system as a participating employee of that state agency or
63	63	participating employer.
64	64	SECTION 3. 40.22 (2m) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
65	65	40.22 (2m) (intro.) Except as otherwise provided in s. 40.26 (6) (7), an
66	66	employee who was a participating employee before July 1, 2011, who is not expected
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78	78	SENATE BILL 170
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81	81	SECTION 3
82	82	to work at least one-third of what is considered full-time employment by the
83	83	department, as determined by rule, and who is not otherwise excluded under sub.
84	84	(2) from becoming a participating employee shall become a participating employee if
85	85	he or she is subsequently employed by the state agency or other participating
86	86	employer for either of the following periods:
87	87	SECTION 4. 40.22 (2r) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
88	88	40.22 (2r) (intro.) Except as otherwise provided in s. 40.26 (6) (7), an employee
89	89	who was not a participating employee before July 1, 2011, who is not expected to
90	90	work at least two-thirds of what is considered full-time employment by the
91	91	department, as determined by rule, and who is not otherwise excluded under sub.
92	92	(2) from becoming a participating employee shall become a participating employee if
93	93	he or she is subsequently employed by the state agency or other participating
94	94	employer for either of the following periods:
95	95	SECTION 5. 40.22 (3) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
96	96	40.22 (3) (intro.) Except as otherwise provided in s. 40.26 (6) (7), a person who
97	97	qualifies as a participating employee shall be included within, and shall be subject
98	98	to, the Wisconsin retirement system effective on one of the following dates:
99	99	SECTION 6. 40.26 (1m) of the statutes is amended to read:
100	100	40.26 (1m) (a) Except as otherwise provided in sub. (6) (7), if a participant
101	101	receiving a retirement annuity, or a disability annuitant who has attained his or
102	102	her normal retirement date, is employed in a position in covered employment in
103	103	which he or she is expected to work at least two-thirds of what is considered full-
104	104	time employment by the department, as determined under s. 40.22 (2r), the
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128	128	SENATE BILL 170
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130	130	MIM:wlj
131	131	SECTION 6
132	132	participant[s annuity shall be suspended and no annuity payment shall be payable
133	133	until after the participant terminates covered employment.
134	134	(b) Except as otherwise provided in sub. (6) (7), if a participant receiving a
135	135	retirement annuity, or a disability annuitant who has attained his or her normal
136	136	retirement date, enters into a contract to provide employee services with a
137	137	participating employer and he or she is expected to work at least two-thirds of what
138	138	is considered full-time employment by the department, as determined under s.
139	139	40.22 (2r), the participant[s annuity shall be suspended and no annuity payment
140	140	shall be payable until after the participant no longer provides employee services
141	141	under the contract.
142	142	SECTION 7. 40.26 (5) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
143	143	40.26 (5) (intro.) Except as otherwise provided in sub. (5m), if If a participant
144	144	applies for an annuity or lump sum payment during the period in which less than
145	145	75 days have elapsed between the termination of employment with a participating
146	146	employer and becoming a participating employee with any participating employer,
147	147	all of the following shall apply:
148	148	SECTION 8. 40.26 (5m) of the statutes is repealed.
149	149	SECTION 9. 40.26 (6) of the statutes is repealed.
150	150	SECTION 10. 40.26 (7) and (8) of the statutes are created to read:
151	151	40.26 (7) Beginning on the effective date of this subsection .... [LRB inserts
152	152	date], a participant may elect to not suspend his or her retirement annuity or
153	153	disability annuity under sub. (1m) for up to 60 months, which need not be
154	154	consecutive, if the participant applies for an annuity or lump sum payment after at
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178	178	SENATE BILL 170
179	179	- 5 - LRB-2369/1
180	180	MIM:wlj
181	181	SECTION 10
182	182	least 75 days have elapsed since the participant[s termination of employment with
183	183	a participating employer and prior to becoming an employee with a participating
184	184	employer if all of the following conditions are met:
185	185	(a) The participant terminates his or her employment with a participating
186	186	employer after July 2, 2013.
187	187	(b) At the time the participant terminates his or her employment with a
188	188	participating employer, the participant does not have an agreement with any
189	189	participating employer to return to employment or enter into a contract to provide
190	190	employee services for a participating employer and complies with 26 CFR 1.401-1
191	191	(a) (2) (i) and requirements set by the federal department of the treasury for bona
192	192	fide separation from service.
193	193	(c) The participant elects on a form provided by the department to not become
194	194	a participating employee.
195	195	40.26 (8) Each participating employer that hires a participant who has
196	196	elected to not suspend his or her annuity under sub. (7) shall make payments to the
197	197	department that are equal to the amount of contributions that would have been
198	198	required to be paid for that employee under s. 40.05 (2) (a). All payments under this
199	199	subsection shall be credited to the account under s. 40.04 (5) (am).
200	200	SECTION 11. 323.19 (3) of the statutes is repealed.
201	201	(END)
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