MNCORA letter of support for retirement legislation

The following was sent to every Minnesota State Senator and Representative. MNCORA encourages you to contact them expressing your support!

Dear Minnesota State Legislators,

The Minnesota Correctional Officer Retirement Association (MNCORA) supports the following Bills before you that we believe will make life better for retired Minnesota Correctional Officers:

SF 2838 & HF 2788-If enacted would exempt Social Security from Minnesota State income Tax

SF 3538 & HF 3902 – if passed would provide relief from Minnesota State Income Tax for the following pensions; Police and Fire, Local Government Correctional Plan, State Patrol and State Correctional Officers.

SF 4294 & HF 4306- If passed would increase the COLA’s and reduce employee contributions for most Minnesota State Retirement System plans, Public Employees
Retirement Association plans, Teachers Retirement Association, Minnesota state
higher education individual retirement account plan, and St. Paul Teachers
Retirement Fund Association; increasing postretirement adjustment rates;
temporarily reducing employee contribution rates; reducing the investment rate
of return actuarial assumption; increasing and extending direct state aid to the
public employees police and fire retirement plan, the St. Paul Teachers Retirement
Fund Association, and the judges retirement plan; appropriating money; amending
Minnesota Statutes.

The Minnesota Correctional Officer Retirement Association (MNCORA)believes that Correctional Officer retirees worked hard serving their State and Local Governments and deserve relief from high taxes after years of service and now on fixed incomes, especially in light of the State’s budget surplus.

MNCORA supports these Bills and urges your support.

Sincerely,

The MNCORA Board

Correctional Officers Federally Recognized as Public Safety Employees

As of January 1, 2025, Correctional Officers are Federally Recognized as Public Safety Employees the same as Police and Fire. This has implications for disability, taxes and retirement. As we face new challenges to our pension in 2025 this will further the distinction between PERA General Plan members like 911 Dispatch and Probation and CO's in the PERA Correctional Plan. It's part of the Secure Act 2.0. 26 USC § 72(t)()(10) definition of Public Safety Employee - qualified public safety employee (10) Distributions to qualified public safety employees and private sector firefighters (A) In general In the case of a distribution to a qualified public safety employee from a governmental plan (within the meaning of section 414(d) ) or a distribution from a plan described in clause (iii), (iv), or (vi) of section 402(c)(8)(B) to an employee who provides firefighting services, paragraph (2)(A)(v) shall be applied by substituting “age 50 or 25 years of service u...

New Bill for Corrections seat on the PERA Board

MNCORA thanks Representatives Peggy Scott and House Leader Harry Niska for Authoring HF708 in the House and senators Cal Bahr and Jim Abeler for authoring the bill in the Senate SF1556 . Next step is for the LCPR to hear this Bill. Here's a link to the Pension Committee (LCPR). It's very important to contact them and ask them to give it a hearing for it to move on. https://www.lcpr.mn.gov/members.htm

PERA Board votes against CO seat-arguments. What's next and options

On December 12, 2024 the PERA Executive Board voted unanimously not to support legislation to add a Correctional Officer seat to the PERA Board. This is disappointing but will not dissuade MNCORA from again seeking a Bill with the Legislature. I would like to counter some of the PERA Boards arguments. At the planning meeting and in PERA's letter they argued that adding a seat would make the number on the Board even. So, we revised our proposal to add an additional Retiree seat. After all retirees are almost 30% of PERA membership and Retirees have only one member elected seat. In their letter they state, “ The current makeup of the board is 6 member positions to 3 employer positions, adding additional board members representing member groups would weigh the board’s makeup further towards the membership .” Not exactly true. It’s an 11 person board. Source PERA 2023 PFAR The 11 person Board is made up of 5 seats that are appointed by the Governor and one more is th...

Search This Blog