HB 5443 Summary

• Amends the State Employees' Retirement Act to allow state transportation department employees meeting an age-plus-service requirement of 70 years combined to retire early with a reduced benefit calculation of 1.75% of final average compensation per year of service.

• Establishes a limited enrollment period (December 1-31, 2014) for eligible transportation employees to apply for early retirement effective January 1 through February 1, 2015, with applications becoming irrevocable after January 15, 2015.

• Requires accumulated sick leave payments for early retirees to be distributed over 60 monthly installments beginning February 1, 2015, funded by the employing department rather than the retirement system.

• Permits eligible early retirees to purchase up to 5 years of additional service credit, subject to the overall 10-year purchase limit in section 17j.

• Prohibits early retirees from being hired under contract by the state for 2 years after separation and exempts them from the requirement to forfeit retirement payments during subsequent state employment.