Articles about Legislation that may be useful to Massachusetts retirees.
Katie Lannan, State House News Service
JULY 28, 2021.....A pair of harbormasters and Coast Guard veterans on Wednesday asked lawmakers to approve a bill they said would make things easier on veterans adjusting to civilian life and new government careers.
Sends Back Amended Budget Section
JULY 19, 2021: Governor Charlie Baker signed the $47.6 billion Fiscal Year 2022 budget on Friday, July 16th. While no changes were made to the State and Teacher retirees COLA or the Group Insurance Commission line items, he did return certain items to the legislature with amended language.
June 16, 2021- Late last evening, the House and Senate passed a bill that would extend several COVID-19 policy measures that expired when the Governor’s state of emergency was lifted on June 15th. The House passed their version mid-morning and in an unusual move the two versions were sent to conference committee and hammered out the same day. The Senate version included language that would extend the Post Retirement Work Waiver until December 15th, 2021.
June 10, 2021-Thursday the Senate passed the Post-Retirement Work Waiver Extension amendment as part of legislation that addressed policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The current waiver was set to expire when the Governor’s state of emergency order expired on June 15th.
Mass Retirees Seeks Extension Through Year-End
June 9, 2021 – On Thursday the state Senate is poised to debate legislation aimed at addressing various public policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic that are set to expire next week when Governor Baker’s Public Health Emergency Order ends on June 15th. Of direct concern to our Association is the expiration of the post retirement work waiver that has been in place since March 2020.
The following state and national public retiree associations, public employee unions and retirement advocacy organizations have each publicly endorsed H.R. 2337, Congressman Richard Neal's Social Security WEP reform proposal.
Endorsements of the Public Servants Protection & Fairness Act of 2021 (HR 2337)
National groups:
June 2, 2021 - Last Thursday the State Senate completed their FY22 budget debate and soon the conference committee will begin their work to hammer out a final document. As reported prior, the House voted unanimously to support the Mass Retirees amendment, filed by Representative Mark Cusack, that would increase the post retirement work hours from 960 hours to 1200 hours. While Senator Mike Brady did file the same amendment on the Senate side the language was not included.
MAY 20, 2021: The State Senate will begin their budget process next week. The Association worked with Senator Michael Brady (D-Brockton), who cochairs the Public Service Committee, to file an amendment (Floor Amendment No. 94) that would increase the post retirement work hours from 960 to 1200. The amendment mirrors that which was included in the House budget last month. The language would increase the weekly average from 18.5 hours to 23 hours, bringing more in line with traditional part time work. The amendment does not change the earnings restriction.
Budget Section Boosts Hours to 1,200 Annually
April 28, 2021: Today, the Massachusetts House of Representatives approved a Mass Retirees-backed amendment to the FY22 State Budget that would increase the hours for post-retirement public sector work by 240 hours annually.
APRIL 23, 2021 WEEKLY UPDATE: Before I jump into the news of the week, let me first remind you of our upcoming Tele-Town Hall event taking place next Friday, April 30th, at 1:00 PM EST. The topic will be the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission (PERAC), with guest speaker Executive Director John Parsons. PERAC is the state agency that oversees and regulates our public retirement systems. It plays a critical role in pension policy.
Since 1968 the Retired State, County and Municipal Employees Association has been the leading voice for Massachusetts public retirees and their families. Join with our 52,000 members as we continue the fight.
