NOVEMBER 1998 - All signs point to the Legislature taking final action on H-5369 before 1998 ends. Labelled the “Needham bill,” referring to the Needham retiree whose controversy triggered the bill’s introduction (see September Voice), H-5369 allows retirement boards to forgive a retiree for certain overpayments in his pension.

As we reported earlier, the bill remained in the Senate Ways and Means Committee at the close of the Legislature’s formal session, At press time, it’s expected thatWays and Means will report out H-5369 favorably. With that, the Legislature can then move towards final enactment.

Remember that H-5369 applies to mistakes in pension overpayments that retirement boards discovered beginning back to January 1, 1996. Also, the mistakes must have gone undetected for more than one year.

When enacted, H-5369 will apply to other mistakes, including one common to actve employees - paying into their pension at the incorrect (lesser) rate of contribution. Finally, the legislation does not allow a retiree to continue receiving an overpayment once it is discovered.