2007 MAY - Here are the respective Senate and House numbers for each of the Association bills for the 2007-2008 Legislative Session. Principal sponsors are shown within the parenthesis.

Higher COLA Base: S1679 (Walsh) and H2606 (Kaufman).
Increases the maximum COLA base from $12,000 to $16,000 for the state employees/teachers’ retirement systems and allows, as a local option, municipal and other retirement systems, with the approval of the appropriate legislative body, to increase the $12,000 to a higher maximum base.

$15,000 Minimum Pension: S1553 (McGee)
Increases the $10,000 minimum pension for state/teacher retirees, who have at least 25 years of creditable service, to $15,000 and allows, as a local option, municipal and other retirement systems, with the approval of the appropriate legislative body, to provide a minimum pension, up to $15,000, to their similarly qualified retirees.

Survivors Minimum Pension: H2581 (Jones).
Increases (automatically for the state/teachers and by local option for other systems) the minimum pension for survivors of active employees who die prior to retirement of a non-work related cause (MGL Ch. 32, section 12 (2) Option (d) ) from $3,000 to $6,000 a year and increases the pension for surviving spouses of accidental disability retirees, who die of a cause unrelated to their disability and could not choose Option C, from $6,000 to $9,000 a year.

Right to Remarry (Retroactive Application): S1613 (Morrissey).Allows survivors, who had remarried before July 1, 2000 and lost their pensions, to regain their pensions forward from the law’s effective date.

Retroactive Option C Calculation: S1610 (Morrissey).
Recalculates (automatically for the state/teachers and by local option for other systems) the pensions of anyone, who retired prior to 7/1/04 and chose Option C, using the new mortality table, forward from the law’s effective date.

Higher Basic Life Coverage: H2455 (deMacedo).
Raises the basic life insurance benefit for state retires, who are insured through the state’s Group Insurance Commission (GIC), from $5,000 to $10,000.

GIC Composition: S616 (Moore).
Allows the Association to chose our own GIC representative and grants the same right to the MA Teachers Association.

Medicare Part B Refund: S1604/1607 (Morrissey).
Requires the GIC to refund the Medicare Part B premium, at either 85 or 90% depending on date of retirement, and municipalities, that first begin to mandate Medicare enrollment after the law’s effective date, to reimburse their retirees for the Part B premium.

State GASB Funding Schedule: H2605 (Kaufman).
Requires the state to establish a schedule for pre-funding the future healthcare costs for its retirees, with any funds to be invested by the state’s Pension Reserves Investment Management (PRIM) Board.

Municipal GASB Funding Schedule: H1140 (Kaufman).
Allows, as a local option, municipalities to establish a schedule for pre-funding the future healthcare costs for their retirees and elect to have any funds invested by the local retirement board or PRIM.

Survivors Insurance Retention: S1588 (Moore).
Allows survivors to remarry without losing their state or local health insurance.

GIC Appeal Process: S1461 (Brown).
Grants retirees, insured through the GIC, with the right to appeal the denial of coverage, prescription drug copayments, and rejected claims.

Reinstatement of Health Insurance: H2511 (Flynn).
Requires state and local retirees be allowed to rejoin their respective health insurance plans.

Non-Contributory Vets State Tax Exemption: S1703 (Brown).
Grants non-contributory veterans the same tax-exempt status as all other public pensioners receive on their state income taxes.

Extend New Definition Of Veteran: S1463 (Brown).
Applies the expanded definition of veteran (i.e., those who served during non-wartime periods) to veterans, who retired on a regular pension before 8/26/04, so  they would be eligible to receive the veterans bonus (up to $300 annually) forward from the law’s effective date.

Disability Reexaminations: H2510 (Flynn).
Discontinues periodic medical reviews of disability retirees, who have been reexamined, at least once, and retired on disability for longer than ten years.

Earned Income For Disability Retirees: S1601 (Morrissey).
Defines earned income for disability retiree and adjusts for inflation the $5,000 monetary cap in the formula to determine the amount of earnings that a disability retiree is permitted to make.

Conversion of Disability Pension: H2453 (deMacedo).
Allows a retiree, receiving a disability pension to convert their disability pension over to a superannuation (regular) retirement allowance.