/For retired teachers and state employees, running for Legislature under rule change could be a gamble

For retired teachers and state employees, running for Legislature under rule change could be a gamble

Retired teachers and public employees who want to run for the Legislature in the coming year will need to decide if the Public Employees Retirement System Board of Trustees’ action this week will allow them to withdraw their pension if they are elected to the House of Representatives or Senate. Tuesday’s vote by the board that oversees the state retirement system allowed educators and state and local government employees to be eligible to receive their pension benefits beginning with the January new term. However, the board members stated that they had to address some issues before putting the regulations into effect. For example, how will the changes affect the retirement system’s exempt status from federal taxes? Nancy Loome, the executive director of the pro-education Parents Campaign, stated that she believes that the issues will be resolved and that retired public workers will be able serve in the Legislature and receive their pension. “If there isn’t, I believe there will be litigation. I think one way of another people elected will have their state retirement and be able to serve in the Legislature.” However, Kathy Young Davis, former Chickasaw County superintendent, conceded Tuesday’s Board decision. She now faces a difficult decision. She is interested in running for the District 8 Senate seat. She is worried about what might happen if she wins, but the board does not change regulations that would allow her to serve and receive her benefits. Young Davis, who has been in education for over 30 years, said that she is praying about it. She stated Tuesday that education has been “put on the backburner” (in the Legislature), for the past 12 years. This was at Tuesday’s specially-called meeting of the board responsible for overseeing the state retirement system. “I would love to go to Jackson to teach the children. But I cannot give up my retirement.” She stated that there are other educators who would be interested in running this year for the Legislature. This issue is now in focus because the late-last year, the office of Attorney General Jim Hood stated that a PERS Board regulation that said retirees couldn’t serve as legislators and draw their retirement checks was inconsistent with state law. Many pro-education groups were excited by the ruling. There was speculation that Young Davis, a retired educator, might run for the Legislature. Many education groups like the Parents Campaign have been encouraging retired educators to run. Although the official opinions of the attorney general’s offices do not have the force of law, they offer some protection against lawsuits for public employees who follow them. Hood, a Democrat, predicted that PERS would be sued by educators who want to run for governor if the board didn’t amend its regulations in accordance with Hood’s decision. Board member Randy McCoy (ex-superintendent of Tupelo Public Schools District) moved to follow Hood’s advice at Tuesday’s special meeting. Drew Synder, the Medicaid Executive Director who was appointed by Republican Governor, was the only member of the 10-member board that voted against the McCoy motion. Phil Bryant. The Hood opinion was not adopted by the board because private tax lawyers feared that changing the Hood opinion could put at risk the state retirement system’s special federal tax status. Federal taxes cannot be levied on retirement system investment earnings because of this special tax status. We support our retirees. “We support our retirees. Harold Pizzetta (an assistant attorney general) suggested to the board that they take action now to ensure the safety of retired educators and state employees. He said they had been trying to amend the regulation by January 1 in order to allow them to continue to draw their pension and serve as legislators. Pizzetta stated that “it allows us to keep every option open.” He also pointed out that the regulation was designed so that retired public workers in other states could continue their work in the legislatures and still receive their pensions. A variety of education groups attended Tuesday’s meeting to support the modification of the regulation. Loome stated that the board clearly understands that some of the best public servants in the country have the right to retire and serve the state in a different capacity. In the opinion of the attorney general, Loome stated that by preventing state employees retiring from serving in the Legislature and drawing their retirement, it was denying them a right that all citizens have. Higgins stated that while maintaining the special federal tax status was the main issue facing the board in changing the regulation’s regulations, there are other issues related to state law that must be addressed. The current state law permits state employees to return to work after a 90-day break. It is important to address issues such as whether state employees can draw their full legislative salary. The retirement system is a common benefit for most employees of state and local government, as well as public K-12 teachers and university employees. They contribute 9 percent of their salaries to retirement benefits. PERS data shows that the average benefit for more than 100,000 beneficiaries is more than $23,100 per year. According to the AG opinion, there are more than 300,000. These people either receive benefits or have paid into the system.