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Minutes for SB241 - Committee on Financial Institutions and Insurance

Short Title

Maximum retirement benefits for KP&F members.

Minutes Content for Tue, Mar 13, 2018

Chairperson Longbine turned the committee's attention to and opened the hearing on SB241.  David Wiese, Assistant Revisor of Statutes, distributed a Memorandum and presented a brief overview of the bill.  (Attachment 3)  

Alan Conroy, Executive Director, Kansas Public Employees Retirement System (KPERS), presented neutral informational testimony.  He told committee members that a cost study by a consulting actuary indicated, among other effects, that increasing the cap on KP&F benefits would result in an increase of $2.8 million in the KP&F unfunded actuarial liability.  It would also increase the unfunded actuarial contribution rate for KP&F employers by 0.05 percent, and increase the employer normal cost rate of 0.01 percent.  (Attachment 4)   

Robert Wing, President of the Kansas State Council of Fire Fighters and the Business Manager of the International Association of Fire Fighters. Local 64, presented testimony supporting SB241.  He related that the current statute states the retirement benefit cannot exceed 90 percent of KP&F retiree members' final average salary.  Consequently,  police or fire fighters with more than 36 years of service do not accrue any additional benefits.  (Attachment 5)

Mr. Wing and Mr. Conroy answered a question from Senator Pyle.  Chairperson Longbine then pointed attention to the opponent written-only testimony of Dave Trabert, President, Kansas Policy Institute, Wichita, Kansas.  (Attachment 6)   

There being no additional discussion or questions, and no other proponent, opponent, or neutral testimony submitted, Chairperson Longbine closed the hearing on SB241

The meeting adjourned at 10:05 am.  The next scheduled meeting is Wednesday, March 14, 2018 at 9:30 am.