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Senate Bill 321 would enroll new state workers in a cash-balance plan similar to a common 401(k) retirement account rather than the defined-benefit pension plan that current employees have. ....
By Luther Elmore For the first time in a generation, Texas state employees, and retirees like me, are entering the final month of the legislative session with reason for hope. Last week, the Senate approved Senate Bill 321, a transformational proposal that would protect the stable and secure pension on which so many public employees have come to rely. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Joan Huffman, commits $510 million a year moving forward to pay the Employees Retirement System’s ballooning unfunded liability. Under this schedule, ERS would be actuarily sound in just three years. Lawmakers would then be able to consider a cost-of-living adjustment for retirees at that time the first since 2001. ....
A key Texas Senate committee on Monday unveiled and quickly passed a major overhaul to the state s employee pension plan. Credit: Evan L Roy/The Texas Tribune A powerful Texas Senate committee on Monday unveiled and quickly voted out a major overhaul to the state’s employee pension plan. Senate Bill 321 by state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, would enroll new employees eligible for the Texas Employees Retirement System in a cash balance plan similar to a common 401(k) retirement account instead of the traditional, defined benefit pension plan. The Senate Finance Committee approved the measure by a vote of 13-0, with Democratic state Sen. Royce West of Dallas voting present. ....