SB 239

Under current law, when a participant in the Wisconsin Retirement System

(WRS) terminates covered employment and begins to receive an annuity he or she

may return to covered employment and either terminate the annuity and again

become a participating employee in the WRS or, instead, continue to receive the

annuity, as well as wages from covered employment. If a participant continues to

receive the annuity, the participant may not be a participating employee in the WRS

and, in the case of state employment, is not eligible for group insurance benefits

provided to participating employees, and may not use any of his or her employment

service as a rehired annuitant for any WRS purposes. If the participant terminates

the annuity, the participant returns to participating employee status and is eligible

for all group insurance benefits provided other participating employees, as well as

is able to accumulate additional years of creditable service under the WRS for the

additional period of covered employment.

This bill provides that, beginning on the bill's effective date, if a participant in

the WRS, who is receiving an annuity, or a disability annuitant who has attained his

or her normal retirement date, is appointed to a position in covered employment in

which he or she is expected to work at least one-half of what is considered full-time

employment by the Department of Employee Trust Funds (DETF), as determined by

rule, the participant's annuity must be terminated and no annuity payment is

payable until after the participant terminates covered employment. In addition,

such a participant cannot again become a participating employee in the WRS, with

the result that no additional years of creditable service may be acquired as a result

of the post-retirement employment. The bill, however, does provide that for

annuitants who again become state employees, they are eligible to receive group

insurance benefits provided to other state employees who are participating

employees in the WRS.

The bill also provides that if a participant receiving a retirement annuity, or a

disability annuitant who has attained his or her normal retirement date, enters into

a contract to provide employee services with a participating employer after the bill's

effective date, and he or she is expected to work at least one-half of what is

considered full-time employment by DETF, as determined by rule, the participant's

retirement annuity must be terminated and no annuity payment is payable until

after the participant no longer provides employee services under the contract.

Because this bill relates to public employee retirement or pensions, it may be

referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems for a report to be

printed as an appendix to the bill.