The duty disability benefit program under the Wisconsin Retirement System, prohibited subjects of collective bargaining under the Municipal Employment Relations Act and the State Employment Labor Relations Act, and requiring the Legislative Audit Bureau to conduct a program evaluation audit of certain disability and survivor benefit programs of public employee retirement systems in this state. (FE)

This bill eliminates the conditions that relate to whether the employee's pay or position is reduced or he or she is assigned to light duty or the employee's promotional opportunities are generally adversely affected because of the disability and, instead, provides that, if an employer offers an employee who qualifies for a duty disability benefit another position and the employee does not accept the offer, the employee may not receive a duty disability benefit. If an employee accepts such an offer of employment, the amount of the employee's monthly benefit is reduced by all earnings payable to the employee from the employer.

The bill also requires that an employee receiving a duty disability must be reexamined by at least one licensed and practicing physician, designated or approved by the Wisconsin Retirement Board, every five years to determine whether the employee's disability is likely to be permanent. Under the bill, the duty disability benefit for an employee is terminated if the employee refuses to undergo the examination or if the examination reveals that the disability is no longer permanent.

In addition, the bill requires the Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) to conduct a program evaluation audit of the duty disability and survivor benefits program under the WRS and any comparable program under a retirement system of a county having a population of 500,000 or more and a retirement system of a 1st class city. Under the bill, LAB must examine the history and purpose of the programs; the costs and benefits of the programs to state and local governments; any inequities, abuse, or other problems of the programs; and the similarities and differences between the programs and those of similar programs in other states. The bill also requires LAB to consider and propose changes to the design and implementation of the duty disability and survivor benefits programs.

Finally, the bill creates, as a prohibited subject of collective bargaining for municipal and state employees who are police officers, fire fighters, or emergency service providers (public safety employees), benefit features of, and eligibility conditions and methodology for obtaining and continuing to receive, any type of duty disability and survivor benefits as well as the impact of the features and such conditions and methodology on the wages, hours, and conditions of employment of the public safety employee.