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HR-11. Volunteer Firefighter <br />Pension Benefits <br />Issue: Cities throughout the state have <br />established individual pension plans with <br />different levels of pension benefits for their <br />volunteer firefighter relief association <br />members. The efficiency of this system has <br />been questioned by various members of the <br />Legislature and by state agencies from time <br />to time. Further, in recent years, many local <br />plans have sustained investment losses. <br />These losses are required to be amortized <br />over a ten-year period. This 10-year <br />amortization period presents fiscal <br />challenges to cities that are already facing <br />budget cuts. <br />The 2009 Legislature created a voluntary <br />statewide volunteer firefighter retirement <br />plan to provide an alternative fire relief <br />retirement option to local units of <br />government, and in 2010, the Legislature <br />modified the plan to provide additional <br />benefit levels. <br />Response: The League of Minnesota <br />Cities supports the statewide volunteer <br />firefighter pension plan provided: <br />a) Participation in the plan remains <br />voluntary, not mandatory; and <br />b) The plan takes into account and <br />accommodates the different financial <br />capacities and needs of a wide variety <br />of cities. <br />The League also supports extending the <br />statutory amortization period to a <br />maximum of twenty years. <br />HR-12. Retirement Work <br />Incentives <br />Issue: Demographic experts warn that as the <br />baby boomers retire, employers will begin to <br />experience a significant labor shortage and <br />lose the substantial expertise and knowledge <br />of a fully -trained workforce. In addition, <br />retirees are living longer, are healthier, and <br />able to work longer. Therefore, one solution <br />to the coming labor shortage is to provide <br />some incentives for retirees to continue <br />working after retirement or to postpone full <br />retirement with a "phased -in" approach that <br />would allow "knowledge transfer" to take <br />place between the retiree and less - <br />experienced replacement staff. <br />In the 2009 legislative session, a Phased <br />Retirement Option (PRO) program was <br />created for PERA Coordinated Plan <br />participants. The PRO program meets many <br />of the goals of workforce planning <br />However, cities would benefit from <br />broadening the criteria for participation; <br />currently, only employees age 62 or older <br />can participate. In addition, the program is <br />scheduled to sunset in 2019. <br />Response: The League of Minnesota <br />Cities supports changes to the PRO <br />program (if actuarially neutral for PERA <br />pension plans) that would: <br />a) Broaden the criteria for participation <br />to allow employees to participate at a <br />younger age, such as Rule of 90 <br />employees, if such a change can be <br />made without damaging the tax - <br />favored status of the plan. <br />b) Remove the sunset provision to allow <br />the plan to continue past 2019. <br />HR-13. State Paid Police and Fire <br />Medical Insurance <br />Issue: Minn. Stat. § 299A.465 requires <br />public employers to continue health <br />insurance benefits for firefighters and peace <br />officers injured in the line of duty. The law <br />originally contained a provision requiring <br />the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to <br />League of Minnesota Cities <br />2015 City Policies Page 79 <br />