HCS/SS/SB 898 - This act modifies provisions relating to pensions.LAGERS: BOARD OF TRUSTEES (SECTION 70.605)
Currently, the governing bodies of the employers of the system elect three trustees to the Board of Trustees ("Board") of the Missouri Local Government Employees’ Retirement System ("LAGERS"). Beginning on January 1, 2025, this act provides that the employer trustee with a term ending December 31, 2024, shall thereafter be replaced by a person elected by the retirants of the system.
This act also provides that not more than one trustee elected by the members shall be public safety personnel. Additionally, current law provides that the employer trustees shall be elected or appointed officials of the employers and shall not be members of the system and no more than one shall be from any one employer. This act provides that for terms beginning on or after January 1, 2025, employer trustees shall be either elected or appointed officials of the governing bodies of the employers or executive level employees certified by the governing bodies of the employers, but no more than one trustee shall be from any one employer, and no more than one trustee shall be a policeman, and no more than one trustee shall be a fireman, and no more than one trustee shall be public safety personnel.
Additionally, this act repeals the requirements on the annual meetings and elections of delegates. Furthermore, this act states that the elections of the trustees shall be arranged for and managed and conducted by the Board. Finally, this act provides that only four trustees shall constitute a quorum of the Board, instead of four trustees consisting of at least two member trustees and two employer trustees.
This provision is identical to HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
LAGERS: MEMBERSHIP (SECTION 70.630 & 70.690)
This act repeals the provision prohibiting membership in LAGERS for employees where continuous employment to the time of retirement eligibility will leave the employee with less than the minimum required number of years of credited service. Additionally, this act provides that in the event a member's membership terminates, any accumulated contributions unclaimed by the member within ten years, instead of three years, shall be transferred to the investment income fund of the system.
These provisions are identical to provisions in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
LAGERS: COST OF LIVING CPI (SECTION 70.655)
This act provides that cost of living adjustment for LAGERS shall be a measure of the Consumer Price Index as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor and adopted by the Board of LAGERS, instead of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.
This provision is identical to a provision in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
LAGERS: REPEAL OF OBSOLETE STATUTORY PROVISION (SECTION 70.680)
This act repeals references to obsolete statutory provisions.
This provision is identical to a provision in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
LAGERS: INVESTMENT DECISIONS (SECTIONS 70.745, 70.746 & 70.747)
This act provides that the Board of LAGERS may deliberate or make decisions on investments or other financial matters in a closed meeting if the disclosure of such deliberations or decisions would jeopardize the ability to implement a decision or to achieve investment objectives. Additionally, records that disclose such deliberations or decisions are not public records and the Board shall not be prohibited from closing records to the extent that such records relate to information in connection with investments in or financial transactions with business entities.
Furthermore, this act repeals the provision providing that the investment counselor of the Board be registered as an investment advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Lastly, this act repeals the limitation that no more than 1/10th of the funds of the system be invested in real estate.
These provisions are identical to provisions in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
LAGERS: INVESTMENT FUNDS (SECTION 70.748)
This act provides that the Board may establish and maintain a local government employee retirement systems of Missouri investment fund account in which investments of LAGERS may be placed and be available for investment purposes. The funds may be combined with funds of any retirement plan administered by LAGERS and any retirement plan established for providing benefits to employees of LAGERS, but such funds shall be accounted for separately.
This provision is substantially similar to a provision in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
ST. LOUIS POLICE RETIREMENT: EARNABLE COMPENSATION (SECTION 86.200)
This act modifies the definition of "earnable compensation", as used by the Police Retirement System of St. Louis, by providing that the term shall not include any funds received through a judgment or settlement of a legal action or claim made or threatened by a member against the City of St. Louis if such funds are intended to retroactively compensate the member for the salary differential between the member's actual rank and the rank the member claims he or she should have received.
This provision is substantially similar to SB 1267 (2024) and a provision in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
FIREMEN'S RETIREMENT SYSTEM OF ST. LOUIS (SECTION 87.140, 87.145, 87.155, 87.260, AND 87.350)
This act provides that the Board of Trustees of the Firemen's Retirement System of St. Louis ("Board") shall not be prevented from simultaneously acting as the trustees of any other pension plan that provides retirement, disability, and death benefits for firefighters employed by St. Louis City. The administration of the other plan shall be in accordance with the terms of such plan. Additionally, the administration of the other plan includes the ability of the Board to establish rules and regulations for the administration of the plan's funds and for the transaction of the plan's business. The Board shall maintain separate records of all proceedings of the pension plan.
Furthermore, this act provides that the Board of Trustees shall have the authority and discretion to invest funds of the other pension plan in property of any kind. The Board may choose to invest the funds of the Firemen's Retirement System of St. Louis and the funds of the plan in the same investments if the amounts invested and the gains, profits, or losses are accounted for separately. No benefits due from the pension plan shall be paid from the funds of the System. Additionally, this act provides that no expenses incurred by the Board in the administration of the other pension plan or in the investment of the other pension plan's funds shall be paid by the funds of the System. Finally, nothing in this act shall prevent the Board of Aldermen of St. Louis City from adopting ordinances relating to the pensioning of firefighters and their dependents in regards to other pension plans administered by the Board.
These provisions are identical to SCS/SB 1404 (2024) and are similar to HB 1980 (2024), SB 349 (2021), and HB 1001 (2021).
ALL PUBLIC PLANS: INVESTMENT FIDUCIARY (SECTION 105.688 & 105.692)
This act modifies provisions relating to duties of fiduciaries for public employee retirement systems. Specifically, investment fiduciaries are required to:
(1) Not consider environmental, social, or governance characteristics in a manner that would override his or her fiduciary duties;
(2) Not be subject to any legislative, regulatory, or other mandates to invest with environmentally, socially, or other noneconomically motivated influence unless the mandates are consistent with the fiduciary's responsibility or as provided in the system's governing statutes, ordinances, charter, or documents with respect to the investment of system assets or other duties imposed by law relating to the investment, management, deposit, or custody of system assets;
(3) Not be subject to any legislative, regulatory, or other mandates for divestment from any indirect holdings in actively or passively managed investment funds or in private assets; and
(4) Not be prohibited from closing records related to information in connection with investments in or financial transactions with business entities.
Additionally, this act provides that all shares of common stock held directly by a retirement system shall be voted solely in the economic interest of participants of the system. Voting shares for the purposes of furthering noneconomic environmental, social, political, ideological, or other goals is prohibited. The act creates provisions on proxy voting for such purposes.
These provisions are identical to provisions in SB 827 (2024), are substantially similar to provisions in SB 1113 (2024), HB 769 (2023), and in HCS/HB 863 (2023) and is similar to provisions in HCS/HB 2431 (2024).
RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE INCOME TAX DEDUCTIONS (SECTION 143.124)
Current law authorizes a taxpayer to deduct a maximum of the first $6,000 of any retirement allowance received from any privately funded sources if the taxpayer's Missouri adjusted gross income is less than $25,000 if filing single, $32,000 if filing married combined, or $16,000 if filing married separately. For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, this act increases such deduction to $12,000 and increases the income thresholds to $50,000, $64,000, and $32,600, respectively.
This provision is identical to HB 2657 (2024) and is similar to HB 1423 (2024), provisions in HCS/SS#3/SCS/SB 131 (2023), in SS/SB 190 (2023), SB 241 (2023), in HCS/SB 247 (2023), in HS/HCS/HB 356 (2023), SB 448 (2023), SB 585 (2023), HB 156 (2023), HB 456 (2023), HB 662 (2023), in SCS/HCS#2/HB 713 (2023), HB 1206 (2023), SB 871 (2022), HB 2853 (2022), SB 157 (2021), SB 847 (2020), and HB 1725 (2020).
PSRS: MULTIPLIER (SECTION 169.070)
Current law provides that the normal retirement allowance multiplier for a member of the Public School Retirement System ("PSRS") is 2.5% of the member's final average salary for each year of the membership service, except if the member has 32 years or more of service, then the multiplier shall be 2.55%. This act provides that for those members with 33 years of service or more the multiplier factor shall be 2.6%.
This provision is identical to SCS/SB 877 (2024) and is similar to SB 556 (2023).
PSRS/PEERS: WORKING AFTER RETIREMENT (SECTIONS 169.560 & 169.660)
Currently, a retired PSRS member, except for those retired due to disability, may work after retirement in a certified position with a covered employer without discontinuance of his or her retirement benefits if the member does not exceed 550 hours of work each school year and 50% of the annual compensation to the person who last held the position. This act provides that the member, including those retired due to disability, may earn up to 50% of the annual compensation to the person who last held the position or 50% of the limit set by the employer's school board for the position if submitted and approved by the Board of Trustees.
Additionally, current law provides that if a member of PSRS or the Public Education Employee Retirement System ("PEERS") is in excess of the limitations, the member shall not be eligible to receive the retirement allowance for any month so employed. This act provides that either member shall not be eligible to receive the retirement allowance for any month so employed or the retirement system shall recover the amount earned in excess of the limitations, whichever is less.
These provisions are identical to provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024) and are similar to provisions in SB 1286 (2024).
KATIE O'BRIEN