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H 7255Benefit Programs

Public Officers and Employees - Retirement System - Contributions and Benefits

This bill adds specific Department of Corrections administrative and supervisory job titles to the list of employees eligible for correctional officer retirement benefits.

Held for study
Population
Affected
8
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 21, 2026Committee House Finance

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends the Rhode Island General Laws regarding the retirement system for state employees. Specifically, it expands the list of job titles within the Department of Corrections that are eligible for the "correctional officer" retirement service allowance. The bill adds the positions of administrator of community confinement, home confinement coordinator, work rehabilitation program supervisor, supervisor of custodial records and reports, and classification counselor to this eligibility list. This change allows individuals holding these specific administrative and supervisory roles to access the same retirement benefits structure currently available to correctional officers and other high-ranking corrections officials.

For younger readers

This law changes the rules for how some people who work for the state's prison system can retire. "Retire" means stopping work when you get older but still getting paid. Before this law, mostly the prison guards and their bosses followed a special set of rules for retirement. Now, this law adds more workers to that special list, including people who manage work programs, keep track of records, or help organize where prisoners go. This means these workers will now follow the same retirement schedule as the guards.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Department of Corrections employeesAdministrator of community confinementHome confinement coordinatorClassification counselorsTaxpayers
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Expands access to specialized retirement benefits for a wider group of public sector workers, acknowledging the stressful nature of employment within the correctional system.
  • Promotes equity within the Department of Corrections workforce by ensuring that administrative and supervisory staff receive benefits comparable to the correctional officers they work alongside.
  • Strengthens the social safety net for these civil servants, potentially allowing for earlier retirement which can contribute to better long-term health outcomes for workers in high-stress environments.
  • Increases financial obligations for the state pension system, which could divert potential funding from other social services, education, or community development programs.
  • Further entrenches the "prison-industrial complex" by expanding benefits specifically tied to the administration of incarceration rather than investing in restorative justice or community-based alternatives.
  • Creates a disparity between these specific state employees and other public servants in non-correctional roles who do not receive these enhanced retirement eligibility terms.
For Conservatives
  • Supports the recruitment and retention of qualified personnel within the Department of Corrections, which is essential for maintaining law and order and public safety.
  • Recognizes the demands placed on those managing criminal confinement and records, ensuring the state fulfills its obligations to the workforce that manages the penal system.
  • Strengthens the operational stability of correctional institutions by providing competitive benefits to mid-level management and administrative staff.
  • Expands government spending and long-term taxpayer liability by adding more state employees to a retirement tier that typically allows for earlier retirement and longer payout periods.
  • Increases the size and cost of the public sector bureaucracy without a direct guarantee of improved efficiency or cost savings for the state.
  • Sets a potential precedent for other administrative state employees to demand enhanced retirement benefits, which could place further strain on the state's financial health.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 2 additions · 1 deletion

SECTION 1. Section 36-10-9.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-10 entitled "Retirement System — Contributions and Benefits" is hereby amended to read as follows: 36-10-9.2. Retirement on service allowance — Correctional officers.

(a) This section shall apply to the retirement of members employed as assistant director (adult services), assistant deputy director, chief of inspection, and associate directors, correctional officer, chief of security, administrator of community confinement, home confinement coordinator, work rehabilitation program supervisor, supervisor of custodial records and reports, and classification counselor within the department of corrections. (b)(1) Any member who has attained the age of fifty (50) years may be retired subsequent to the proper execution and filing of a written application; provided, however, that the member shall have completed twenty (20) years of total service within the department of corrections and who retires before October 1, 2009, or is eligible to retire as of September 30, 2009.

(2) For members who become eligible to retire on or after October 1, 2009, benefits are available to members who have attained the age of fifty-five (55) and have completed at least twenty-five (25) years of total contributory service within the department of corrections. For members in service as of October 1, 2009, who were not eligible to retire as of September 30, 2009, but who are eligible to retire on or prior to June 30, 2012, the minimum retirement age of fifty-five

(55) will be adjusted downward in proportion to the amount of service the member has earned as of September 30, 2009. The proportional formula shall work as follows:

(i) The formula shall determine the first age of retirement eligibility under the laws in effect on September 30, 2009, which shall then be subtracted from the minimum retirement age of fifty- five (55).

(ii) The formula shall then take the member’s total service credit as of September 30, 2009, as the numerator and the years of service credit determined under (b)(2)(i) as the denominator.

(iii) The fraction determined in (b)(2)(ii) shall then be multiplied by the age difference determined in (b)(2)(i) to apply a reduction in years from age fifty-five (55).

(c) Any member with contributory service on or after July 1, 2012, who has completed at least five (5) years of contributory service but who has not completed twenty-five (25) years of contributory service, shall be eligible to retire upon the attainment of the member’s Social Security retirement age or, notwithstanding any other provisions, effective July 1, 2015, members in active service shall be eligible to retire upon the earlier of:

(1) The attainment of at least age sixty-five (65) and the completion of at least thirty (30) years of total service, or the attainment of at least age sixty-four (64) and the completion of at least thirty-one (31) years of total service, or the attainment of at least age sixty-three (63) and the completion of at least thirty-two (32) years of total service, or the attainment of at least age sixty- two (62) and the completion of at least thirty-three (33) years of total service; or

(2) The member’s retirement eligibility date under § 36-10-9(1)(c)(ii).

(d) Any member who shall have rendered service both as a state employee under § 36-10- 9 and/or as a teacher under § 16-16-12, and service under subsection (a) of this section, shall be eligible to elect to combine the member’s service under subsection (a) of this section and service under § 36-10-9 and/or § 16-16-12 to determine the member’s retirement eligibility date under § 36-10-9 or § 16-16-12. For any member making this election, the member will receive a single benefit equal to the accrued benefit computed under § 36-10-10.2, plus the accrued benefit computed under § 36-10-10 and/or § 16-16-13.

(e) The provisions of subsection (d) shall also apply to members who have retired on a service retirement allowance on or after July 1, 2012. Any such request for adjustment shall be in writing to the retirement board and shall apply prospectively from the date the request is received by the retirement board.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.