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H 7321Benefit Programs

Public Officers and Employees - Retirement System - Contributions and Benefits - Post-Retirement Employment

This bill allows retired teachers and school staff to return to work without limits on how much they can work.

Introduced
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 23, 2026Committee House Finance

Plain-English Summary

This legislation modifies the rules for post-retirement employment for specific groups of public employees. Specifically, it allows retired teachers, school administrators, and school staff to return to work without any limit on the number of days or hours they can work. Under current law, many retirees face caps on how much they can work while still receiving their pension. This bill removes those caps for educational personnel, permitting them to earn a full salary in their position while simultaneously collecting their full pension benefits.

For younger readers

When teachers and school workers retire, they usually get a special payment called a pension. Right now, if they want to go back to work at a school after retiring, they are only allowed to work a small amount of time, or else they lose that pension payment. This new rule says that retired teachers and school helpers can go back to work as much as they want. This means they can get paid for their job and keep getting their pension money at the same time.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Retired teachersSchool administratorsSchool staffPublic school studentsMunicipalities
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
None
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Helps alleviate critical staffing shortages in public schools by encouraging experienced educators and support staff to return to the workforce, ensuring students have qualified personnel.
  • Supports the financial stability of retired public servants by allowing them to earn a full salary to cope with the rising cost of living without sacrificing their earned pension benefits.
  • Strengthens the public education system by retaining institutional knowledge and mentorship capabilities that seasoned educators bring to the school community.
  • Could potentially hinder the hiring of younger, more diverse teachers by incentivizing the retention of older, retired staff in available positions.
  • May delay necessary systemic reforms in teacher recruitment, pay, and retention by providing a temporary "band-aid" solution to staffing shortages rather than addressing root causes.
  • Creates a potential inequity where retirees can collect two income streams (pension and salary) while newer workers in the same system may struggle with lower starting wages.
For Conservatives
  • Removes government-imposed regulations and caps on employment, allowing individuals the freedom to work as much as they choose in the free market.
  • Addresses labor shortages in schools efficiently without requiring the creation of new taxpayer-funded programs or expensive recruitment campaigns.
  • Protects taxpayers from long-term liabilities by explicitly stating that these rehired retirees cannot accrue additional service credits or pension contributions during this employment.
  • Facilitates "double-dipping," allowing public employees to collect both a taxpayer-funded pension and a taxpayer-funded salary simultaneously.
  • May contribute to government bloat by keeping the same individuals on the public payroll for extended periods, potentially blocking opportunities for private-sector workers to enter the field.
  • Could be viewed as special treatment for public sector union members, granting them earning privileges not typically available to the private sector workforce.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 4 additions · 10 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 36-10-36 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-10 entitled "Retirement System — Contributions and Benefits" is hereby amended to read as follows: 36-10-36. Post-retirement employment.

(a) On and after July 7, 1994, no member who has retired under the provisions of title 16, 36, or 45 may be employed or reemployed by any state agency or department unless any and all retirement benefits to which the member may be entitled by virtue of the provisions of title 16, 36, or 45 are suspended for the duration of any employment or reemployment. No additional service credits shall be granted for any post-retirement employment or reemployment and no deductions shall be taken from an individual’s salary for retirement contribution. Notice of any such post- retirement employment or reemployment shall be sent monthly to the retirement board by the employing agency or department and by the retired member.

(b) Any member who has retired under the provisions of title 16, 36, or 45 may be employed or reemployed by any municipality within the state that has accepted the provisions of chapter 21 of title 45 and participates in the municipal employees’ retirement system for a period of not more than seventy-five (75) working days or one hundred fifty (150) half days with half-day pay in any one calendar year without any forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefits and allowances the member is receiving, or may receive, as a retired member. Pension payments shall be suspended whenever this period is exceeded. No additional contributions shall be taken, and no additional service credits shall be granted, for this service. Notice of this employment or reemployment shall be sent monthly to the retirement board by the employer and by the retired member. Any teacher, administrator or staff member, who has retired under the provisions of titles 16, 36 or 45 of the general laws, shall not be limited to any cap on the length of their post-retirement employment.

(c) Any member who has retired under the provisions of title 16, 36, or 45 may be employed or reemployed by any municipality within the state that has not accepted the provisions of chapter 21 of title 45 and that does not participate in the municipal employees’ retirement system.

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section:

(1) Any retired member of the system shall be permitted to serve as an elected mayor, the town administrator, the city administrator, the town manager, the city manager, the chief administrative officer, or the chief executive officer of any city or town, city or town council member, school committee member, or unpaid member of any part-time state board or commission or member of any part-time municipal board or commission, and shall continue to be eligible for, and receive, the retirement allowance for service other than that as a mayor, administrator, council member, school committee member, or member of any state board or commission or member of any part-time municipal board or commission; provided, however, that no additional service credits shall be granted for any service under this subsection;

(2) Any retired member, who retired from service at any state college, university, state school, or who retired from service as a teacher under the provisions of title 16, or who retired from service under title 36 or title 45, may be employed or reemployed, on a part-time basis, by any state college, university, or state school for the purpose of providing classroom instruction, academic advising of students, and/or coaching. Compensation shall be provided at a level not to exceed the salary provided to other faculty members employed under a collective bargaining agreement at the institution. In no event shall “part-time” mean gross pay of more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) in any one calendar year. Any retired member who provides such instruction or service shall do so without forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefit or allowance; provided, however, that no additional service credits shall be granted for any service under this subsection;

(3) Any retired member who retired from service as a teacher under the provisions of title 16, or as a state employee who, while an active state employee, was certified to teach driver education by the department of elementary and secondary education or by the board of governors for higher education, may be employed or reemployed, on a part-time basis, by the department of elementary and secondary education or by the board of governors of higher education for the purpose of providing classroom instruction in driver education courses in accordance with § 31- 10-19 and/or motorcycle driver education courses in accordance with § 31-10.1-1.1. In no event shall “part-time” mean gross pay of more than fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) in any one calendar year. Any retired teacher who provides that instruction shall do so without forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefit or allowance the retired teacher is receiving as a retired teacher; provided, however, that no additional service credits shall be granted for any service under this subsection;

(4) Any retired member who retired from service as a registered nurse may be employed or reemployed, on a per-diem basis, for the purpose of providing professional nursing care and/or services at a state-operated facility in Rhode Island, including employment as a faculty member of a nursing program at a state-operated college or university. In no event shall “part-time” mean gross pay of more than a period of seventy-five (75) working days or one hundred fifty (150) half days with half pay in any one calendar year. Any retired nurse who provides such care and/or services shall do so without forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefit or allowance the retired nurse is receiving as a retired nurse; provided, however, that no additional service credits shall be granted for any service under this subsection. Pension payments shall be suspended whenever this period is exceeded. No additional contributions shall be taken and no additional service credits shall be granted for this service. Notice of this employment or reemployment shall be sent monthly to the retirement board by the employer and by the retired member;

(5) Any retired member who, at the time of passage of this section, serves as a general magistrate within the family court and thereafter retires from judicial service, may be employed or reemployed by the family court to perform such services as a general magistrate of the family court as the chief judge of the family court shall prescribe without any forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefits and allowances that the member is receiving or may receive. For any such services or assignments performed after retirement, the general magistrate shall receive no compensation whatsoever, either monetary or in kind. No additional contributions shall be taken and no additional service credits shall be granted for this service;

(6) Any retired district court clerk/magistrate or magistrate of the district court who shall subsequently be assigned to perform service in accordance with § 8-8-8.1 or § 8-8-16.2(e), may be employed or reemployed by the district court to perform such services as a magistrate as the chief judge of the district court shall prescribe without any forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefits and allowance that they are receiving or may receive. For any such services or assignment performed after retirement, the district court clerk/magistrate or magistrate shall receive, in addition to their retirement pension, the difference in pay and fringe benefits between their retirement pension, and that of a sitting magistrate of the district court with comparable state service time. No additional contributions shall be taken and no additional service credits shall be granted for this service; and

(7) Any retired member of the system shall be permitted to serve as a municipal employee without any forfeiture or reduction of any retirement benefits and allowances that the member is receiving or may receive; provided, that said member shall be appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the highest elected chief executive officer, as defined in § 45-9-2, in any city or town subject to the provisions of chapter 9 of title 45 entitled “Budget Commissions” relating to the appointment of a fiscal overseer, budget commission, receiver, and/or financial advisor. Provided further, that no additional service credits shall be granted for any service under this subsection.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.