S 2167Cities & Towns

Towns and Cities - Retirement of Municipal Employees

This bill increases the number of days a retired municipal employee can work annually without losing pension benefits from 75 to 90.

Introduced

Population
Affected

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Introduced Jan 16, 2026Committee Senate Labor & Gaming

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends the rules regarding the reemployment of retired municipal employees within the state retirement system. Currently, a retired member is allowed to return to work for a municipal employer for up to 75 working days in a calendar year without their pension benefits being suspended. This bill increases that limit to 90 working days per calendar year. If a retiree works beyond this 90-day limit, their pension payments are suspended for the remainder of their employment period. The bill maintains existing exceptions for police officers working private details.

For younger readers

When people work for a town or city for a long time, they eventually retire and stop working. When they retire, they get a special payment called a pension to help them pay for things. Sometimes, these retired workers want to go back and help their old job for a little while. Right now, the rules say they can only work 75 days a year if they want to keep getting their pension money. This new rule says they can work for 90 days a year instead. This lets them work a little bit more without losing their pension payments.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Retired municipal employeesCity and town councilsMunicipal hiring managersSchool committeesPolice officers

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost

Amount unknown

Estimated revenue

None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Supports the welfare of the community by allowing experienced public servants to fill staffing gaps in municipal services, ensuring vital public services continue uninterrupted.
Provides retired workers with increased opportunities to supplement their income, potentially helping those on fixed incomes cope with the rising cost of living.
Allows municipalities to utilize skilled labor without the need for expensive recruitment processes, preserving public funds for other social safety net programs.
May delay the hiring of new, younger full-time employees, potentially hindering systemic reform and the entry of diverse new talent into the public workforce.
Could be viewed as a temporary "band-aid" solution that distracts from the need to address root causes of staffing shortages, such as the need for better wages and benefits for permanent workers.
Allows for "double-dipping" (receiving both a pension and a salary), which some may view as an inequitable distribution of public resources compared to struggling residents who have neither.

For Conservatives

Promotes fiscal responsibility by allowing towns to utilize experienced labor for short-term needs without the burden of paying for new full-time benefits or healthcare packages.
Increases personal freedom for retirees who wish to remain productive and active in the workforce without being penalized by the government.
Supports efficient government operations by retaining institutional knowledge, preventing the slowdowns associated with training inexperienced new hires.
Expands the scope of government employment by keeping individuals on the public payroll longer, rather than encouraging transition to the private sector.
Allows individuals to draw two streams of income from the taxpayer (pension and wages) simultaneously, which may be seen as an abuse of the public trust.
Might disincentivize municipalities from streamlining departments or cutting unnecessary positions if they can easily plug gaps with retirees.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 6 additions · 5 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 45-21-54 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-21 entitled "Retirement of Municipal Employees" is hereby amended to read as follows: 45-21-54. Reemployment of retired members. Any retired member of the system is permitted to reenter the service of the system for not more than ~~seventy-five (75)~~ ninety (90) working days in a calendar year without interruption of pension benefits. Pension payments, however, are suspended when that period is exceeded. This ~~seventy-five~~ ninety-day ~~(75)~~ (90) rule shall not apply to police officers, as defined in § 28-9.2-3, for the purposes of their working private details, paid for by a nongovernmental entity. If the retired member continues in service beyond the ~~seventy-five~~ ninety-day ~~(75)~~ (90) period (with his or her annuity temporarily suspended) the member is not eligible for pension credit for the additional service, nor is the member required to make pension contributions for this service; provided, that any retired member of the system is permitted to serve as an elected city or town council member or school committee member and continues to be eligible for and receive the retirement allowance for service other than that as a council member or school committee member.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.