FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 1408

                                  C 309 L 89

BYHouse Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Dorn, Pruitt, G. Fisher, Sayan, P. King, Holland, R. Meyers, Leonard, Patrick, Winsley, Van Luven, Cooper, Walk, Scott and Morris)

Requiring that hours worked in all eligible positions be combined to determine service credit for the public employees' retirement system.

House Committe on Appropriations

Senate Committee on Ways & Means

SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED

BACKGROUND:

To be a member of the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) Plan I or Plan II, the employee must be employed in an eligible position.  Eligible positions are those that normally require five or more uninterrupted months of service in a year for which regular compensation is paid.  Under PERS I, an employee must work at least 70 hours per month in a position for that position to be eligible.  PERS II requires that an employee work 90 hours per month in a position.  If an employee works less than the specified threshold in a position, the position is considered "ineligible," and therefore the employee does not qualify for membership in PERS based on employment in that position.

Employees who work part-time in more than one position may work more than the specified threshold when all of the hours worked in all positions are added together, but because none of the positions are eligible positions based on the number of hours worked, the employee does not qualify for membership.  For example, in school districts an employee may work both as a bus driver and food service employee.  If neither position alone provides sufficient hours for the position to qualify as an "eligible position," the employee never becomes a member of PERS and receives no service credit, even though the total hours worked in both positions exceed the minimum threshold.  Because neither of the positions are eligible positions, school districts are not required to make retirement contributions for persons holding the positions.

SUMMARY:

The definition of eligible position under the Public Employees Retirement System is changed to specify that employers may not define "position" in such a way that an employee's work for that employer is divided into more than one position.

VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      House 97   0

      Senate    46     0 (Senate amended)

      House             (House refused to concur)

      Senate    42     0 (Senate receded)

EFFECTIVE:July 23, 1989