Bill Summary for S 707 (2025-2026)

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Summary date: 

Apr 1 2025

Bill Information:

View NCGA Bill Details(link is external)2025-2026 Session
Senate Bill 707 (Public) Filed Tuesday, March 25, 2025
AN ACT ALLOWING LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHO ARE MEMBERS OF THE TEACHERS' AND STATE EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM OR THE LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM TO RETIRE WITH UNREDUCED BENEFITS AFTER ACHIEVING TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF CREDITABLE SERVICE AND MAKING CONFORMING CHANGES TO THE RELATED LAWS.
Intro. by Smith, Garrett, Waddell.

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Bill summary

Amends law enforcement retirement benefits GS 135-5 (Benefits under the Retirement System for Teachers and State Employees-TSERS) and GS 128-27 (Local Government Employees Referment System-LGERS), as follows.

Effective January 1, 2026, only requires that a person have twenty-five years of credible service for a person to qualify that eligibility option for retirement (currently, a person must twenty-five years of credible service, with at least fifteen of those years in law enforcement).  

Specifies that the service retirement allowance for members retiring on or after July 1, 2019, now only applies to those members retiring after that date but before January 1, 2026. Creates a service retirement allowance, computed as specified for members retiring on or after January 1, 2026. Creates two prongs of eligibility for law enforcement officers: one for those officers whose service retirement date occurs on or after the member's 55th birthday and completion of five years of creditable service as a law enforcement officer or after the completion of 25 years of creditable service and the second for those officers whose service retirement date occurs on or after the member's 50th birthday and before the member's 55th birthday and after the completion of 15 or more years of creditable service as a law enforcement officer but before the completion of 25 years of creditable service. Imports the eligibility and calculation requirements for members who are not law enforcement from the service retirement allowance for members retiring between January 1, 2019, and January 1, 2026.  

Effective January 1, 2026, makes technical and conforming changes to the survivor’s alternate benefit provisions. 

Reduces the amount of credible service a State (GS 143-166.41) or local (GS 143-166.42) law enforcement officer must complete to be eligible for a special separation allowance from 30 years to 25 years of service. Defines allowance, law enforcement officer, officer, and in GS 143-166.41 only, probation/parole officer. Makes organizational and technical changes. Effective January 1, 2026, and applies to law enforcement officers retiring on or after that date.