Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear plans to call a special session of the state’s General Assembly on June 23 to pass a bill that would help reduce an estimated $26 billion in combined unfunded liabilities at the $17 billion Kentucky Retirement Systems and the $15.5 billion Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System. According to a release on the governor’s website, Mr. Beshear and his staff will work with state House and Senate leaders to “finalize the details of a draft bill,” and a special session will be called to quickly pass the legislation “assuming that these final details are ironed out.”
The proposal would require new state employees to meet higher combined years of service and age requirements to retire, limit cost-of-living increases for all retirees to 1.5% annually, prohibit a second pension for workers who retire and then are rehired in state government and require new hires to contribute an extra 1% of their salaries toward health care.
