DeSantis Signs Off On Law Changing The Florida Retirement System

Photo for illustrative purposes only. Photo by Ron DeSantis | Facebook

As of July 1, 2024, House Bill 151 established contribution rates funded by employers who participate in the Florida Retirement System (FRS), authorizes retiree reemployment with both compensation and benefits, and caps benefit plans.

The newly established contribution rates are meant to provide funding for the changes made by this bill and for the “cost and amortization” of the FRS’s unfunded liability risks. This bill does not change the previously established employee contribution rate at 3%.

FRS retirees are also now authorized for reemployment with FRS participating employers and will receive compensation and retirement benefits “after meeting the definition of termination”. As a result, the former “suspension of benefits” period that was utilized between the seventh and twelfth months following retirement will no longer be in place. 

Furthermore, the FRS Preservation of Benefits Plan will stop accepting new members by July 1, 2026. Before, this plan made FRS members eligible to “receive a benefit that is in excess of the annual benefit limit established by the Internal Revenue Service”. However, this benefit will now be capped at $275,000.

House Bill 151 was originally prepared by the Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee, filed on October 11, 2023; and passed unanimously in the Senate and House with votes of 39-0 and 109-0, respectively. It was presented to Governor DeSantis on April 2, 2024, and he approved it on April 15, 2024.

For complete details on this new law, click here to read the full 20 pages of House Bill 151. For the official summary of the bill, click here. 
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Article by Ema Tibbetts