On March 5, the Senate agreed to amendments to SB 6197 that were adopted by the House on March 1. The House amendments exempt LEOFF 2 Board staff from civil service requirements and also allow the board to establish salaries for all its staff.

With the Senate’s approval of the amendments, the bill has now passed the Legislature and is on its way to the Governor’s desk.

LEOFF 2 bill passes Senate, working its way through the House

February 16, 2024

SB 6197 passed the Senate on February 8 with a unanimous vote. The bill carries only a minor amendment that corrects an internal reference. It was heard in the House Appropriations Committee on February 15 and is now scheduled for a committee vote on Thursday, February 22 at 1:30 pm.

Importantly for cities, the bill continues to carry a provision that makes employers liable for overpayments to LEOFF 2 retirees if the overpayment was due to the employer’s mistake and not the fault of the retiree.

LEOFF 2 bill passes Senate, scheduled for House hearing

February 12, 2024

SB 6197 passed the Senate on February 8 with a unanimous vote. The bill carries only a minor amendment that corrects an internal reference. It is now scheduled for a hearing in the House Appropriations Committee on February 15 at 4 pm.

Bill makes adjustments to certain LEOFF 2 benefits

January 19, 2024

A LEOFF 2 request bill makes changes to eligibility and benefits payments within the LEOFF 2 retirement system. The bill is up for a hearing this week.

SB 6197, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Holy (R–Spokane), comes at the request of the LEOFF 2 retirement board and makes various changes to the retirement system’s eligibility and benefits. First, it eliminates the statute of limitations for a deceased LEOFF member’s beneficiaries to apply for a $214,000 special death benefit. The benefit is paid upon a member’s death in the course of employment or from an occupational disease. Second, the bill also makes employers liable for overpayments to LEOFF 2 retirees where the overpayment was due to the employer’s mistake and not the retiree’s fault or misrepresentation.

On the eligibility side, the bill adds to the definition of “firefighter” for the purposes of inclusion in the LEOFF 2 system. The new definition includes full-time, full-compensation personnel of a fire department in a position necessitating experience as a firefighter to perform essential functions of the position. The aim of this part of the bill is to include members who are promoted or hired into positions that require firefighting experience, but otherwise do not require either responding to fires or supervising firefighters. Such positions are currently not eligible to participate in LEOFF 2 and participate in PERS.

Finally, SB 6197 permits retirees who were previously denied duty disability retirement benefits for PTSD (prior to PTSD becoming an occupational disease) to reapply for duty disability benefits. Benefits are to be paid retroactively up to the point that PTSD was made an occupational disease.

Dates to remember

SB 6197 is scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Ways & Means Committee on Tuesday, January 23 at 4 pm.