PERA Correctional Plan update

I attended the PERA Board meeting today. There was a motion to reduce our COLA to a 1% floor then tie it to Cost of Living (CPI).

They said they spoke to the "stakeholders" Teamsters Local 320 and AFSCME and they were on board!

They let me address them. Several Board Members thought it unfair to cut us from 2.5% to 1% like the General Plan as our numbers were where they wished all the plans were!

I explained that the MNPEA had majority of CO's, Teamsters lost almost all of theirs to MNPEA and AFSCME only had 100 at the Hennepin County Workhouse.

State Auditor Rebecca Otto made a motion that they contact MNPEA and reconvene in January as not all of the stakeholders had been contacted.

PERA Executive Director Doug Anderson and I spoke and exchanged contact info. He emailed me and I gave him the phone number of Tom Perkins, VP of MNPEA (and author of the PERA Correctional Pension). I also was stopped by reps from the League of Minnesota Cities and the League of Minnesota County's afterwards and we talked at length.

Executive Director Doug Anderson and MNPEA Vice President Tom Perkins will speak tomorrow, Dec. 15th.

The PERA Board will reconvene Jan. 12, 2018 and discuss their findings and make recommendations to the legislature soon after.

My local State Rep. Abigail Whelan spoke to Rep. O'Discoll about our concerns. Both of them recommend talking to your local reps and the PERA Board.

PERA will be making recommendations to the legislature next month. Don't wait!