No More Double Dipping

Katy Grimes: State employees that plan to retire and enjoy the benefits of a state retirement, but then get another full time state job in order to “double dip,” will no longer be allowed to game the system — at least for six months after retirement.

Specifically, SB 1425 prohibits a retiree from returning to work while collecting state retirement, or as a contract employee, for six months after retirement, and imposes new pension spiking controls on both the California Public Employees Retirement System and the California State Teachers Retirement System.

The bill would require the boards of each public retirement system to establish accountability provisions that would include an ongoing audit process to ensure that a change in a members salary, compensation, or remuneration is not made principally for the purpose increasing retirement benefits.

Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, author of SB 1425 said, “This bill institutes uniform laws for all public retirement systems that will help to curtail an individual from taking extraordinary steps to enhance their retirement benefits (i.e., ‘spiking’). In addition, the bill requires that employees have a bona fide separation in service of six months before taking another position in public service to prevent ‘double dipping.’  The provision will eliminate ‘revolving door’ practices in which some public employees retire on a Friday and return to the same job on Monday as a retired worker.”

The bill passed unanimously out of the Assembly Public Employees Retirement and Social Security committee today.