Cal Cities secures significant changes to retired annuitant regulations

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) Board of Administration voted last week to pass regulations that would define the term “limited duration” when hiring for “extra help” positions. This will change the rules, the timeline, and the type of work that certain retirees can do for public agencies.

Extra help positions are a type of “retired annuitant” appointment that allow CalPERS retirees to perform part-time, specialized work at public agencies without losing their pensions.

Previous versions of the regulations generated concern about the ability of public agencies to fill highly technical or seasonal roles. The League of California Cities successfully secured significant amendments that address many of cities’ key concerns, such as the type of work that retirees may perform.

During the latest 15-day comment period, Cal Cities submitted a comment letter requesting changes that would retain the existing extension structure of the regulations but provide flexibility that is consistent with the staffing demands of cities. However, CalPERS only made minimal clarifying changes.

What’s next?

While cities did not get their requested level of flexibility and clarity, their sustained engagement led to vast improvements to the regulations and much-needed amendments.

CalPERS provided a detailed explanation of the proposed regulations in a recent Cal Cities webinar. For additional information, please refer to:

• Proposed Regulation for the Definition of Limited Duration Employment (PDF)
• Proposed changes (PDF)
• Most recent public comments (PDF)

The regulations now move to the Office of Administrative Law for a 30-day review period. If the Office of Administrative Law approves the regulations with no changes, they could go into effect by July 1. If changes are proposed, the regulations could be sent back to CalPERS, which would restart the process. If that occurs, the regulations may not go into effect until Oct. 1.

For any additional questions about regulations, please contact Legislative Affairs Lobbyist Johnnie Pina.