House Retirement Committee advances a package of retirement bills, including three for the sheriff's pension

The House Retirement Committee met March 19, 2026, and by unanimous consent reported favorably a slate of retirement-related bills ranging from technical fixes for the Assessor's and Clerk's retirement systems to three measures affecting the Sheriff's Pension and Relief Fund.

Representative Wiley introduced the package for the sheriff's system, saying the proposals are intended to recognize long service, aid recruiting and give the board more tools to manage funding. "This plan is not a state retirement plan per se…we are, on or about $6,000,000,000 plan," Wiley said, describing the system's size and trustee makeup. Wiley asked the committee for favorable passage of the bills.

Skip McGee, executive director of the Sheriff's Pension and Relief Fund, summarized the fund's finances and policy goals. "Our current, funded ratio is 90.78%," McGee said, and he noted the employer contribution rate for 2027 is set at 7.75%. He described the funding deposit account as a reserve built after the 2008 market downturn and said the account is used tactically to smooth employer rates and to pay permanent benefit increases when appropriate.

The three bills for the sheriff's fund would: increase the maximum "backdrop" from four to five years (HB 33) with the added year available only to members with 35 years of service; allow actuarially reduced earlier retirement eligibility for certain hires (HB 34), permitting "30-and-out" at age 50 with an actuarial reduction relative to age 55; and authorize up to 3% above the minimum employer rate to be directed to the funding deposit account in specific years (HB 35) to give trustees more flexibility.

Actuary Greg Curran told the committee the proposals are expected to be actuarially neutral in the short term. "Our expectation for the cost on the bill would would be neutral, although there is a risk that, you know, members knowing their their situation might make better decisions than our calculated reductions would qualify for," Curran said, adding that the funding changes align the sheriffs' plan with other systems that already have similar authority.

Other bills the committee advanced included technical corrections to benefits-calculation procedures for the Assessor's Retirement Fund (HB 15), changes to COLA authority and funding rules for the Assessor's and Clerk's systems (HB 47 and HB 22), and several measures affecting governance or reporting for the District Attorney's Retirement System (HB 17, HB 18, HB 19). Presenters emphasized most of those measures were technical or intended to ensure pre-funding of COLAs and to reduce administrative uncertainty.

Committee action was by unanimous consent in each case; where members offered or approved amendments, staff read the amendment set into the record and sponsors closed briefly before the committee moved the bill forward.

Votes at a glance
HB 33 (Sheriff's Pension) — Reported favorably; motion recorded as made by Representative Kerner; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 34 (Sheriff's Pension) — Reported favorably; motion recorded as made by Representative Brass; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 35 (Sheriff's Pension) — Reported favorably; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 15 (Assessor's Retirement) — Reported favorably; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 47 (Assessor's Retirement) — Reported favorably; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 17 (District Attorney's Retirement) — Reported favorably with amendments; outcome: reported favorably as amended by unanimous consent.
HB 18 (District Attorney's Retirement) — Reported favorably as amended; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 19 (District Attorney's Retirement) — Reported favorably; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 8 (Legislative staff attendance at executive sessions) — Reported favorably; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 48 (Sheriff's Pension) — Reported favorably as amended; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.
HB 22 (Clerks' Retirement) — Reported favorably as amended; outcome: reported favorably by unanimous consent.

What happens next
Each bill reported favorably by the committee moves to the next step in the legislative process. Where sponsors asked for additional drafting or clarifications, committee staff circulated technical amendments that were adopted before reporting the bill.

Sources and attributions
Presenters and direct quotes are taken from committee testimony: Representative Wiley (sponsor), Skip McGee (executive director, Sheriff's Pension and Relief Fund), Greg Curran (actuary), Representative Ilg (District Attorney retirement bills), Representative Berrault (assessor bill), and Laura Gail Sullivan (Clerk's Retirement System). Committee action was recorded on the March 19, 2026 committee record.