UPEA would like to take this opportunity to bring you up-to-date on the Association’s efforts concerning the critical issues of retirement and health care. Over the past four months, a taskforce of UPEA members appointed by the UPEA State Board of Directors, have been meeting to interview legislative leaders, state retirement officials, health insurance experts, and others in order to prepare for the upcoming Legislative Session. The time has been well spent.
As you know, the state retirement fund has experienced significant losses due to the recession. For the system to remain solvent it must be at least 80% funded. Currently the retirement system is about 87% funded.
In order to address the losses, some organizations, like the League of Cities and Towns have proposed a myriad of solutions such as suspending the 401(k) contribution, extending the vesting period, and transitioning the public safety / firefighter years of service from 20 years to 25 years. We believe that such proposals are premature.
UPEA will join the Utah Education Association (UEA) and the Utah School Employees’ Association (USEA) in issuing a joint statement which opposes any long term changes to the retirement system based on a temporary drop in the investment fund.
The UPEA taskforce is also closely monitoring health care reform on the state and national level and will be producing a series of position papers.
UPEA is adamant about preserving your retirement benefits. The Utah Retirement building is named after UPEA’s founder and first President Leonard W. McDonald, the architect of the Utah State Retirement System. We the leadership of UPEA intends to uphold this legacy.
