The 2024 legislative session commenced January 10 and ended on May 8.
Below you’ll find summaries of proposed legislation affecting Colorado PERA. The status of each bill will be updated regularly.
Last updated: June 10, 2024
HB24-1044
Additional PERA Service Retirees for Schools
Summary: Under current law, employers in the School and Denver Public Schools (DPS) divisions can designate up to 10 retirees who are permitted to work up to 140 days or 916 hours per calendar year without reductions to their PERA benefits. This bill would allow districts with more than 10,000 students to designate an additional retiree for each thousand students over 10,000.
Sponsors: Rep. Eliza Hamrick, Rep. Rick Taggart, Sen. Chris Hansen
Status: Passed; signed into law April 19
SB24-013
District Attorneys’ Salaries
Summary: Would increase the minimum compensation for district attorneys and assistant district attorneys, as well as allow the board(s) of county commissioners of counties that make up a judicial district, in consultation with the district attorney, to make a one-time irrevocable election to require an assistant district attorney to become a member of the PERA Defined Benefit Plan.
Sponsors: Sen. Bob Gardner, Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, Rep. Barbara McLachlan
Status: Passed; the bill was amended to remove the portion pertaining to participation in the PERA Defined Benefit Plan.
SB24-044
Public Employees’ Retirement Association Retiree Refundable Income Tax Credit
Summary: Would create a temporary tax credit of $700 for qualified PERA retirees in tax years 2024 and 2025. To qualify, a retiree would have to be 65 or older at the end of the tax year during which the credit is claimed, and have annual gross income of no more than $38,000 for single tax filers or $76,000 for joint filers.
Sponsors: Sen. Chris Kolker, Sen. Chris Hansen, Rep. Eliza Hamrick, Rep. Cathy Kipp
Status: Did not pass House Appropriations Committee
SB24-099
Public Employees’ Retirement Association Employment after Retirement for Rural Schools
Summary: Under current law, rural school districts can declare a critical shortage of qualified teachers, school bus drivers, food service workers, school nurses, or paraprofessionals and hire PERA retirees to fill those positions without having their retirement benefits reduced. This bill adds principals and superintendents to the list of qualified positions.
Sponsors: Sen. Rod Pelton, Sen. Janice Marchman, Rep. Ty Winter, Rep. Barbara McLachlan
Status: Passed; signed into law April 11
HB24-1159
Contracted Private Employee Exclusion from Public Employees’ Retirement Association
Summary: Imposes a moratorium until June 30, 2025, during which PERA is prohibited from including in its membership an employee of a third-party private entity that contracts with a public entity to perform services.
Sponsors: Rep. Don Wilson
Status: Postponed indefinitely
HB24-1169
Repeal Divest from Companies with Israel Prohibitions Law
Summary: In 2016, the general assembly enacted HB16-1284, which requires PERA to periodically identify all companies that have economic prohibitions against Israel and to divest all direct holdings of those companies from its assets and prohibits PERA from acquiring new direct holdings in any of those companies. This bill would repeal the statutory provisions enacted in HB16-1284.
Sponsors: Rep. Elisabeth Epps
Status: Postponed indefinitely
SB24-169
State Firefighter Public Employees’ Retirement Association Job Classification
Summary: Would expand the definition of State Trooper for the purpose of PERA benefits to include duly sworn employees of the Division of Fire Prevention and Control in the Department of Public Safety whose duties include structural or wildfire management, wildfire response, live-fire training, or wildfire leadership, as determined by the executive director of the department.
Sponsor: Sen. Tony Exum
Status: Passed; signed into law May 24
SB24-186
County Coroner & Deputy Coroner Public Employees’ Retirement Association Eligibility
Summary: Would expand the definition of State Trooper for the purpose of PERA benefits to include county coroners and deputy coroners.
Sponsor: Sen. Janice Marchman
Status: Passed; signed into law June 5
HB24-1427
Public Employees’ Retirement Association Study Conducted by an Actuarial Firm
Summary: Requires the state auditor, in cooperation with PERA, to contract an independent actuarial firm experienced with public pension plans to conduct a comprehensive study comparing the cost and effectiveness of the current hybrid Defined Benefit plan design to alternative plan designs, as well as providing an analysis of certain aspects of PERA’s current Defined Benefit and defined contribution plans.
Sponsors: Rep. Shannon Bird, Rep. Rick Taggart, Sen. Jeff Bridges, Sen. Rachel Zenzinger
Status: Passed; signed into law April 18