termination

Section 10 governs the retirement rights of members whose public employment ends before they would otherwise reach full superannuation retirement age. It establishes eligibility for superannuation or termination retirement allowances for members who resign, are removed, fail of reappointment, or whose positions are abolished, based on years of creditable service and age. Pre-April 2, 2012 members with 20 or more years of creditable service may retire immediately; those with 10 or more years may defer their allowance to age 55. Post-April 2, 2012 members must have 10 years of service and wait until minimum retirement age. The section also addresses the right to defer receipt of an allowance and return of accumulated total deductions.

Section 11 governs the return of accumulated total deductions to members who are not entitled to a retirement allowance, and the distribution of those deductions to beneficiaries upon a member's death before retirement. It establishes the 60-day payment timeline, a reduced interest rate (3%) for members who leave with fewer than 120 months of service after January 1, 1984, and procedures for the IV-D child support agency to intercept refunds when a member owes child support arrears. The section also addresses dormant accounts — transferring unclaimed deductions to the Pension Reserve Fund after 10 years — and establishes the rights of claimants to recover such transferred amounts.

Section 90 exempts police and fire department members whose service ends by retirement or other termination at age 70 from the civil service layoff protections in chapter 31, sections 41–45, and a related 1923 act provision.

Section 91 generally prohibits retirees receiving pensions from also being paid for public service, with specific exceptions (jury duty, elected office, emergency service, medical panels, etc.); paragraph (b) allows retirees to work up to 1,200 hours/year as long as combined earnings and pension don't exceed the current salary for the retired position plus $15,000.

This memo announces that PERAC's annual review of medical testing fees under 840 CMR 10:10(3) and 10:15(1)(c) has resulted in no change for 2024. The Commission voted at its December 13, 2023 meeting to continue allowing PERAC staff to approve up to $100.00 per case for non-invasive medical tests ordered by a Regional Medical Panel. Tests exceeding that amount still require advance Commission approval. No action is required from boards beyond being aware of this continuing limit.

PERAC releases an updated Application for Reinstatement to Service form under G.L. c. 32 § 105, effective July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025. This form is used when a superannuation or termination retiree wishes to return to active public employment; signing it converts the individual from retiree status back to member-in-service status. Because reinstatement may require repayment of large sums and mandates at least five years of subsequent full-time employment, boards are urged to counsel members carefully before they proceed.

Chapter 141 of the Acts of 2024 amends G.L. c. 32, § 91(b) to allow retirees returning to public-sector employment to use whichever is greater — the current salary for the position from which they retired, or the salary upon which their retirement allowance was based — when calculating their allowable earnings. The change directly overrides a 2024 CRAB decision in Dixon v. Lynn Ret. Sys. that had forced use of the current position salary only, which sometimes left retirees with no earnings capacity. Retirees who had previously been calculated using the pension-based salary are held harmless and do not need to be recalculated.

PERAC asks boards to review and update all disability retiree records in PROSPER — including deaths, nursing home placements, address changes, allowance waivers, and returns to active status — no later than January 17, 2025, so the database is accurate before 91A forms are mailed. New for the 2024 filing year, all disability retirees will be able to file their 91A (Annual Statement of Earned Income) form electronically; PERAC will notify members via postcard in January and boards should include email addresses when updating PROSPER records. Completed 91A forms should be returned to PERAC's new Medford address by April 15, 2025.

This memo announces that PERAC's annual review of medical testing fees under 840 CMR 10:10(3) and 10:15(1)(c) has resulted in no change for 2025. The Commission voted at its December 18, 2024 meeting to continue allowing PERAC staff to approve up to $100.00 per case for non-invasive medical tests ordered by a Regional Medical Panel. Tests exceeding that amount still require advance Commission approval. No action is required from boards beyond being aware of this continuing limit.

This memo transmits an updated list of public employees who have forfeited their retirement allowance eligibility under G.L. c. 32, § 15 due to misappropriation of funds, conviction of crimes related to governmental funds, or other enumerated offenses, and are therefore no longer statutorily eligible to join a Chapter 32 retirement system. Boards are required to review the attached list (sorted both alphabetically by name and by board) and notify PERAC of any discrepancies, and boards that have any of the listed forfeited members currently active in their system must contact PERAC to verify identity using the last four digits of the member's Social Security number. This is an annual compliance task requiring boards to cross-reference their active membership against the forfeiture list.

This memo transmits the updated Application for Reinstatement to Service from Superannuation/Termination Retirement under G.L. c. 32, § 105, which is effective July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024. Boards are instructed to complete the first section of the form and provide it to any interested retirees, who upon signing are converted from retiree to member-in-service status; boards should carefully counsel members about the requirements, including repayment of large amounts and the requirement to work at least five years of full-time employment before the reinstatement fully takes effect. Boards with investment return assumptions not shown on the form should contact PERAC's actuarial unit for custom factors.

This memo transmits an updated list of all public employees who have forfeited eligibility to join a Chapter 32 retirement system under G.L. c. 32, § 15 due to misappropriation of funds or conviction of enumerated crimes. Boards are asked to review the attached alphabetical lists and notify PERAC of any discrepancies; if any forfeited member appears active in a board's system, boards must contact Doreen Duane with the last four digits of the member's Social Security number to confirm the individual's identity.

Chapter 80 of the Acts of 2022, signed June 7, 2022, waives the post-retirement earnings and hours restrictions of G.L. c. 32, § 91(b) and (c) for superannuation retirees working in the public sector for calendar year 2022, effective retroactively to January 1, 2022. The waiver will remain in place through December 31, 2022 or up to 90 days after the end of the declared Public Health Emergency, whichever comes first, and does not apply to disability retirees. Compliance with post-retirement restrictions remains the statutory responsibility of the employee and the employer.

This memo announces an updated version of the PERAC Application for Reinstatement to Service from Superannuation/Termination Retirement under G.L. c. 32, § 105, effective July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023. Boards are directed to carefully counsel members interested in reinstatement, as applicants must repay retirement allowances received and work at least five years of full-time employment after reinstatement. Upon signing the form, the member transitions from retiree status back to member-in-service status.

This memo provides a corrected list of public employees whose pension benefits have been forfeited as of July 2017, noting that one member (Steven Pereira) was incorrectly included on the prior list and should be removed. Boards with any forfeited member on the attached list who are active in their system should contact Kim Boisvert at PERAC with the last four digits of the member's Social Security number to verify the match.