Rhode Island SB 2456: AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION -- TEACHERS' RETIREMENT (SEE TITLE 16 CHAPTER 97-THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT) (Effective January 1, 2023, the current COLA suspension schedule would be replaced with a fractional annual COLA of twenty-five percent (25%) of the COLA declared for that plan year, as it pertains to retired teachers, state and municipal employees.)

Bill Text

2022 -- S 2456
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LC004814
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022
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A N A C T
RELATING TO EDUCATION -- TEACHERS' RETIREMENT (SEE TITLE 16 CHAPTER 97-
THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT)
Introduced By: Senators Sosnowski, Miller, Picard, DiPalma, and Murray
Date Introduced: March 01, 2022
Referred To: Senate Finance

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 16-16-40 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-16 entitled "Teachers' 1
Retirement [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]" is hereby 2
amended to read as follows: 3
16-16-40. Additional benefits payable to retired teachers. 4
(a) All teachers and all beneficiaries of teachers receiving any service retirement or 5
ordinary or accidental disability retirement allowance pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and 6
chapter 17 of this title, on or before December 31, 1967, shall receive a cost of living retirement 7
adjustment equal to one and one-half percent (1.5%) per year of the original retirement allowance, 8
not compounded, for each year the retirement allowance has been in effect. For purposes of 9
computation credit shall be given for a full calendar year regardless of the effective date of the 10
retirement allowance. This cost of living retirement adjustment shall be added to the amount of the 11
service retirement allowance as of January 1, 1970, and payment shall begin as of July 1, 1970. An 12
additional cost of living retirement adjustment shall be added to the original retirement allowance 13
equal to three percent (3%) of the original retirement allowance on the first day of January, 1971, 14
and each year thereafter through December 31, 1980. 15
(b) All teachers and beneficiaries of teachers receiving any service retirement or ordinary 16
disability retirement allowance pursuant to the provisions of this title who retired on or after January 17
1, 1968, shall, on the first day of January, next following the third (3rd) year on retirement, receive 18

LC004814 - Page 2 of 16
a cost of living adjustment, in addition to his or her retirement allowance, an amount equal to three 1
percent (3%) of the original retirement allowance. In each succeeding year thereafter, on the first 2
day of January, the retirement allowance shall be increased an additional three percent (3%) of the 3
original retirement allowance, not compounded, to be continued through December 31, 1980. 4
(c)(1) Beginning on January 1, 1981, for all teachers and beneficiaries of teachers receiving 5
any service retirement and all teachers and all beneficiaries of teachers who have completed at least 6
ten (10) years of contributory service on or before July 1, 2005, pursuant to the provisions of this 7
chapter, and for all teachers and beneficiaries of teachers who receive a disability retirement 8
allowance pursuant to §§ 16-16-14 -- 16-16-17, the cost of living adjustment shall be computed 9
and paid at the rate of three percent (3%) of the original retirement allowance or the retirement 10
allowance as computed in accordance with § 16-16-40.1, compounded annually from the year for 11
which the cost of living adjustment was determined to be payable by the retirement board pursuant 12
to the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this section. Such cost of living adjustments are available 13
to teachers who retire before October 1, 2009, or are eligible to retire as of September 30, 2009. 14
(2) The provisions of this subsection shall be deemed to apply prospectively only and no 15
retroactive payment shall be made. 16
(3) The retirement allowance of all teachers and all beneficiaries of teachers who have not 17
completed at least ten (10) years of contributory service on or before July 1, 2005, or were not 18
eligible to retire as of September 30, 2009, shall, on the month following the third anniversary date 19
of the retirement, and on the month following the anniversary date of each succeeding year be 20
adjusted and computed by multiplying the retirement allowance by three percent (3%) or the 21
percentage of increase in the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers (CPI-U) as published 22
by the United States Department of Labor Statistics, determined as of September 30 of the prior 23
calendar year, whichever is less; the cost of living adjustment shall be compounded annually from 24
the year for which the cost of living adjustment was determined payable by the retirement board; 25
provided, that no adjustment shall cause any retirement allowance to be decreased from the 26
retirement allowance provided immediately before such adjustment. 27
(d) For teachers not eligible to retire in accordance with this chapter as of September 30, 28
2009, and not eligible upon passage of this article, and for their beneficiaries, the cost of living 29
adjustment described in subsection (3) above shall only apply to the first thirty-five thousand 30
dollar