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The head of the Public Employee Benefits Program assured lawmakers Wednesday that school and local government retirees won't be left without access to benefits if their former employer leaves the state program.
Assemblyman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, a retired teacher himself, raised the issue saying he was concerned about what could happen to a worker who retired while his public employer was a member of PEBP, but then decided to leave and get a private benefits program for workers.
Under the new law designed to keep local governments from dumping retirees on the state plan, that retiree would then no longer be eligible to stay with PEBP because only public entities that have active workers in the state's plan can send their retirees to it.
Anderson said he wasn't sure the law would provide that employee access to benefits from the new plan offered by that employer.
Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea, R-Eureka, said he too was concerned if a local government dropped out of PEBP, it would leave a retiree without access to coverage.
Leslie Johnstone, executive officer of PEBP, confirmed that, if an employer pulls out of PEBP, "their active employees as well as retirees who are in PEBP will no longer be eligible."
But after reviewing the statute, she told members of the Legislative Commission that the retiree would be able to get coverage from the former employer.
"The re-enrollment rights are to whatever benefits that employer is now offering," she said. "I believe the intent is for the retiree to have a plan to go back to."
Commission Chairman Sen. Randolph Townsend, R-Reno, thanked Johnstone for the assurances, saying questions involving benefits "are very, very sensitive issues to our employees."
Anderson also questioned new regulations implementing the "sunshine" statutes mandating all information about appeals to the Tax Commission be public unless it can specifically be shown to be proprietary or confidential. He questioned the impact it would have to automatically make business information in an appeal public in that manner.
Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said that was precisely the intent of the legislation.
"We made it very clear the only items that can be kept confidential are the proprietary items," she said. "The presumption is everything else is open and public."
She said that is the public policy adopted during the 2007 Legislature.
Assemblyman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, a retired teacher himself, raised the issue saying he was concerned about what could happen to a worker who retired while his public employer was a member of PEBP, but then decided to leave and get a private benefits program for workers.
Under the new law designed to keep local governments from dumping retirees on the state plan, that retiree would then no longer be eligible to stay with PEBP because only public entities that have active workers in the state's plan can send their retirees to it.
Anderson said he wasn't sure the law would provide that employee access to benefits from the new plan offered by that employer.
Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea, R-Eureka, said he too was concerned if a local government dropped out of PEBP, it would leave a retiree without access to coverage.
Leslie Johnstone, executive officer of PEBP, confirmed that, if an employer pulls out of PEBP, "their active employees as well as retirees who are in PEBP will no longer be eligible."
But after reviewing the statute, she told members of the Legislative Commission that the retiree would be able to get coverage from the former employer.
"The re-enrollment rights are to whatever benefits that employer is now offering," she said. "I believe the intent is for the retiree to have a plan to go back to."
Commission Chairman Sen. Randolph Townsend, R-Reno, thanked Johnstone for the assurances, saying questions involving benefits "are very, very sensitive issues to our employees."
Anderson also questioned new regulations implementing the "sunshine" statutes mandating all information about appeals to the Tax Commission be public unless it can specifically be shown to be proprietary or confidential. He questioned the impact it would have to automatically make business information in an appeal public in that manner.
Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said that was precisely the intent of the legislation.
"We made it very clear the only items that can be kept confidential are the proprietary items," she said. "The presumption is everything else is open and public."
She said that is the public policy adopted during the 2007 Legislature.
