North Dakota House Bill HB1112

North Dakota 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/7/25
• Refer: 1/7/25
• Report Pass: 1/13/25
• Engrossed: 1/15/25
• Refer: 2/5/25
• Report Pass: 3/7/25
• Enrolled: 3/14/25
• Passed: 3/24/25

Caption

AN ACT to amend and reenact subsection 8 of section 54-52-01, section 54-52-06.4, subsection 3 of section 54-52-17, and subsection 4 of section 54-52-17 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to membership of the public employees retirement system.

Summary

HB 1112 makes targeted changes to the North Dakota Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) for certain public safety employees, including firefighters, peace officers, and national guard security officers. The bill updates definitions and eligibility rules for membership, clarifies that some firefighter members cannot participate concurrently in another PERS-administered retirement plan, and revises contribution provisions for state-employed peace officers and firefighters. It also adjusts retirement age and service-credit thresholds for several categories of members, including special rules for bureau of criminal investigation peace officers, state firefighters and peace officers, political subdivision public safety employees, and national guard security officers. The bill further revises how retirement benefits are calculated for these groups, including service benefit formulas, early retirement reductions, and disability retirement benefits. In particular, it preserves distinct benefit structures for judges, BCI peace officers, and other state peace officers, while maintaining or modifying age-and-service combinations that determine normal and early retirement eligibility. The measure is largely a technical and policy update to the retirement code, but it affects both employee contribution obligations and the timing and amount of retirement benefits for covered public safety personnel.

Impact

HB 1112 amends several sections of the North Dakota Century Code governing PERS membership, contributions, retirement dates, and benefit calculations. Its practical effect is to refine eligibility and benefit rules for firefighters, peace officers, correctional officers, national guard security officers, and related state employees, while leaving the broader retirement system structure intact. It also affects employer contribution obligations and the administration of disability and early retirement benefits under the retirement fund.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House 93-0 and the Senate 47-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. The absence of committee transcript material suggests there was little recorded public dispute or debate surrounding the measure.

Contention

No significant points of contention are evident in the available record. The main policy issues embedded in the bill are the specific retirement eligibility thresholds, contribution rates, and benefit formulas for different public safety classifications, especially the special treatment of BCI peace officers and the exclusion of certain firefighter employees from concurrent plan participation. However, the unanimous votes suggest these distinctions were accepted as routine retirement-system adjustments rather than major disputed policy changes.