2024 MN Legislature Devastates Teachers with Pathetic TRA Pension Reform
Another Minnesota legislative session has come to an end and it's another MAJOR disappointment for members looking for the drastic improvement needed in our TRA pension. The only change of substance was what I had mentioned in my earlier update. For members who were active as of May 24, 2023 they will be able to retire at age 65 with no penalty starting July 1, 2024. WOO HOO! Oh, and we are paying for this one ourselves! Our contribution rates are slated to go up another .25% next July. Now instead of teaching 9 years longer than our former colleagues, we only have to teach 8 more years. All that with higher than ever contributions on our end!
So is there any hope? I'm really not sure at this point. I have contacted legislators and spoke to as many people as I can about it, but there is never any movement. They wouldn't even entertain a bill by Representative Nadeau that would have allowed us to retire at 62 years of age and 30 years experience and pay for it OURSELVES. Still rejected. That one really pissed me off. Funny that they let us pay for the ability to retire at 65, but NOT at 62. Hmm. I wonder why that is. They allowed the St. Paul TRA to do that after last session. I am holding out hope that Ted Seidle's investigation into the fund gives us some kind of yarn to pull, but I'm really not going to hold my breath on that. I'm afraid he will find decisions that may be "unethical" but completely legal so we will have no recourse. There's been talk in Facebook groups about trying to organize a state-wide strike to show legislators that the time for action is now, but apparently it is against state law to organize a state-wide walk out. I'm also not sure it would help us. It could end up backfiring, but they really don't have anyone to replace us. I remember Reagan ending the air traffic controller strike in the 80's by firing them all. Ha! Good luck firing all the teachers that join the walkout! You can't find anyone to replace the ones that are lucky enough to be retiring. Maybe the people calling for a state-wide walkout are onto something.
Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer, but this is the hand that we are currently being dealt. It's also looking more and more like we will not have much of a budget surplus during the next biennium, so the chances of major changes seem to be disappearing. So much for having a "teacher governor" and democratic control of both houses. Hopefully next year I will be able to give you better news. As always, Keep Stackin!
