Thank you for your responses to our July 2005 e-mail regarding eligible positions and duties within the Public Safety Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS). Based on the feedback received, we believe the information below will clarify your understanding of the current eligibility rules.
PSERS membership, as currently defined in RCW 41.37.010 (5), is open only to employees in the following job classifications:
Employees must work full time and be fully compensated in one of the job classes listed above, in order to join PSERS. The intent section, RCW 41.37.050, states, “only those job classes specifically included in RCW 41.37.010 (5) by the legislature are public safety employees.” The list of duties provided in the intent section does not provide a secondary list of criteria that can be used to determine an employee’s eligibility for PSERS.
The Select Committee on Pension Policy is reviewing the criteria for determining PSERS eligibility and they may submit amendments to the PSERS statute during the 2006 Legislative Session. We will communicate any changes to the eligibility statute with you as soon as they become known. In the meantime, you should direct your employees who have questions to Public Safety Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) under the Hot Topics heading for the most current information.
Again, we appreciate your input as we work to implement PSERS.
Should you have questions call Employer Support Employer Support Services at (360) 664-7200, (option 2), or 1-800-547-6657, (option 6, option 2).