Friday, October 17th, 2008...11:31 am
Alaska Supreme Court: Pre-1977 PERS Retirees Can’t “Pick and Choose” Benefits
The Alaska Supreme Court has unanimously affirmed the PERS Board’s method of calculating benefits for State employees who took early retirement before 1977, returned to public work, and then re-retired. The Court (per Winfree, with Matthews not participating) rejected the retirees’ (apparently self-styled) right to “pick and choose” among statutory provisions to obtain the best combination of benefits. In the course of reaching its opinion, the Court held that the meaning of ”actuarial equivalent” falls within the unique expertise of the PERS board, and thus reviewed the Board’s interpretation under the reasonable basis test.
Alford v. State, Dep’t of Admin., Op. No. 6315, ___ P.3d ___ (Alaska Oct. 16, 2008)
Donna Willard of Anchorage represented the nine retirees. Virginia Ragle, Juneau AAG, represented the Board.
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