Click here to download the 2016 RPEC Legislative Priorities
TOP TIER PRIORITIES
- Restoration of the Plan 1 COLA
- Restore PEBB Medicare Subsidy by increasing the subsidy a minimum of $32 per month per subscriber.
- Full funding of employer contribution rates to the pension plans
- Oppose effort to create a new state retirement plan
- Protect and Expand Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
- Access to affordable health care to all retired public employees
STATE PRIORITIES
Retirement
- Restoration of the Plan 1 COLA
- Continue to support full funding of employer contribution rates as recommended by the State Actuary
- Oppose creation of any new retirement plans for public employees that diminish benefit levels and/or compromises retirement security
- Support legislation to create an automatic default into PERS Plan 2 for new employees
- Continue efforts to strengthen the role of active and retired PERS members in PERS governance
- Support legislation to study possibility of a state based Social Security supplement
Health Care
- Maintain health insurance through PEBB at affordable costs and adequate level of benefit for those who have access
- Support the creation of a public option on the state health insurance exchange to create competitive and affordable rates
- Support and monitor the Office of the Insurance Commissioner in their regulation of Medicare supplement policies and rates to ensure quality plans are as affordable as possible
- Work to maintain and expand access to Dental coverage
Contracting Out/Privatization
- Oppose efforts to privatize or contract out public services
FEDERAL PRIORITIES
Social Security and Medicare
- Continue fight to protect Social Security from privatization
- Protect Social Security funding
- Pass legislation that eliminates the contribution cap to Social Security($118,500 in 2015) and adopts the CPI-E to calculate the cost-of-living adjustments
- Protect Medicare and Medicaid financing, eligibility criteria, benefit levels and insure access
- Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act
- Pursue affordable long-term care options for retirees
- Fight for the elimination of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) which unfairly diminishes the Social Security benefit of some public employees
RPEC ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION
- Continue to encourage RPEC member-volunteers to advance RPEC’s legislative agenda and support lobbying activities year around
As approved at the 2015 RPEC Convention