RPEC Legislative Priorities

TOP TIER PRIORITIES

Federal

  • Work to protect and expand Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, and prevent privatization.
  • Work to improve Medicare benefits, lower costs, and maintain and expand access to Vision, Dental, Hearing and other coverage gaps.
  • Advocate for equal benefits between Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans.
  • Advocate for continued Medicare coverage of vaccines, based on science, that protect retirees and the healthcare workers who provide their care.
  • Work with Congress and the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services to lessen claim denials with commercial Medicare Advantage (MA) plans and to eliminate fraud within these plans.
  • Protect our democratic, open elections and the ability for seniors to vote by mail, to ensure retirees continue to have a voice and fully participate in the political process.
  • Work to pass legislation that eliminates the contribution cap to Social Security ($168,600 in 2024) and adopts the CPI-E (consumer price index-elderly) to calculate the cost-of-living adjustments.

State

  • Work to restore a permanent Plan 1 COLA. Adjust employer contribution rates to accommodate a permanent Plan 1 COLA like those available for Plans 2 and 3.  Include the permanent Plan 1 COLA in the projected 2025/2027 biennium contribution rates.
  • Be aggressive in maintaining and improving the financial integrity of the State retirement system:
    • Support full funding of employer contribution rates to pension plans.
    • Oppose efforts to create any new retirement plans for public employees that diminish benefit levels and/or compromise retirement security.
    • Support only those modifications to retirement plans that do not threaten the financial integrity of the retirement system
  • Continue efforts to strengthen the role of active and retired DRS members in DRS governance.
  • Work to ensure all public sector retirees statewide have access to quality, affordable healthcare and the information necessary to choose the best plans for their particular needs.
  • Ensure comprehensive, affordable Public Employees’ Benefits Board (PEBB) self-insured Medicare benefits by increasing the state’s contribution to premiums.
  • Support legislation that would propose an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Washington – through the mechanism of the State Legislature to ensure the integrity of public pensions as enforceable contracts.

FEDERAL PRIORITIES

Social Security and Medicare

  • Advocate for fair premiums for Medicare coverage.
  • Support a Federal Government sponsored Universal Health Care Program.
  • Support the full implementation of the Older Americans Act.
  • Pursue affordable long-term care options for retirees.
  • Oppose any deferment, reduction or elimination of the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare.
  • Support legislation to revise the federal tax code to reflect progressive taxation, relieving the current tax burden on low- and middle-income persons and creating a fair-share tax for corporations.

STATE PRIORITIES

Retirement

  • Work to expand access to the Minimum Retirement Benefit for Plan 1 PERS & TRS retirees who are over the age of 65 through a change to current legislation. 
  • Advocate for retirement security, particularly defined benefit-style pensions for all Washingtonians.
  • Advocate for legislation that improves access to affordable housing.
  • Advocate for correcting the regressive nature of Washington’s tax code.

Health Care

  • Support and monitor the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) in its regulation of Medicare supplement policies and rates to ensure quality, affordable plans. Advocate for the OIC to have a non-voting seat on PEBB.
  • Support and monitor the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) and Health Care Authority (HCA) to ensure quality, affordable plans, and to maintain availability of at least one self-insured retiree plan. Work to increase the state’s contribution to PEBB plans.
  • Work to ensure an RPEC member continues to serve as a voting member on PEBB or any future board that replaces it.

Contracting Out/Privatization

  • Oppose efforts to privatize or contract out public services.

As approved by the Executive Board: 11-17-2025