All Roll Calls
Yes: 498 • No: 485
WashingtonHB 20342025-2026 Regular SessionHouseWALLET
Concerning termination and restatement of plan 1 of the law enforcement officers' and firefighters' retirement system.
Sponsored By: Timm Ormsby (Democratic)
Became Law
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
38 provisions identified: 20 benefits, 5 costs, 13 mixed.
Police/fire Plan 1 ends; benefits continue
Beginning June 30, 2029, the state ends and restates Police and Fire Plan 1. Your earned benefits continue without interruption. Only former Plan 1 members are in the restated system. The State Investment Board invests the funds, and the director runs the system and sets when interest is credited. Trust fund interest can pay legal and medical costs and, in 2025–2027, some admin costs to protect the fund; recovered money goes back to the fund. The law updates legal terms and treats these workers as a separate Social Security coverage group.
Survivor checks after duty or other deaths
When a covered member dies, the spouse can get 50% of the member’s final average pay each month. Pay rises by 5% per eligible child, with a 60% cap for spouse and children combined. If there is no eligible spouse, one child gets 30% and each extra child adds 10%, up to 60%. Payments start the day after death and are retroactive to that date. A one‑year marriage rule applies for non‑duty deaths; line‑of‑duty deaths waive that rule.
Optional annuity you can buy
At retirement, you may buy a life annuity from Plan 1. The minimum payment is $25,000. You must fund it with an eligible rollover or direct transfer from another retirement plan. The department sets rules to comply with federal tax law. A special six‑month purchase window applied in 2017 for certain earlier retirees.
Line-of-duty death and burial help
If a member dies from a work injury or work‑related disease, the estate or named person gets $214,000. There is no time limit to file. The amount can rise each year by a CPI formula, with changes capped at 3% and never below $214,000. Burial expenses are also paid, up to 200% of the state’s average monthly wage.
Working after retirement: pension limits
If you return to work before a full calendar‑month break, your monthly pension is cut based on hours worked that month. The law uses 5.5% cuts per 7 or 8 hours, with monthly caps (for example, 140 or 160 hours). After the break, you can work up to 867 hours a year in covered jobs without suspension. Plan 2 and Plan 3 retirees who take certain eligible jobs, or work again as police or fire, do not get monthly checks while employed; payments restart and are recalculated when the job ends. Temporary windows allow some school jobs (Mar 23, 2022–Jan 1, 2030) and licensed nurse jobs (Apr 14, 2023–Jul 1, 2026) to keep pensions up to 1,040 hours. If you reestablish membership, your retirement ends; if you re‑retire before two uninterrupted years, your old formula and survivor choice return.
Pension cut if you work too soon
If you return to work sooner than one full month after your pension accrual date, your monthly pension is cut 5.5% for every 8 hours you work that month. The cut counts up to 160 hours per month. If the cut is over 100%, the extra is taken from future payments. The cuts stop after you take a full calendar‑month break from employment.
Plan 1 ends, new fund pays benefits
Beginning June 30, 2029, the state ends LEOFF Plan 1 and runs a restated pension. On that date, the state moves 110% of the actuarial value of all promised Plan 1 benefits into a new defined benefit fund. Any money left in the old fund moves into a pension surplus holding account and stays invested by the state investment board. The Department of Retirement Systems administers the new system and its funds. Money in the surplus account may be spent only by appropriation to implement this law, and during the 2027–2029 biennium it may be moved to the state general fund.
Police/fire disability: pay and rules
You can retire for duty or nonduty disability at any age if it has continued since you left work. You must file within one year. For the first six months, you get disability leave with full monthly pay and active benefits; with director approval, you can waive the wait if the disability will last six months. The disability pension pays 50% of final average salary plus 5% per child, up to 60%, and is reduced by workers’ comp, Social Security, insurance, or other pensions. Payments start after the six months, or are paid back to that point if you filed within a year. Exams are required under age 50; refusal can stop and, after a year, cancel pay. Criminal conduct after April 21, 1997 that causes the disability disqualifies benefits. Employers must pay necessary medical care not covered elsewhere and may reimburse Medicare supplement and Part B premiums; they can recover costs from third parties.
Plan 1 payroll contribution rules
Members pay 6% of basic pay each pay period and employers pay 6% monthly. After June 30, 2000, no contributions are required unless the latest actuarial valuation shows unfunded liabilities. If the plan is underfunded, contributions at these rates resume.
Lump sum for spouse who remarries
If you are a surviving spouse and remarry, you can take a one‑time cash payment. It is the lesser of 36 times your monthly compensation rate or 50% of the remaining pension value. Different old schedules may apply for injuries before July 28, 1991.
One-time cash for LEOFF Plan 1
If you were eligible for Plan 1 benefits on June 9, 2022, you get a lump sum of $100 for each month of service. If you retired for an in‑the‑line‑of‑duty disability, you get at least $20,000 or the larger $100‑per‑month amount. Payments were due by January 31, 2023. Active or term‑vested members earn interest on unpaid amounts starting January 1, 2023 until paid.
Options to protect spouses and ex-spouses
An ex‑spouse who already gets a court‑ordered share keeps that share after the member dies. A member may choose a smaller monthly pension so a spouse who otherwise would not qualify keeps getting a share for life; this choice is only allowed during the one‑year election windows set in law. If that designated survivor dies first and the retiree provides proof, the retiree’s pension goes up the next month.
Plan 2 membership clarified since 1977
All full‑time, fully paid firefighters and law officers employed on or after October 1, 1977 are Plan 2 members for all service. This replaces the old reference and clarifies coverage across service periods.
Work after retirement and keep your pension
After the required break in service, you can work up to 867 hours a year in eligible jobs and keep your pension. From March 23, 2022 to January 1, 2030, you can work up to 1,040 hours in a year in nonadministrative school jobs while keeping payments, if you reenter more than 100 days after your accrual date. From April 14, 2023 to July 1, 2026, licensed nurses in nonadministrative state jobs can also work up to 1,040 hours a year and keep payments.
Job disease presumptions for first responders
PTSD is presumed job‑related for covered firefighters, law officers, and some 911 staff. For listed firefighters and investigators, certain respiratory diseases, some heart problems, certain cancers, and infections are also presumed job‑related. Some cancers require at least 10 years of service and qualifying medical exams. The presumption lasts after leaving the job for three months per year of service, up to 60 months, and can be rebutted with strong evidence.
More workers can join state health plans
Starting January 1, 2024, all educational service district employees can join the SEBB insurance program. Employee organizations may opt to include their workers by agreement with the SEBB authority, and tribal schools can join with authority approval. Also starting in 2024, people who separate at age 55 with 20+ years under Plan 2 count for certain retiree health rules.
Stronger protections for your pension pay
If you withdrew service or missed credit, you can restore it under RCW 41.50.165. Taking salary reductions for benefits does not lower the pay used to calculate your pension. Retirement and disability payments and fund money are shielded from local taxes and most creditors, with exceptions for child support and certain federal orders. If you appeal a benefits decision to court, you do not have to post a bond.
Divorce orders can split pension checks
The department pays a spouse or ex‑spouse directly if a court order meets legal form and is filed within 90 days. A court cannot direct more than 75% of a retiree’s periodic check to the obligee. Older decrees from July 1, 1987 to July 28, 1991 can qualify if updated to current rules. The department stops direct payment when the obligee or obligor dies, unless a listed exception applies.
Ways to add or move service credit
If you stop working, you can cash out your contributions within 60 days, but you lose membership. If you return, you can restore withdrawn money and get past service back if you finish five years after returning. Up to five years of honorable military service counts toward your pension. You can buy up to five extra years at retirement for an added annuity. You can pay to restore or add prior service, and, in some cases, transfer old LEOFF Plan 1 service to your current plan—but that choice is permanent and gives up Plan 1 rights. Paid leave, including approved union leave with reimbursement, keeps earning service credit. A narrow group can also get credit for old Seattle police service under set rules.
Limits on suing your employer
For covered officers and firefighters, the chapter’s benefits are usually the only remedy for work injuries or sickness. Civil lawsuits against your government employer are generally abolished. If the employer’s intentional or negligent act or omission caused the injury or death, you or your dependents can also sue for damages above the chapter’s benefits.
Medical fitness rules to join plan
You must pass medical and health standards to join the police and fire plan. Employers must set up the exams and pay for them. Workers employed on or before August 1, 1971 keep coverage without meeting the new rules, including for promotions, quick rehires, and certain reinstatements. Small jurisdictions have limited exceptions, and chiefs and elected sheriffs have an age exception. People restoring contributions can get a one‑year age waiver. The rule does not apply to people who first joined on or after July 1, 1979.
Retirement age and benefit formula
You can retire at age 50 with at least five years of service. If you leave earlier with five years, you can keep your money in the plan and apply at age 50. At age 60, you must retire, with limited exceptions for certain chiefs and some pre‑1970 employees. Your benefit uses your final average pay and years of service: 1.0% per year for 5–9 years, 1.5% for 10–19, and 2.0% for 20+. Four months after this section takes effect, people with under five years who retire get 1.0% per year.
State funding rules for restated plan
The state funds the restated LEOFF defined benefit plan using contribution rates set under state law and deposits them into the new fund. If the plan ever has an unfunded liability, the state must pay it down using an actuarial policy over reasonable periods. Costs of benefit changes that took effect from July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2025 are spread over 15 years. The contribution rate tied to those costs is set to zero from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2029.
Actuary check and IRS safeguards before 2029
By December 31, 2028, the state actuary must calculate the actuarial value of all projected Plan 1 benefits as of June 30, 2029. The department must seek IRS guidance to keep the plan tax‑qualified. If the IRS requires changes, the department reports findings to the governor and legislators. Any funds that reverted to the state but must return to the plan are sent back with interest set by the director.
Annual cost-of-living raises for retirees
Each year, retirement checks that have been in place more than one year rise with the Seattle CPI. Local boards measure the CPI change from January 1 to December 31 and apply it with the July payment. Some older, pre‑1961 benefits get at least a 2% minimum increase. Increases build on each other and are paid monthly.
Annual raises for local firefighter pensions
Local boards check the Seattle CPI each spring. They raise municipal and fire‑district pensions paid after July 1 by that change, with at least a 2% yearly increase. The increases are cumulative and paid monthly.
How to appeal pension and disability decisions
If a disability board denies benefits or cancels an allowance, you must appeal to the director within 30 days. The board must send its decision and records to the director within 90 days. If you disagree with the director’s final decision, you must ask for a hearing within 60 days. The director holds a new hearing in your county, and court review follows state administrative law.
Employers may pay your pension share
Public employers can choose to pay all member retirement contributions. This can raise your take‑home pay and change taxable wages. An employer may start or stop this only once per year and must give the retirement department 45 days’ notice. Some employers named in law are excluded.
State pays some prison‑aid injury costs
The state reimburses cities and counties for costs from injuries that happen while they carry out an approved prison contingency plan. Reimbursement only covers injuries inside a named perimeter, or from extra requested aid if no perimeter is named. The state does not reimburse injuries from unrequested actions or disobeying orders.
City and county disability boards required
Cities with 20,000+ people and all counties must have five‑member disability boards. Fire and police elect one member each; other members come from local government and the public. Members serve two‑year terms, with alternates allowed if needed. The director sets rules on evidence and exam frequency and reviews board orders, with power to affirm, send back, or reverse decisions.
Restated fund shares investment earnings
The restated LEOFF pension fund now gets a proportional share of monthly investment earnings based on average daily balances. Monthly earnings otherwise go to the state general fund, except named accounts that get their share. Some accounts receive 80% of their share, and bank service fees are paid first.
Cities can keep extra pension levy
A city or town may continue an extra property tax of $0.225 per $1,000 of assessed value. The money must first pay listed firefighter or police pension benefits each year. The levy can continue until the city has no more of those beneficiaries.
Admin costs, employer reporting, and fees
The department pays system administration costs from its expense fund and bills employers for their share. The director may change billing rates and charge fees for late or inaccurate employer reports. Employers must send member data in the department’s format or pay extra fees. During the 2025–2027 biennium, lawmakers may move money from the department’s expense fund to the state general fund.
Employers billed for excess compensation costs
When a retiree’s benefits include excess compensation, the employer must pay the present value of added costs when billed. This applies to retirements on or after March 15, 1984. The director does not bill amounts under $50. Unpaid accounts over 30 days are charged 1% interest per month.
Higher driving‑record fees and privacy
You pay $15 for each driving‑record abstract now; starting July 1, 2029, you pay $17. City and county prosecutors do not pay when using abstracts in a criminal case. For three‑year abstracts to insurers, duty‑driving entries for officers, firefighters, patrol officers, and registered tow operators are left out if no citation was issued. This exclusion does not apply if the vehicle was used in a misdemeanor or felony.
Legacy police and fire membership rules
Reserve officers do not earn retirement under the listed state pension chapters for that service. Law enforcement and firefighters in LEOFF or Plan 2 are treated as a separate Social Security coverage group. Old transfer windows let some former city employees move past service into police or firefighter pensions, but those windows closed in 1973–1974.
Anti-fraud and local board rules
Knowingly falsifying retirement records to defraud the system is a Class B felony. If no eligible employed or retired firefighters can serve, a widow or widower, or any resident firefighter, may serve on a municipal pension board. County and city disability board members are not paid for serving, but their expenses are reimbursed as allowed by law.
Oversight study and legal deadlines
The select committee on pension policy must study who should oversee the restated system and Plan 1 boards and medical liabilities, and report by December 31, 2028. Chapter 236, Laws of 2012 now governs future eligibility decisions and does not overturn past state supreme court rulings. Any claim challenging sections 101–108 must be filed by December 31, 2027, or it is barred. The retirement department must mail notice of this deadline to Plan 1 members, retirees, and spousal survivors.
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Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsor
Timm Ormsby
Democratic • House
Cosponsors
Joe Fitzgibbon
Democratic • House
Mia Gregerson
Democratic • House
Nicole Macri
Democratic • House
Roll Call Votes
House vote • 3/12/2026
Final Passage as Amended by the Senate
Yes: 50 • No: 46 • Other: 2
Senate vote • 3/6/2026
3rd Reading & Final Passage as Amended by the Senate
Yes: 25 • No: 22 • Other: 1
House vote • 2/13/2026
1706 Fitzgibbon Pg 166 Ln 12
Yes: 93 • No: 0 • Other: 5
House vote • 2/13/2026
1770 Jacobsen Pg 4 Ln 33
Yes: 42 • No: 52 • Other: 4
House vote • 2/13/2026
1771 Keaton Pg 4 Ln 34
Yes: 38 • No: 55 • Other: 5
House vote • 2/13/2026
1774 Griffey Pg 4 Ln 34
Yes: 40 • No: 53 • Other: 5
House vote • 2/13/2026
1769 Dye Pg 4 Ln 33
Yes: 41 • No: 53 • Other: 4
House vote • 2/13/2026
3rd Reading & Final Passage
Yes: 55 • No: 39 • Other: 4
House vote • 2/13/2026
1775 Burnett Pg 19 Ln 14
Yes: 38 • No: 55 • Other: 5
House vote • 2/13/2026
1772 Schmick Pg 4 Ln 34
Yes: 39 • No: 54 • Other: 5
House vote • 2/13/2026
1773 Barkis Pg 4 Ln 34
Yes: 37 • No: 56 • Other: 5
Actions Timeline
Effective date 6/30/2029*.
4/1/2026HouseChapter 261, 2026 Laws.
4/1/2026HouseGovernor signed.
4/1/2026legislatureDelivered to Governor.
3/12/2026legislatureSpeaker signed.
3/12/2026legislaturePresident signed.
3/12/2026legislaturePassed final passage; yeas, 50; nays, 46; absent, 0; excused, 2.
3/12/2026HouseHouse concurred in Senate amendments.
3/12/2026HouseThird reading, passed; yeas, 25; nays, 22; absent, 1; excused, 1.
3/6/2026HouseRules suspended. Placed on Third Reading.
3/6/2026HouseCommittee amendment(s) adopted as amended.
3/6/2026HousePlaced on second reading by Rules Committee.
3/5/2026HouseMinority; without recommendation.
3/2/2026HouseMinority; do not pass.
3/2/2026HouseWM - Majority; do pass with amendment(s).
3/2/2026HousePassed to Rules Committee for second reading.
3/2/2026HouseFirst reading, referred to Ways & Means.
2/17/2026HouseThird reading, passed; yeas, 55; nays, 39; absent, 0; excused, 4.
2/13/2026HouseRules suspended. Placed on Third Reading.
2/13/2026HouseFloor amendment(s) adopted.
2/13/2026House2nd substitute bill substituted.
2/13/2026HouseRules Committee relieved of further consideration. Placed on second reading.
2/11/2026HouseReferred to Rules 2 Review.
2/9/2026HouseAPP - Majority; 2nd substitute bill be substituted, do pass.
2/7/2026HouseMinority; do not pass.
2/7/2026House
Bill Text
Session Law
4/2/2026
Bill as Passed Legislature
3/12/2026
Engrossed Second Substitute
2/14/2026
Second Substitute
2/10/2026
Substitute Bill
4/8/2025
Original Bill
3/7/2025
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