JEFFERSON CITY—The governor today signed a bill that will make changes to the state employee pension system, one of the two measures that were approved by state lawmakers during the special session that ended July 14.
House Bill 1 , which was handled in the Senate by Sen. Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau), will modify the retirement system for any person who becomes a new state employee on or after Jan. 1, 2011. The changes will not affect current state employees.
Members of the new system established under HB 1 will be required to contribute 4 percent of their pay to the retirement system and work for the state for at least 10 years to gain ownership of their benefits. For regular retirement eligibility under the new plan, employees need to reach age 67 and have at least 10 years of service, or reach age 55 with the sum of their age and service equaling at least 90 (current employees must be 62 with five years of service or have a combined age and service of 80 years).
House Bill 1 is anticipated to save $660 million over the next 10 years. The bill passed the Senate on a 25-5 vote.
Last Thursday (7/15) the governor signed HB 2 , better known as the Manufacturing Jobs Act, which was handled in the Senate by Sen. Luann Ridgeway (R-Smithville) during the special session. This bill will provide tax incentives for qualified auto suppliers or manufacturing facilities that create or retain Missouri jobs, and though it could apply to similar companies, is aimed at enticing the Ford Motor Company to manufacture a new product line at its existing automotive assembly plant in Claycomo.
Under the bill, the total amount of withholding taxes that can be retained by any one company is $10 million a year, while the total amount of tax incentives available is capped at $15 million each year for 10 years. Qualified companies also need to meet a specific set of requirements to receive the tax incentives. In addition, companies that qualify are prohibited from simultaneously receiving benefits from multiple tax incentive programs.
In the Senate, HB 2 passed by a vote of 20-7.
Now that they have received the governor’s signature, both bills will take effect within 90 days of the end of the special session (Oct. 12).
For more information about the Missouri Senate, visit www.senate.mo.gov . To contact the Senate Newsroom, call (573) 751-3824 or e-mail newsroom@senate.mo.gov .
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