Alaska Lawmakers Weigh LNG Tax Breaks After Governor Vetoes Pension Restoration
In Alaska, lawmakers are back in Juneau for a special session focused on Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s top priority: a new tax structure for the proposed Alaska LNG megaproject. The debate comes just weeks after Dunleavy vetoed House Bill 78, a bipartisan pension restoration bill that would have re-established a defined benefit pension plan for Alaska’s public employees.
HB 78 was a long-awaited response to Alaska’s severe public workforce crisis. Since the state closed its pension system to new workers in 2006, Alaska has struggled to recruit and retain teachers, public safety officers, and other public employees. Supporters argued that restoring pensions would help stabilize the workforce and give public workers a reason to build long-term careers in the state.
Instead, the governor vetoed the bill after lawmakers did not advance his preferred LNG tax package during the regular legislative session. Now, lawmakers are being asked to move quickly on major tax breaks for a private gas line project. At the same time, the retirement security of Alaska’s public workers remains unresolved. Senate Majority Leader Cathy Giessel, who warned lawmakers not to move forward without full information, said,“We can make all these tax abatements, but how do we pay for education, public safety? Our roads, Medicaid, all of that.”
As the Senate debates whether to approve, amend, or reject the House-passed LNG tax structure, lawmakers are also raising concerns about the long-term impact on state revenue and public services. Those concerns matter. Alaska cannot build a stronger future by giving away revenue while refusing to invest in the teachers, firefighters, public safety workers, and state employees who keep communities running.
Meanwhile, the election to replace Dunleavy is heating up. This week, the 50,000-member-strong Alaska AFL-CIO endorsed Operating Engineer Click Bishop for Governor. Bishop is a 50-plus-year member of Operating Engineers Local 302 and the former Alaska Commissioner of Labor. As a senator in Juneau, Bishop was a steadfast supporter of the effort to provide a defined-benefit pension for Alaska public employees. The Alaska Primary will be held on August 18th.
Colorado Lawmaker Plans Bill to Limit PERA Bonuses
In Colorado, lawmakers are taking a closer look at bonuses paid to investment staff at the Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association following a Colorado Sun investigation that found PERA paid millions of dollars in performance bonuses in recent years.
According to The Colorado Sun, PERA paid $10.2 million in bonuses following 2022, a year when the pension fund lost $9.8 billion. PERA has defended the practice, saying incentive pay helps the system compete with private-sector firms and retain investment staff. The reporting has since drawn broader attention, with additional coverage highlighting the proposed legislation to limit public retirement bonuses.
Sen. Chris Kolker, who sponsored a 2025 transparency law requiring more disclosure around PERA’s finances and employee compensation, said he expects to introduce a bill in 2027 to prevent bonuses from being paid when the fund posts negative investment returns, even if staff outperform benchmarks. “I don’t want to see anybody making $1 million when they’re losing money,” Kolker said.
Kolker also pointed to the real consequences of investment losses for workers and retirees. “When PERA shows a loss consistently, we have to put more money in, or we have to raise contributions, or we have to reduce the inflation adjustment,” he said. “If you’re losing money, you’re not entitled to a bonus.”
Other lawmakers are calling for more discussion before committing to specific limits. Sen. Byron Pelton, who co-sponsored the transparency law, said lawmakers need to “sit down and have a discussion with PERA again,” adding that “the perception of this is not good for PERA.”
For PERA members and retirees, the concern is not just about headlines or optics. Many workers already contribute more toward a pension that is less valuable than it once was, while retirees continue to feel the impact of reduced cost-of-living adjustments. In that context, large bonuses raise fair questions about accountability, transparency, and whether the system is keeping workers and retirees at the center.
As Colorado continues to debate PERA’s long-term funding challenges, lawmakers should be careful not to use this issue as an excuse to weaken pensions. Public employees deserve a well-managed pension system that protects retirement security, uses member dollars responsibly, and keeps its promises to the workers who earned them.
New York Tier 6 Changes Are a Step Forward, But Workers Say There’s More to Do
New York public employees won important changes to the state’s Tier 6 pension system this year, but workers and advocates say the fight is not over.
The state budget lowered the full retirement age for state and New York City educators in Tiers 5 and 6 to 58, provided they have 30 years of service. For Tier 6 members, who previously faced steep penalties for retiring before age 63, that change is significant.
“It’s five years, but it’s half a decade of our lives,” said Bethany Hamilton, a 10th and 12th-grade English teacher in Sullivan County and a New York State United Teachers member. “Knowing we can go after a really humane amount of time, it’s important.”
The budget also lowers contribution rates for many Tier 6 workers beginning October 1, 2026, and raises the pensionable overtime cap for Tier 5 and Tier 6 members to $30,000 beginning January 1, 2027.
For public workers who have spent years organizing around Tier 6 reform, these changes matter. But they do not fix the deeper inequities between Tier 6 and earlier pension tiers. Tier 6 workers continue to pay into the system throughout their careers, with contribution rates that rise as their pay increases. Tier 4 members, by comparison, contribute 3% and stop contributing after 10 years.
“The way that pensions are calculated for Tier 6 members is deeply inequitable,” Hamilton said. “So what our next fight will be is to get that pension calculation, get parity with Tier 4.”
Hamilton said workers understood that full reform would take time, but this year’s progress showed what organizing can accomplish. “It was really awesome to be able to come together across sectors to rally for some change,” she said.
Be sure to check back next Friday for the latest news in the fight for a secure retirement! For now, sign up for NPPC News Clips to receive daily pension news from across the country directly to your inbox.