House votes 50-17 to approve ERB solvency fix

SANTA FE — A bill aimed at shoring up the cash-strapped public retirement system for teachers and other education workers took a big step forward today, with House members voting 50-17 in favor of the legislation.

Among other changes, House Bill 64 calls for current employees to funnel more of their paychecks toward their retirement starting in July. It also counts on taxpayer-funded government contributions to go up to the level set by the Legislature in 2005 but put off in recent lean budget years.

Rep. Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, the bill’s sponsor, said the legislation was crafted after a number of meetings held by the Educational Retirement Board with union leaders, retiree groups and others.

She said the ERB plan had more consensus than previous proposed solvency fixes, saying, “We’ve been trying to fix this now for four or five years.”

However, some Republican House members expressed concerns that the legislation would punish future workers unfairly, while largely sparing current employees and retirees from benefit cuts.

All 17 votes against the bill were cast by GOP House members. Three legislators were absent for the vote.

The legislation now moves on to the Senate, where a similar bill is pending.