HB337: HB337 State Law Enforcement Officer Plan' or 'SLEO Plan'; enact

Georgia currently has one standard retirement structure for state employees under the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia. This bill would add a new, optional plan called the SLEO Plan for specific categories of state law enforcement officers, including Georgia State Patrol troopers, Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents, game wardens, Department of Revenue alcohol and tobacco agents, Motor Carrier Compliance officers, and Capitol Police officers. Starting July 1, 2026, an eligible officer could make a one-time, irrevocable choice within 90 days of becoming eligible to join the SLEO Plan instead of the regular retirement system. Members would pay 5 percent of their pay into the system and would earn benefits under a schedule that grows over 25 years of service, after which contributions stop and monthly benefits are diverted into a Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP) account until the officer actually retires. No one could retire under this plan before July 1, 2031. The whole Act only takes effect if state actuaries certify it is funded under Georgia's Public Retirement Systems Standards Law; otherwise it is automatically repealed on July 1, 2026.

• Creates a new optional retirement plan, the SLEO Plan, for specific categories of state law enforcement officers within the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia.
• Requires an eligible officer to make an irrevocable election within 90 days of becoming eligible, or by July 1, 2026, to join the SLEO Plan instead of the standard retirement plan.
• Sets a 5 percent employee contribution rate and a tiered benefit formula that pays 10 percent of average final compensation at 10 years, increasing through 25 years of service.
• Establishes a Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP) account that holds an officer's monthly benefit payments, with interest, once contributions stop after 25 years, until the officer retires.
• Bars any electing officer from retiring under the new plan before July 1, 2031, or from getting its enhanced benefits if they try to retire earlier.
• Makes the entire Act contingent on certification that it is funded under Georgia's Public Retirement Systems Standards Law (O.C.G.A. Chapter 20 of Title 47), automatically repealing it otherwise on July 1, 2026.

State law enforcement officers in specific roles: Georgia State Patrol troopers, Georgia Bureau of Investigation officers and agents, Department of Natural Resources game wardens, Department of Revenue alcohol and tobacco or Special Investigations Unit agents, Motor Carrier Compliance officers, and Capitol Police officers. The Employees' Retirement System's board of trustees is also affected, since it must administer the new plan and DROP accounts.

Eligible officers who opt in would trade the standard pension for a plan with higher personal contributions, a benefit formula that grows the longer they serve, and a required minimum retirement date of 2031. Because the choice is irrevocable, officers would need to weigh long-term trade-offs before committing.

• Section 1 revises the definition of 'state law enforcement officer' in O.C.G.A. § 47-2-1 to list the specific job categories eligible for the new plan.
• Section 2 adds Article 11 to Chapter 2 of Title 47, creating the SLEO Plan and naming it in new Code Section 47-2-400.
• New Code Section 47-2-401 sets the irrevocable election process, the 90-day election window starting July 1, 2026, and bars retirement under the plan before July 1, 2031.
• New Code Section 47-2-402 sets the 5 percent employee contribution rate and the tiered monthly benefit percentages for years 10 through 25 of service.
• New Code Section 47-2-403 creates individual DROP accounts that hold monthly benefits with interest until the officer retires, payable as a lump sum, partial lump sum, or annuity.
• Section 3 makes the whole Act contingent on funding certification under the Public Retirement Systems Standards Law (O.C.G.A. Chapter 20, Title 47), with automatic repeal on July 1, 2026 if not certified.

1. 2025-02-11House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-10House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-06House Hopper (House)

• John Carson (R, HD-046)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)
• Martin Momtahan (R, HD-017)
• Lauren McDonald (R, HD-026)

• public pensions
• law enforcement benefits
• state retirement system
• Georgia State Patrol
• government employee benefits