Republicans on the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee have approved a budget provision aimed at reducing a practice known as “double-dipping.”
The measure would prevent public employees from retiring and collecting a pension, while also going back to work full-time at their former job. Joint Finance Committee co-chair John Nygren (R-Marinette) says the change would only apply to those working more than two-thirds time, which is just under 1,400 hours a year. Nygren called it a “very reasonable and measured approach to a situation we have had some glaring weaknesses with.”
The plan also calls for retirees to wait 75 days before going back to their job, instead of the current 30.
Double-dipping has drawn harsh criticism in recent years, after a former UW-Green Bay official made a deal to return to work after retiring, then collected his pension and a salary.
Democrats opposed the change. State Senator Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) argued it will likely hurt schools and local fire departments, which often rely on retirees to help fill jobs when qualified candidates can’t be found.