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Mississippi lawmakers confront PERS funding issues and first responder strain

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Ray Higgins, director of the Public Employees' Retirement System addresses members of the Mississippi Joint Legislative Budget Committee during his agency's budget presentation in Jackson, Miss. 
(AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Mississippi lawmakers are weighing how to stabilize the state’s public retirement system, even as concerns mount over what new rules mean for first responders.

Will Stribling

Mississippi lawmakers confront PERS funding issues and first responder strain

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Actuarial consultants told a House study committee that the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) still faces a $26 billion unfunded liability that’s projected to rise without new funding. Even with the Legislature’s creation of a new “Tier Five” plan for employees hired after Feb. 28, 2026, PERS is expected to remain below 60% funded for decades unless the state contributes more. 

Ray Higgins, executive director of PERS, urged lawmakers to act while the state is financially healthy. 

“You either fund it, change it, or eventually you may risk it,” Higgins said.

Higgins praised Tier Five as a helpful reform but argued Mississippi should aim for 100% funding, not just the 80% benchmark often cited nationally. “Pay now or pay more later,” he told the panel.

A major pressure point in Tier Five is the 35-year service requirement. Rep. Donnie Scoggin (R-Ellisville) said it’s unrealistic to expect police officers and firefighters to serve well into their sixties.

“A policeman … cannot work 30 years in a patrol car. A fireman, same thing, going in and out of a house that’s on fire. It’s very difficult between 50 and 60 years old,” Scoggin said. 

Scoggin plans to explore legislation that would allow new first responders to retire after 20 or 25 years, but admitted the state may struggle to afford it. Scoggin also warned the longer requirement could worsen recruitment problems. 

“If I was 25 years old and had just gone through the police academy … and I’ve got to work 35 years to be able to fully retire, that’s going to be very difficult to recruit those people,” Scoggin said.

Rep. Randy Rushing (R-Decatur), the committee’s vice chairman, said Tier Five “stopped the bleeding” but doesn’t fix PERS long-term issues. He argued the state must find a continuous revenue stream to support PERS, rather than relying on annual appropriations. Options he floated include redirecting revenue from the state lottery once its 10-year dedication to roads and education expires, dedicating money from online gaming if lawmakers legalize it or car tag fees if one is created for PERS specifically.

“We’ve at least leveled off, but now we’ve got to figure out a way to fill the bucket back up,” Rushing said.

Lawmakers emphasized that current PERS members will not see changes to their benefits.