Assemblyman says Guinn is abusing benefits law

Friday, Aug. 31, 2001 | 10:37 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- The assemblyman who chaired the committee that processed a law allowing certain essential employees to collect both pay and retirement benefits says the law is being abused by the Guinn Administration.

Assemblyman Doug Bache, D-Las Vegas, says he will ask the 2003 Legislature to stop state administrators and other high government employees from double dipping.

Bache also called on the state Board of Examiners, headed by Gov. Kenny Guinn, not to process any more applications from state officials.

Bache said the law was intended to get retired teachers back in the classroom to lessen the shortage of instructors, particularly in Southern Nevada.

The Assembly Committee on Government Affairs, chaired by Bache, processed the bill, Assembly Bill 555.

"I am extremely disappointed that the state executive branch has chosen to abuse the law on two occasions by requesting that high-paid administrators be allowed to collect their public retirement benefits while receiving substantial salaries," Bache said.

The examiners board, composed of Guinn, Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa and Secretary of State Dean Heller, approved the request of state Public Safety Director Richard Kirkland to draw both his $103,000 salary and his $70,000 pension from the Public Employees Retirement System.

The board also approved the pension-salary plan for two of Kirkland's employees plus a limited number of parole and probation officers.

At that meeting, the board did not consider the criteria that were to be used on determining the eligibility of these persons to draw salary and retirement. The standards say they must consider if a position is critical, how long it has been vacant and the recruitment efforts. In the case of Kirkland and his two employees, the positions were all filled.

The examiners board then had requests to allow the pay plan for two positions in the office of state Treasurer Brian Krolicki and in the state Budget Office. But it delayed a decision to look at further criteria on which to make a decision.

This law was passed, Bache said, to provide an incentive for retired teachers of math, special education and English as a second language to go back to the classroom. Nevada schools, especially in Clark County have experienced a several shortage of teachers in those three areas.