From the Office of Attorney General Luther Strange
(MONTGOMERY)—Attorney General Luther Strange announced final passage of a bill in his legislative package that would allow the calculation of overtime pay toward retirement benefits for state employees. Attorney General Strange advocated this legislation to provide this benefit for law enforcement and correctional officers, who often are required to work large amounts of overtime.
The Senate today voted in favor of House Bill 255, which previously had been approved in the House of Representatives. The Senate companion bill was sponsored by Sen. Jabo Waggoner, with Rep. Jay Love sponsoring the bill in the House. The bill now awaits the Governor’s signature.
State law currently does not provide for law enforcement officers and firefighters to have overtime payments included in their retirement contributions toward their pensions. This was brought to light after the Attorney General’s Office received a request for a legal opinion about this practice.
“Alabama’s law enforcement officers and firefighters make a tremendous sacrifice through long hours of hard and dangerous work to protect our citizens,” said Attorney General Strange. “We advocated this change in the law to provide an important compensation for their dedicated public service. I want to thank Sen. Waggoner, Rep. Jay Love, and the leadership of the House and the Senate for their dedication in getting this bill successfully through the Legislature.”
