The State of Nebraska has reached a nearly $19-million dollar settlement in a 12-year old lawsuit over retirement contributions from over 400 current and former State Troopers. The suit covers 28 years of payroll, back to 1995.
The Troopers sued in 2011 after the Legislature raised the pension contribution rates above the rates set in their contracts, going from as low as 8% for some to as high as 19%. Current troopers contribute 16% of their pay with new troopers at 17%.
The settlement of the suit, scheduled for trial later this year, was announced jointly by Gov Jim Pillen, Attorney General Mike Hilgers, and State Troopers Association of Nebraska legal counsel Gary Young.
Hilgers called the agreement “historic” and “a very good result for the state” because it “takes away the cloud of uncertainty for both sides and gives us the opportunity to close the chapter and unify.
Pillen said he was “excited to get this lawsuit behind us … and move on,” joining Hilgers in saying they wanted Nebraska Troopers to feel supported.
Investigator and troopers’ union president Dan Fiala said the settlement is “a huge morale booster” for people who worried it might never end,” adding that the money will let troopers and their families “get caught up (and) make living a little bit easier.”