Judge temporarily blocks limits on disability pensions for police officers, firefighters

Ramsey County District Judge Timothy Mulrooney has issued a temporary injunction blocking enforcement of a measure, passed this spring by the Legislature, that could reduce the size of disability pensions for some former law enforcement officers and firefighters.

Under that provision, former public safety workers receiving disability pensions could see a portion of their pensions reduced if their income from another job, combined with their pension, exceeded what they would be earning if they had continued in their original jobs.

The Minnesota Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA), which initiated the legislation and is being sued by an association representing disabled former public safety workers, "is currently evaluating all its legal options in response to this order," said John Stiles, a spokesman for Attorney General Keith Ellison, in an emailed statement.

A hearing on the state's motion to dismiss the lawsuit is slated for Jan. 31.

The primary aim of the legislation is to provide state-reimbursed treatment of public safety workers, mainly police, diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A surge in PTSD claims since 2020 — largely in Minneapolis, where George Floyd was murdered by a police officer, but also across the state — has stressed the state's public safety disability pension funds, PERA officials told state lawmakers.

It also has had a major impact on local police departments who have seen their numbers drop as officers go on permanent disability.

The legislation requires public safety workers diagnosed with PTSD to undergo 24 to 32 weeks of therapy, paid for by the state, in hopes that many of them will be able to return to work. Most of the law, including that provision, remains in force and is not affected by the temporary injunction issued Monday.

However, the legislation also specifies that public safety workers already receiving disability payments could see those payments reduced, under a complicated formula that depends on how much they earn in non-public safety jobs after they leave their departments.

The Minnesota Duty Disabled Association sued PERA and sought the temporary injunction. The new association claims 200 members, but Minneapolis attorney Marshall Tanick said that more than 1,000 individuals already on disability could face income reductions under the formula.

"Under the new provisions, there would be a significant reduction in their benefits," Tanick said. "People have had these benefits for a long time. They are vested and they should have reasonable expectations that the benefits will continue.

"Our position is that they improperly moved the goalposts while the game is in progress."

In his memorandum, Mulrooney wrote that denying a temporary injunction would result in loss of household income needed by disabled public safety workers to meet living expenses. The judge said the lawsuit meets the criteria for an injunction, including the "meaningful likelihood of success on the merits" for the plaintiff.

PERA Executive Director Doug Anderson said Tuesday that the legislation has the "potential over a period of time" to affect more than 1,000 retirees, "but not all of them will have significant reemployment earnings."

In court papers, Assistant Attorney General Frank Langan argued that the legislation "does not establish an irreparable injury" and that its provisions "are designed to promote the long-term health" of the pension fund.

Mulrooney denied a motion by Tanick for a temporary injunction on another legislative provision requiring public safety workers who apply for disability pensions, based on a psychological condition, to show they cannot perform their work duties.

He also denied an injunction to suspend a requirement that disabled public safety workers annually reapply for their disability pension and provide evidence of disability for the first five years they are disabled and every three years thereafter.