Senate Passes Public Pension Reform Bill

HB 1040 includes $200m lump sum payment to prop-up current system, but will close Defined Benefits plan as of January 1st, 2025 and transition new hires to a 401k style Defined Contribution plan.

It’s been a long time coming, over a decade to be exact, and it was not looking too good a couple months ago —but, it appears pension reform will actually happen this session.

After a hour-long debate, the North Dakota State Senate passed a modified version of HB 1040 which sets the stage for North Dakota to transition away from the old pension system which currently has a $1.9 billion unfunded liability.