- Long Beach Police Chief Billy Seal says the new 35-year service requirement that went into effect March 1 is a barrier for recruitment in all public service positions.
Bills that sought to adjust the new Tier 5 within the state Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) died on Tuesday, leaving concern that recruitment of emergency responders will be more difficult now that the new tier has gone into effect as of March 1.
The PERS Tier 5 was established during the 2025 legislative session. It increases the time that state employees are to be employed before fully retiring, raising the years of service from 25 to 35 as well as making changes how the investments are made on behalf of the employee. The new tier also increased the vesting period from four years to eight years.
Changes were made to PERS by lawmakers in an effort to shore up the state retirement system that continues to face a $25 billion unfunded liability. Each chamber had put forward legislation to inject state funds into the system.
Long Beach Police Chief Billy Seal, who also serves as the President of the Mississippi Association of Chiefs of Police, expressed his concern that the bills to adjust the new tier introduced in the 2026 session are now dead. He said that he currently has several positions open within his department, but no applicants.
While Seal said he is not certain Tier 5 is the sole reason there are no applicants, he did say it is a barrier for recruitment in all public service positions.
“The current system makes it hard to recruit emergency responders in several fields, including fire and law enforcement,” Seal told Magnolia Tribune. “To ask them to work for 35 years is too much.”
Bills that were introduced by the Legislature this session aimed to address some of the problems, such as reducing the time of service from 35 years to 30 and reducing the vesting period from eight back down to four. After Tuesday’s committee deadline passed, all bills containing changes to PERS died.
“It was very disappointing that all bills that included Tier 5 changes died in the Legislature. It was disappointing but we are hopeful that the good work put in so far will lead to improvements to Tier 5,” Seal told Magnolia Tribune
Seal added that the previous retirement system offered in Mississippi was one of the selling points of working for the state, especially in light of the lower pay offered by state agencies compared to similar jobs in the private sector.
First responders are not the only ones expressing concern with Tier 5. Teachers and other groups also affected by the new requirements have voiced the need to make adjustments to the new tier.
Lawmakers could seek to insert PERS language into another piece of legislation or suspend the rules and allow members to once again address the issue.
Jeremy Pittari
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