As reported by NJ.com, nearly 8,000 New Jersey Police Officers and Firefighters with twenty (20) years of service can now retire early under a bill signed into law on Monday. The legislation, S107, known as the “burnout bill,” allows public safety workers who reach twenty (20) years of service within the next two years to retire with a pension, regardless of their age. Current law limits the early retirement benefit, the equivalent of half their salary, for public safety workers hired after January 2000 to those at least 55 years old.

The unions who advocated for the change said it was not creating a new benefit, but rather bringing officers and firefighters after 2000 in line with those hired before 2000. It corrects what they argued was a misinterpretation of the 1999 law creating the early retirement benefit by former Governor Chris Christie’s administration.  Opponents, including local government representatives, have said they were concerned about putting additional strain on the woefully underfunded public employee pension system and about higher bills for government employees. The nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services said it could not calculate the fiscal impact of the bill “with a reasonable degree of certainty.”

Rob Nixon, the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association’s Government Affairs Director, said historically only a small percentage of members opt for early retirement, which has a reduced benefit. “An individual member is leaving well over $1 million on the table by taking this benefit,” Nixon said, noting their early retirement pension allowance is 50% of their final salary and they forfeit post-retirement medical benefits. “Why would they take it? They take it because they’re burning out.” The legislation would extend eligibility for an additional two years, which Nixon described as a limited window to test the financial impact of early retirement.

As you can expect, the extension of this benefit is significant for all New Jersey law enforcement officers and firefighters throughout the State. However, deciding whether to retire after twenty (20) is an inherently personal decision that must be made based upon an evaluation of all the attendant facts and circumstances. As such, if you are deciding whether to avail yourself of his benefit, we are here to offer any assistance we can. Moreover, please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding this topic and other important legal developments pertaining to New Jersey Public Safety Officers.

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Photo of Donald C. Barbati Donald C. Barbati

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues…

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues litigated before the courts and administrative tribunals throughout the State of New Jersey. In addition, Mr. Barbati also routinely represents individuals in various types of public pension appeals, real estate transactions, and general litigation matters. He is a frequent contributor to the New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog, a free legal publication designed to keep New Jersey public safety officers up-to-date and informed about legal issues pertinent to their profession. During his years of practice, Mr. Barbati has established a reputation for achieving favorable results for his clients in a cost-efficient manner.

Mr. Barbati has also handled numerous novel legal issues while representing New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Most notably, he served as lead counsel for the Appellants in the published case In re Rodriguez, 423 N.J. Super. 440 (App. Div. 2011). In that case, Mr. Barbati successfully argued on behalf of the Appellants, thereby overturning the Attorney General’s denial of counsel to two prison guards in a civil rights suit arising from an inmate assault. In the process, the Court clarified the standard to be utilized by the Attorney General in assessing whether a public employee is entitled to legal representation and mandated that reliance must be placed on up-to-date information.

Prior to becoming a practicing attorney, Mr. Barbati served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Linda R. Feinberg, Assignment Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer Vicinage. During his clerkship Mr. Barbati handled numerous complex and novel substantive and procedural issues arising from complaints in lieu of prerogative writs, orders to show cause, and motion practice. These include appeals from decisions by planning and zoning boards and local government bodies, bidding challenges under the Local Public Contract Law, Open Public Records Act requests, the taking of private property under the eminent domain statute, and election law disputes. In addition, Mr. Barbati, as a certified mediator, mediated many small claims disputes in the Special Civil Part.

Mr. Barbati received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, magna cum laude, from Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Upon graduating, Mr. Barbati attended Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2007, he received his juris doctorate, magna cum laude, graduating in the top five percent of his class. During law school, Mr. Barbati interned for the Honorable Joseph E. Irenas, Senior United States District Court Judge for the District of New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey, assisting on various constitutional, employment, and Third Circuit Court of Appeals litigation, including numerous civil rights, social security, and immigration cases.