Hot Topics: Volunteer Firefighter Retirement Plan

In 2009, the Minnesota Legislature created a Statewide Volunteer Firefighter Retirement Plan (SVFRP) for volunteer firefighters who provide service to a municipal fire department or an independent nonprofit firefighting corporation. Participation in the plan is voluntary. The decision to participate in the plan is made jointly by the entity operating the fire department and the volunteer firefighter relief association. Individual firefighters cannot join the plan on their own.

The SVFRP became operational Jan. 1, 2010. It is administered by the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA) and is optional for municipalities that either do not have a volunteer firefighter retirement plan or are seeking an alternative to their existing plan.

Employers who wish to participate in the SVFRP may begin contacting PERA to request a cost analysis for the benefit level(s) requested. The governing body of the municipality must then approve coverage, and PERA will begin administering the plan the following January.

The League’s Statewide Volunteer Firefighter Retirement Plan Tool Kit was created to assist cities that want to join or consider joining the statewide plan. The tool kit contains a model resolution, answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs), a checklist to use as guidance, a copy of the legislation, and more. (The tool kit was updated in June 2010 to reflect changes made by the 2010 Legislature.)

The Model Resolution is included in the tool kit and is also in Microsoft Word format here so you can customize it for your city: