State Must Return Millions to Retirees

NEWS ARTICLE EXCERPT

By: Rick Bundrett and John O'Connor, The State (Columbia, SC), May 5, 2006

The state wrongly forced thousands of retirees who returned to work under a special program to continue to contribute toward their pensions, the S.C. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday.

The much-anticipated ruling, written by Chief Justice Jean Toal, requires the state to refund the contributions - with interest - to retirees who signed up for the Teacher and Employee Retention Incentive program before July 1, 2005.

Retirees hailed the ruling, while lawmakers raised concerns about its long-term costs.

The ruling returns paid-in money to more than 13,000 participants, most of whom are teachers. Those dollars now are held in escrow.

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I feel vindicated," said David Fitzgerald, one of four affected workers who filed the initial suit. "Once in a while, it restores your faith in the judicial system."

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Contact The State archives, http://www.thestate.com/, for the full article.