HB 2688 Texas House · 89th Legislature (2025)

Relating to the public retirement systems of certain municipalities.

HB 2688 amends Texas law governing public retirement systems for firefighters in large municipalities. It lowers the population threshold for municipalities to establish such a fund from 2 million to 1.6 million residents. The bill clarifies "normal retirement age" as either 20 years of service (for pre-2017 hires) or age 50 with 10 years of service (for post-2017 hires). It also updates terminology related to actuarial cost methods used to calculate pension funding requirements. The bill became law on September 1, 2025, affecting firefighters in qualifying Texas cities.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
May 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
Signed into Law
Jun 2025
Introduced Mar 18, 2025 Signed Jun 20, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossed Enrolled · 7 edits · Jun 20, 2025
MODERATE
This bill updates Texas firefighter and police pension systems to align with new accessibility standards and modernizes actuarial calculations for retirement benefits. The changes primarily affect how retirement ages are calculated, how DROP (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) benefits work, and how risk-sharing valuations are conducted for both firefighter and police pension funds.
Scope change
The bill applies to firefighters in municipalities with at least 2,000,000 population and police officers in cities under the state's pension systems, with changes effective September 1, 2025.
DEFINITION

Updated the definition of 'entry age normal actuarial cost method' to clarify how contribution rates are calculated for retirement benefits.

Updated normal retirement age definitions for police officers, adjusting calculations for members hired before October 9, 2004, and those hired after that date.

ELIGIBILITY

Modified normal retirement age calculations for firefighters, particularly for those hired before 2017, to account for involuntary separation and reinstatement scenarios.

Changed DROP participation rules, limiting DROP participation to 15 years (previously 13 years) and adjusting how DROP benefits are credited to accounts.

REQUIREMENT

Revised risk-sharing valuation study requirements for both firefighter and police pension systems, including assumptions for asset smoothing and liability amortization.

TIMELINE

Added new effective date provisions specifying that changes apply to members retiring or terminating service on or after September 1, 2025.

TECHNICAL

Adjusted population thresholds from 1,600,000 to 2,000,000 for municipalities qualifying for firefighter pension funds.

Floor votes · House May 8, 2025

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
59
Key actions
17
Committee
11
Amendments
8
Jun 20, 2025
Signed into law
Signed by the Governor
executive
May 31, 2025
Upper · Passed
Signed in the Senate
upper
May 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
Signed in the House
lower
May 28, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)-reported
upper
May 28, 2025
Introduced
Text of Senate Amendment(s)
lower
May 28, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)
lower
May 24, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments Analysis distributed
lower
May 24, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments distributed
lower
May 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate passage as amended reported
lower
May 23, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee report printed and distributed
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Vote taken in committee
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Testimony taken in committee
upper
May 15, 2025
Committee
Referred to Finance
upper
May 15, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
upper
May 8, 2025
Introduced
Received from the House
upper
May 8, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed
lower
May 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed to engrossment as amended
lower
May 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
Amended
lower
May 1, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report sent to Calendars
lower
Apr 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report distributed
lower
Apr 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
lower
Apr 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Left pending in committee
lower
Apr 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
lower
Mar 18, 2025
Committee
Referred to Pensions, Investments & Financial Services
lower
Mar 18, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
lower
6 primary · 18 co-sponsors

Sponsors