Governor Rell: Block ‘Double-Dipping’ by Barring Retirees

from More Than Two 120-Day Contracts

Asks Universities, Health Center, Community Colleges to Follow Suit

            Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced she is barring Executive Branch agencies from re-hiring state employees for more than two 120-day contracts. This will crack down on the practice known as “double-dipping,” where a retired employee returns to work for the state for many additional years while drawing a pension.

            Though Governor Rell has no direct administrative authority over the University of Connecticut, the UConn Health Center, the Connecticut State University system or the community-technical college system, she is asking the trustees of each to impose the same policy.

            “Taxpayers have a right to wonder who really benefits when these 120-day contracts – which are supposed to be used sparingly and only in extraordinary circumstances – become a matter of routine, especially for ex-employees who are already drawing sizable state pensions,” Governor Rell said. “As Governor, I have cut back sharply on the number of these agreements in the Executive Branch and I will continue to crack down – all the more so in these difficult economic times.

            “I am setting a new policy, which states that the same person cannot be hired on more than two 120-day agreements,” the Governor said. “And when individuals come back under these agreements, their pay should be commensurate with the duties performed, not their previous salary. This should eliminate the problem – at least in the areas where I have direct control – of people abusing the system to collect both a pension and a paycheck. I am asking the colleges and universities – where the vast majority of these agreements are being used – to follow suit. The practice of abusive double-dipping simply must end.”

            The move comes as Governor Rell works with the Legislature to create a Retirement Incentive Program to help reduce the state payroll. It also follows a published report identifying more than 1,000 former state employees who are both drawing a state pension and being paid for work under 120-day contracts – many of which have been repeatedly renewed. That report identified numerous instances where 120-day contracts have been granted to the same person for years on end.

            “I recognize there may be a need, from time to time, to draw on the tremendous skills and institutional knowledge that former state employees possess,” Governor Rell said. “I also recognize that it often makes sense to hire a part-time retiree rather than a new, full-time employee. But even where there is justification for using a retired employee on a short-term contract, using the same individual over and over again flouts the definition of ‘retired.’

            “I have submitted legislation that will bring higher education hiring under the auspices of my budget office,” the Governor said. “Until that bill is passed, it is up to the trustees of those systems to impose these restrictions on themselves. Abuses like double-dipping cannot be tolerated, and we must find ways to reduce our spending.”