Exceptions to the 1,040-Hour Limit

Unless noted otherwise, you do not qualify for an exception to the 1,040-hour limit if you are:

1.	a Tier One General Service member who retired before age 58 or a Tier Two General Service member who retired before age 60 unless you qualified for retirement with 30 or more years of service, or
2.	a Tier One or Tier Two police and firefighter member who retires before age 55 unless you qualified for retirement with 25 or more years of service.

If neither condition 1 or 2 above applies, you may work any number of hours if you are:

a teacher or administrator employed by a community college district or school district located in a county with no more than 35,000 inhabitants;1
a teacher or administrator employed by an education service district (ESD) and your primary duties are performed in a county with no more than 35,000 inhabitants;1
a speech/language pathologist or speech/language pathologist assistant employed by a school district or ESD;1, 2
a temporary replacement for an employee serving in the National Guard or in a reserve unit of the United States Armed Forces who is called to federal active duty;
on active state duty in the organized militia and have reached normal retirement age;
a director or assistant director of the Department of Human Services if the governor approves the exception;
a deputy director or assistant director of the Oregon Health Authority if the governor approves the exception;
a nurse employed as a nurse or to teach nursing during a nursing workforce shortage declared by the governor or legislative assembly;
a registered nurse employed as a nursing instructor;2 or
employed by:
- the sheriff of a county with fewer than 75,000 inhabitants;
- a municipal police department of a city with fewer than 15,000 inhabitants;
- the state or a county for work in a correctional institution located in a county with fewer than 75,000 inhabitants;
- the Oregon State Police for work in a county with fewer than 75,000 inhabitants;
- a road assessment district organized under ORS 371.045 to 371.535;
- the legislative assembly or the Oregon State Police for service during a legislative session;
- the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training to provide training under ORS 181.610 - ORS 181.712;² or
- the Black Butte Ranch Rural Fire Protection District, the Black Butte Ranch Service District, or the Sunriver Service District.

US census information is used to determine PERS employer eligibility for exemptions to the Chapter 238 Program (Tier One/Tier Two) retiree 1,040-hour/calendar-year work limit. OAR 459-017-0060 establishes as the operative date for federal census data the first day of the second calendar year following the census year. Updated census data will be posted on the PERS website when available in 2011 for use beginning January 1, 2012. For the 2010 census, the operative date will be January 1, 2012.

If you are planning on retiring and contemplate a return to work in the public sector, you need to be cognizant of the population in the area you are considering working to ensure you don't exceed the 1,040-hour limit.


1.	If you took early retirement, you are eligible for this exception provided you are not employed in the position until at least six months after your effective retirement date.
2.	This exception ends January 2, 2026.