Judge Krichbaum to serve next term at $121K salary, plus $80K retirement

YOUNGSTOWN

Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court retired effective Saturday, but he will begin a new six-year term Monday.

Judge Krichbaum, 63, also was appointed as a visiting judge this week in the interim by the Ohio Supreme Court, but he is not being paid for this week.

The judge said he decided to retire now and be rehired because of reductions in Public Employee Retirement System benefits.

“There are dramatic changes that have occurred over the last several years in PERS that have pretty much dictated that I secure the benefits that I’ve earned to date so that they’re not taken away from me, too,” he said.

If his application is approved, he said he expects to begin collecting his retirement about 60 days from now in addition to his regular $121,350 annual judicial salary.

He has been contributing to PERS for some 30 years, previously having been a bailiff and special prosecutor, so his annual PERS retirement benefit would be about $80,000.

“The spousal benefit for PERS retirees is reduced 33 percent in each of the next three years until it’s gone completely,” he noted. “My family’s financial well-being is a prime consideration” for taking the retire-rehire option.

Read more about the judge's financial picture in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.