THE LATEST: Minneapolis police and fire pension funds say they're asking for more time in the wake of a court ruling that requires them to collect back pension pay from retirees. They also want a judge to allow them to delay the collection until after their appeal is settled.

HOW COME? Pension officials say it takes more than an hour to figure out how much each of their 1,400 pensioners might owe, and there's simply not enough time to do that by the judge's deadline of July 1 to start collecting. They're appealing because they think an appeals court will overturn rulings by Hennepin County District Judge Janet Poston that pension payouts were more generous than allowed by law.

WHAT'S AT STAKE: $76 million in pension payments made since mid-2000, according to the city; pension funds say Poston's order applies to $52 million in back pensions.

THE IMPACT: Don't look for a resolution anytime soon. The city and its aging police and fire funds have been battling on and off again in court since 1995 over which fringe benefits may be included in the calculation for pensions.

THE STORY SO FAR: Poston ruled for the city in November that some fringe benefits shouldn't have been part of the salary base for pensions. She followed that last week with an order that the funds devise a plan by June 4 on how to collect overpayments, putting it in effect July 1. One approach to recover the money would be freezing pension levels until the overpayment is satisfied.

WHY THIS IS DIFFICULT: Many people who got inflated benefits over the last 10 years are dead. Many others are aged, with 82 the average age for fire widows, for example. There's also a question of whether it's fair to withhold normal cost-of-living increases from new retirees who didn't benefit.

WHO'S AFFECTED: Police and firefighters who were hired before 1980, or their survivors. Later hires belong to statewide pensions plans.

QUOTE: "My advice to all those reading and all those listening is to hold tight. This case is not decided at this level of the court system, no matter what the newspapers say. We will fight on to the very end because justice is on our side." -- Walter Schirmer, executive secretary, Minneapolis Firefighters Relief Association.

WHAT'S NEXT: Lawyers must submit their plans for how to collect the back pensions. Poston will need to rule on their requests for delay.

Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438