BILL NUMBER: AB 2879 CHAPTERED 09/18/02 CHAPTER 661 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 17, 2002 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 17, 2002 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 30, 2002 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 28, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 26, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 13, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 20, 2002 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Strom-Martin FEBRUARY 25, 2002 An act to amend Sections 68543.5, 75071, and 75072 of, and to add Section 75074 to, the Government Code, relating to judges' retirement. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2879, Strom-Martin. Judges' retirement. Existing law prescribes the rates and terms of compensation applicable to a retired judge assigned to serve in a trial court, and prescribes different rates and terms of compensation applicable to a retired judge assigned to sit in a court of appeal or the Supreme Court. Under this bill, the rates and terms of compensation applicable to a retired judge assigned to serve in a trial court shall be applicable to retired judges assigned to serve in any court of record. Existing law, the Judges' Retirement Law, authorizes judges to elect one of 4 optional settlements in lieu of the retirement allowance for his or her life alone. Three of those optional settlements provide for a reduced allowance payable to the judge for life and a payment or allowance payable to his or her surviving spouse, as specified. This bill would authorize a judge who elects one of those 3 optional settlements to designate a beneficiary other than his or her spouse to receive the payment or allowance after his or her death, subject to the community property rights of the judge's spouse. The bill would also require that, if a judge elects, on or after January 1, 2003, to receive specified benefits, and the judge and his or her optional settlement beneficiary both die before receiving in annuity payments the full amount of the judge's accumulated contributions at retirement, the balance of the judge's accumulated contributions be paid to the judge's estate. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 68543.5 of the Government Code is amended to read: 68543.5. (a) Whenever a judge who has retired under the Judges' Retirement System or the Judges' Retirement System II is assigned to serve in a court of record, the state shall pay the judge for each day of service in the court in the amount specified in Section 68543.7, without loss or interruption of retirement benefits, unless the judge waives compensation under this section. Whenever a retired judge of a justice court who is not a member of the Judges' Retirement System nor the Judges' Retirement System II is assigned to serve in a court of record, the state shall pay the judge for each day of service in the court in the amount specified in Section 68543.7, or the compensation specified in Section 68541, whichever is greater. The compensation shall be paid by the Judicial Council out of any appropriation for extra compensation of judges assigned by the Chairperson of the Judicial Council. (b) If a judge who has retired under the Judges' Retirement System or the Judges' Retirement System II is assigned to serve in a court of record, the 8-percent difference between the compensation of the retired judge while so assigned and the compensation of a judge of the court to which the retired judge is assigned shall be paid to the Judges' Retirement Fund or the Judges' Retirement System II Fund, as applicable. (c) During the period of assignment, a retired judge shall be allowed expenses for travel, board, and lodging incurred in the discharge of the assignment. When assigned to sit in the county in which he or she resides, the judge shall be allowed expenses for travel and board incurred in the discharge of the assignment. The expenses for travel, board, and lodging shall be paid by the state under the rules adopted by the Board of Control that are applicable to officers of the state provided for in Article VI of the Constitution while traveling on official state business. (d) Notwithstanding the above provisions pertaining to compensation, a retired judge on senior judge status shall receive compensation from the state as provided in Sections 75028 and 75028.2, and shall be allowed expenses for travel, board, and lodging incurred in the discharge of the assignment as provided in this section. SEC. 2. Section 75071 of the Government Code is amended to read: 75071. (a) Optional settlement one consists of the right to have a retirement allowance paid to him or her for life and if he or she dies before he or she receives the amount of his or her accumulated contributions at retirement, to have the balance at death paid to his or her designated beneficiary or his or her estate. (b) (1) Optional settlement two consists of the right to have a retirement allowance paid to him or her for life and thereafter to his or her designated beneficiary for life. (2) If the judge's designated beneficiary predeceases the judge and the judge elected this optional settlement to be effective on or after January 1, 2002, the judge's allowance shall be adjusted effective the first day of the month following the death of the beneficiary to reflect the benefit that would have been paid had the judge not elected an optional settlement. (3) If the marriage of a retired judge is dissolved or annulled or if the retired judge and his or her beneficiary spouse are legally separated and the judgment dividing their community property awards the total interest in this system to the retired judge, and the retired judge elected this optional settlement to be effective on or after January 1, 2002, the retired judge's allowance shall be adjusted effective the first day of the month following the filing of the judgment with the board to reflect the benefit that would have been paid had the judge not elected an optional settlement. (c) (1) Optional settlement three consists of the right to have a retirement allowance paid him or her for life, and thereafter to have one-half of his or her retirement allowance paid to his or her designated beneficiary for life. (2) If the judge's designated beneficiary predeceases the judge and the judge elected this optional settlement to be effective on or after January 1, 2002, the judge's allowance shall be adjusted effective the first day of the month following the death of the beneficiary to reflect the benefit that would have been paid had the judge not elected an optional settlement. (3) If the marriage of a retired judge is dissolved or annulled or if the retired judge and his or her beneficiary spouse are legally separated and the judgment dividing their community property awards the total interest in this system to the retired judge, and the retired judge elected this optional settlement to be effective on or after January 1, 2002, the retired judge's allowance shall be adjusted effective the first day of the month following the filing of the judgment with the board to reflect the benefit that would have been paid had the judge not elected an optional settlement. (d) Optional settlement four consists of other benefits that are the actuarial equivalent of his or her retirement allowance, that he or she may select subject to the approval of the Judges' Retirement System. (e) When a judge elects, on or after January 1, 2003, to receive benefits provided by paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) or paragraph (2) of subdivision (c), and the judge and his or her optional settlement beneficiary both die before receiving in annuity payments the full amount of the judge's accumulated contributions at retirement, the balance of the judge's accumulated contributions shall be paid to the judge's estate. SEC. 3. Section 75072 of the Government Code is amended to read: 75072. If, during the life of a judge who has elected to receive an optional settlement in lieu of a retirement allowance for his or her life alone, or during the life of a beneficiary under an optional settlement upon whose life contingency the optional settlement elected depends, the compensation payable to the judge holding the judicial office to which the retired judge was last appointed or elected by the people prior to his or her retirement is increased, the amounts payable to the retired judge or to his or her beneficiary, or both, shall be recomputed and increased to be the actuarial equivalent of the increased amount of the retirement allowance to which the retired judge would be entitled if he or she had not elected an optional settlement. However, this section does not give any retired judge or his or her beneficiary any claim against the state for any increase in retirement allowance or other benefit for time prior to the increase in the compensation of the incumbent judge. SEC. 4. Section 75074 is added to the Government Code, to read: 75074. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), a judge may, at any time, including, but not limited to, at any time after reaching retirement age, designate a beneficiary to receive the benefits as may be payable to his or her beneficiary under this article, by a writing filed with the board. (b) No designation may be made in derogation of the community property share of any nonmember spouse when any benefit is derived, in whole or in part, from community property contributions or service credited during the period of marriage, unless the nonmember spouse has previously obtained an alternative order for division pursuant to Section 2610 of the Family Code. (c) The designation, subject to conditions imposed by board rule, may be by class, in which case the members of the class at the time of the judge's death shall be entitled as beneficiaries. The designation shall also be subject to the board's conclusive determination, upon evidence satisfactory to it, of the existence, identity, or other facts relating to entitlement of any person designated as beneficiary, and payment made by this system in reliance on any determination made in good faith, notwithstanding that it may not have discovered a beneficiary otherwise entitled to share in the benefit, shall constitute a complete discharge and release of this system for further liability for the benefit.