BILL NUMBER: AB 2060 CHAPTERED 09/26/02 CHAPTER 875 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 26, 2002 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 25, 2002 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 20, 2002 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 14, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 12, 2002 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Bates FEBRUARY 19, 2002 An act to amend Sections 31760.2, 31785.1, and 31786.1 of the Government Code, relating to county employees' retirement. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2060, Bates. County employees' retirement: death benefits. The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 provides that no amendment to that law shall affect the right to or amount of any retirement allowance payable to any member, or spouse or beneficiary of any member, who retired or died prior to the effective date of the amendment. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding that provision, certain alternative death benefits may be made operative as of the date specified by the county board of retirement in its resolution making those benefits applicable in the county. Under the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, alternative death benefits may be payable to a surviving spouse provided, among other things, no other person has been designated in an order of a court in a domestic relations proceeding as a payee. This bill would eliminate that proviso and would make other technical and clarifying changes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 31760.2 of the Government Code is amended to read: 31760.2. (a) Notwithstanding Section 31481 or 31760.1, upon the death of any member after retirement for service or non-service-connected disability from a retirement system established in a county pursuant to this chapter, 60 percent of his or her retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, shall be continued to his or her surviving spouse for life. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to an allowance under this section or if she or he dies before every child of the deceased member attains the age of 18 years, then the allowance that the surviving spouse would have received had he or she lived, shall be paid to his or her child or children under that age collectively, to continue until each child dies or attains that age. However, no child may receive any allowance after marrying or attaining the age of 18 years. (b) No allowance may be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless he or she was married to the member at least two years prior to the date of death and has attained the age of 55 years on or prior to the date of death. (c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to the children through the age of 21 years if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school, as determined by the board. (d) If at the death of any retired member there is no surviving spouse or minor children eligible for the 60-percent continuance provided in this section and the total retirement allowance income received by the retired member during his or her lifetime did not equal or exceed his or her accumulated normal contributions, the retired member's designated beneficiary shall be paid an amount equal to the excess of his or her accumulated normal contributions over his or her total retirement allowance income. (e) No allowance may be paid pursuant to this section to any person who is entitled to an allowance pursuant to Section 31760.1. (f) The superseding rights pursuant to this section do not affect benefits payable to a named beneficiary as provided under Section 31789, 31789.01, 31789.1, 31789.12, 31789.13, 31789.2, 31789.3, 31789.5, or 31790. (g) This section is not applicable in any county until the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county. The board's resolution may designate a date, which may be prior or subsequent to the date of the resolution, as of which the resolution and this section shall be operative in the county. SEC. 2. Section 31785.1 of the Government Code is amended to read: 31785.1. (a) Notwithstanding Section 31481 or 31785, upon the death of any safety member, after retirement for service or non-service-connected disability from a retirement system established in a county pursuant to this chapter, 60 percent of his or her retirement allowance if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in Article 11 (commencing with Section 31760), shall be continued to his or her surviving spouse for life. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to an allowance under this section or if she or he dies before every child of the deceased safety member attains the age of 18 years, then the allowance that the surviving spouse would have received had he or she lived, shall be paid to his or her child or children under that age, collectively, to continue until each child dies or attains that age. However, no child may receive any allowance after marrying or attaining the age of 18 years. (b) No allowance may be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless he or she was married to the safety member at least two years prior to the date of death and has attained the age of 55 years on or prior to the date of death. (c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to the children through the age of 21 years if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school as determined by the board. (d) No allowance may be paid pursuant to this section to any person who is entitled to an allowance pursuant to Section 31785. (e) The superseding rights pursuant to this section do not affect benefits payable to a named beneficiary as provided under Section 31789, 31789.01, 31789.1, 31789.12, 31789.13, 31789.2, 31789.3, 31789.5, or 31790. (f) This section is not applicable in any county until the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county. The board's resolution may designate a date, which may be prior or subsequent to the date of the resolution, as of which the resolution and this section shall be operative in the county. SEC. 3. Section 31786.1 of the Government Code is amended to read: 31786.1. (a) Notwithstanding Section 31481 or 31786, upon the death of any member after retirement for service-connected disability, his or her retirement allowance as it was at his or her death if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in Article 11 (commencing with Section 31760), shall be continued to his or her surviving spouse for life. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to an allowance under this section or if he or she dies before every child of the deceased member attains the age of 18 years, then the allowance that the surviving spouse would have received had he or she lived, shall be paid to his or her child or children under that age, collectively, to continue until each child dies or attains that age. However, no child may receive any allowance after marrying or attaining the age of 18 years. (b) No allowance may be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless he or she was married to the member at least two years prior to the date of death and has attained the age of 55 years on or prior to the date of death. (c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to the children through the age of 21 years if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school as determined by the board. (d) No allowance may be paid pursuant to this section to any person who is entitled to an allowance pursuant to Section 31786. (e) The superseding rights pursuant to this section do not affect benefits payable to a named beneficiary as provided under Section 31789, 31789.01, 31789.1, 31789.12, 31789.13, 31789.2, 31789.3, 31789.5, or 31790. (f) This section is not applicable in any county until the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county. The board's resolution may designate a date, which may be prior or subsequent to the date of the resolution, as of which the resolution and this section shall be operative in the county.