BILL ANALYSIS
SB 973
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Date of Hearing: August 17, 2005
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Judy Chu, Chair
SB 973 (Kuehl) - As Amended: June 30, 2005
Policy Committee: PERSSVote:4-2
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill amends laws governing CalPERS and CalSTRS, and the
1937 Act County Employee Retirement System, to achieve
conformity with AB 205 (Goldberg), Chapter 421 of 2003, which
granted the domestic partners of public employees the same
retirement survivor rights as spouses. Specifically, this bill:
1)Clarifies that for purposes of survivor continuance benefits,
a "surviving spouse" includes a domestic partner.
2)Allows members who retired before the establishment of the
domestic partnership registry to qualify their domestic
partners for survivor continuance benefits.
3)Clarifies the administration of domestic partner community
property settlements to ensure compliance with federal law.
4)Amends provisions in the Public Employees' Medical and
Hospital Care Act (PEMHCA - the law governing CalPERS health
program) to ensure that domestic partners are eligible to
receive health benefits in the same manner as spouses.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)The affected retirement systems report that this bill will
impose minimal costs and merely clarifies provisions of AB
205.
2)The domestic partners of members who retired prior to the
establishment of the domestic partnership registry could
qualify for survivor continuance benefits under the affected
SB 973
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retirement systems by signing an affidavit under the penalty
of perjury making specified statements. By expanding the
scope of an existing crime, perjury, this bill would impose a
state-mandated local program. Local enforcement costs would
not be state-reimbursable.
COMMENTS
1)Background . AB 26 (Migden), Chapter 588 of 1999, established
the domestic partnership registry in the California Secretary
of State's office. Currently, same-sex partners and partners
of the opposite sex, one of whom is over age 62, may register
for a domestic partnership. Any provision in law applicable
to domestic partners generally refers to partners who have
registered with the Secretary of State.
AB 205 (Goldberg), Chapter 421 of 2003, extended to domestic
partners many of the same rights conferred upon spouses in a
civil marriage, particularly those relating to retirement
benefits, death benefits, and community property benefits. It
also mandated the provision of health coverage for domestic
partners in the same manner as provided to spouses, removing
the issue from the collective bargaining process at the state
level and eliminating local agency discretion.
2)Purpose . This bill is intended to remove remaining statutory
barriers for public employees in registered domestic
partnerships that impede the full implementation AB 205. The
bill allows the domestic partners of members who retired prior
to the establishment of the domestic partner registry to
qualify for survivor continuance benefits by signing an
affidavit that makes specified statements. The bill protects
CalPERS from violating federal law in administering community
property settlements, especially in the event of a domestic
partnership termination. Finally, the bill amends provisions
in PEMHCA to ensure that domestic partners are eligible to
receive health benefits in the same manner as they are
provided to spouses, as required by AB 205.
Analysis Prepared by : Stephen Shea / APPR. / (916) 319-2081