BILL NUMBER: AB 468 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 16, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Hayashi
FEBRUARY 24, 2009
An act to add Section 22898 to the Government Code, relating to
the Public Employees' Medical and Hospital Care Act.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 468, as amended, Hayashi. Public Employees' Medical and
Hospital Care Act: employer contributions.
Existing law requires the Board of Administration of the Public
Employees' Retirement System to administer the Public Employees'
Medical and Hospital Care Act. Existing law permits a contracting
agency to elect to be subject to the act for its employees and
annuitants, provided that the contracting agency and each employee or
annuitant contribute a portion of the cost of providing the benefit
coverage afforded under the health benefit plan approved or
maintained by the board in which the employee or annuitant may be
enrolled. Existing law specifies that the employer contribution of a
contracting agency begins on the effective date of enrollment and is
the amount fixed from time to time by resolution of the governing
body of the agency. The resolution is required to be filed with the
board and the contribution amount shall be effective on the first day
of the second month following the month in which the resolution is
received by the system. Existing law provides an optional
vesting schedule, for contracting agencies, that links the employer
contribution, as specified, to percentages associated with an
employee's credited years of service. Under this formulation, the
employer contribution for the contracting agency reaches 100% of a
specified amount when the employee attains 20 years of credited
service, with certain exceptions.
This bill would require the employer contribution for
postretirement health benefit coverage for an annuitant of a
specified contracting agency to be based on the annuitant's
completed years of service credited with the contracting agency at
retirement. This bill would prohibit the contracting agency from
paying any employer contribution for the first 5 years of the
credited service, as defined. The bill would require the contracting
agency to pay an employer contribution of 50% after the employee had
5 years of service with the contracting agency and that amount would
be increased by 5% per year thereafter, with 100% of the portion of
the cost being paid for by the contracting agency when the annuitant
is credited service of 15 years or more. The bill would require that
the employer contribution with respect to each annuitant be adjusted
by the employer each year, but would prohibit the contribution from
exceeding 100% of the weighted average of the health benefits plan
premiums for employees or annuitants enrolled for self alone
the Alameda County Transportation Improvement
Authority who is first hired on or after November 1, 2004, to be
based on percentages associated with the annuitant's credited years
of service. Under this formulation, the employer contribution for the
contracting agency would reach 100% of a specified amount if the
annuitant attained 15 years of credited service, with certain
exceptions. The bill would define credited service and would require
that at least 5 years of credited service to have been performed with
the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority. The bill
would require that employer to provide any information requested by
the board that the board deems necessary to implement the section.
The bill would except from the formulation described above annuitants
who have retired for disability. The bill would also except
annuitants who have 15 or more years of service entirely
with the authority and would require the board to establish
application procedures and eligibility criteria to implement this
provision .
The bill would provide that those provisions would only apply to
employees of the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority
who are first hired on or after November 1, 2004.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 22898 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
22898. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, the
percentage of employer contribution payable for postretirement health
benefits for an employee of the Alameda County Transportation
Improvement Authority shall, except as provided in subdivision (b),
be based on the employee's completed years of credited service,
provided that the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority
shall not pay an employer contribution for the first five years of
that credited service, and shall pay thereafter as showin the
following table:
Credited Years of Service Percentage of Employer
Contribution
5..............................................50
6..............................................55
7..............................................60
8..............................................65
9..............................................70
10.............................................75
11.............................................80
12.............................................85
13.............................................90
14.............................................95
15............................................100
The application of this subdivision shall be subject to the
following:
(1) The employer contribution with respect to each annuitant shall
be adjusted by the employer each year. Those adjustments shall be
based upon the principle that the employer contribution for each
annuitant may not be less than the amount equal to 100 percent of the
weighted average of the health benefits plan premiums for an
employee or annuitant enrolled for self-alone, during the benefit
year to which the formula is applied, for the four health benefit
plans that had the largest agency enrollment, excluding family
members, during the previous benefit year. For each annuitant with
enrolled family members, the employer shall not pay an additional
contribution.
(2) The employer shall certify to the board, in the case of
employees not represented by a bargaining unit, that there is not an
applicable memorandum of understanding.
(3) The credited service of an annuitant for the purpose of
determining the percentage of employer contributions applicable under
this section shall mean state service as defined in Section 20069,
except that at least five years of credited service shall have been
performed with the Alameda County Transportation Improvement
Authority.
(4) The employer shall provide the board any information requested
that the board determines is necessary to implement this section.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the contribution payable by
the employer subject to this section shall be equal to 100 percent of
the amount established pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a)
on behalf of any annuitant who either:
(1) Retired for disability.
(2) Retired for service with 15 or more years of service credit
entirely with that employer, regardless of the number of days after
separation from employment. The contribution payable by the employer
under this paragraph shall be paid only if it is greater than, and
made in lieu of, a contribution payable to the annuitant by another
employer under this part. The board shall establish application
procedures and eligibility criteria to implement this paragraph.
(c) This section applies only to the Alameda County Transportation
Improvement Authority, or its successor, and only with regard to the
employees of the agency who are first hired on or after October 1,
2004.
SECTION 1. Section 22898 is added to the
Government Code, to read:
22898. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, the
employer contribution for postretirement health benefit coverage for
an annuitant of the contracting agency subject to this section shall
be based on the annuitant's completed years of service credited with
the contracting agency at retirement.
(b) The contracting agency shall pay no employer contribution for
the first five years of that credited service. The contracting agency
shall pay 50 percent after five years with the contracting agency
and the amount shall be increased by 5 percent per year thereafter,
with 100 percent of the portion of the cost being paid for by the
contracting agency when the annuitant is credited service of 15 years
or more. The employer contribution with respect to each annuitant
shall be adjusted by the employer each year, but in no event shall
exceed 100 percent of the weighted average of the health benefits
plan premiums for employees or annuitants enrolled for self alone.
(c) For purposes of this section, "credited service" means service
as defined in Section 20069, except that not less than five years of
that service shall be performed entirely with the Alameda County
Transportation Improvement Authority.
(d) This section shall only apply to employees of the Alameda
County Transportation Improvement Authority who are first hired on or
after November 1, 2004.