BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1136
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1136 (Fong)
As Amended July 1, 2009
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |52-26|(June 1, 2009) |SENATE: |25-13|(August 27, |
| | | | | |2009) |
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Original Committee Reference: P.E.,R. & S.S.
SUMMARY : Permits, upon adoption by a county board of
retirement, a retired member of a county retirement system being
operated under the County Employees' Retirement Law of 1937 ('37
Act) to change previously elected optional settlements, as
specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Allows a '37 Act retired member, in order to provide for his
or her spouse, to revoke an optional settlement, as specified,
if all of the following apply:
a) The retired member retired on or before the date the
post-retirement spouse provision was made applicable in the
county from which he or she retired;
b) The member was unmarried or had been married less than
one year at the time of retirement; and,
c) The application requirements, including requiring
notification of, and acknowledgement by, beneficiaries who
may be affected by the revocation, have been satisfied.
2)Specifies that after revocation, the member's retirement
allowance will be adjusted prospectively to the amount he or
she would have been entitled to had they not elected an option
and to reflect any cost-of-living increases that would have
been added to the retirement allowance.
3)Specifies that the spouse, after revocation, would be entitled
to any provisions for which he or she may qualify, as if no
optional settlement had been elected by the member.
4)Prohibits a retired member that has revoked an optional
AB 1136
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settlement pursuant to these provisions from electing other
optional settlements.
5)Specifies that the retirement system is under no obligation to
locate or otherwise contact retired members who may qualify
for these provisions.
6)Specifies that any action taken pursuant to these provisions
does not excuse the obligation of a member to provide a
continuing benefit to a former spouse pursuant to a court
order.
7)Specifies that these provisions will not become effective in a
county until adopted by the county board of retirement.
The Senate amendments delete the provision that would have
required a written declaration, made under penalty of perjury,
in cases where a designated beneficiary refuses to sign the
application acknowledging the revocation of the option election
and instead requires a written declaration and establishes a
civil penalty for a person who knowingly provides false
information in the declaration, as specified.
EXISTING LAW permits a member of a '37 Act retirement system,
prior to the first payment of any retirement allowance, to elect
certain optional settlements, which reduce the allowance payable
to the member through his or her life and provide for a
subsequent payment to another party or parties, including a
spouse.
Upon the death of a '37 Act member who died after a service
retirement or non-service related disability and did not elect
an optional settlement, an allowance equaling 60% of his or her
retirement allowance will be continued throughout life to a
surviving spouse to whom he or she was married to for at least
one year prior to the effective date of retirement.
AB 979 (Negrete McLeod), Chapter 441, Statutes of 2004, allowed,
upon adoption by a county board of supervisors, retired '37 Act
members, who marry after retirement, to purchase, at no cost to
the retirement system, an optional survivor benefit in order to
increase the survivor benefit that would be paid to their new
spouse if the member dies first.
AB 1136
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AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill was substantially similar
to the version approved by the Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : According to the sponsor, the California Retired
County Employees Association, "This bill is of importance to
older retirees in counties where the retirement plan was
established under the '37 Act. In their case, they might have
selected a particular retirement option provided under the '37
Act because what is commonly referred to as the 'post-retirement
spouse provision' had not yet been made applicable in their
county. In fact, the 'post-retirement spouse provision' may not
have even been a part of the '37 Act at the time they retired.
This bill will enable them to avail themselves of this provision
if their life circumstances have changed since retirement."
Analysis Prepared by : Karon Green / P.E.,R. & S.S. / (916)
319-3957
FN: 0001829