BILL NUMBER: AB 2474 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 8, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social
Security (Bonta (Chair), Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, and Wieckowski)
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
An act to amend Sections 31462.05, 31462.2, 31563,
31631, 31781, 31781.3, 31781.31, and 31787.6 of the Government
Code, relating to county employees' retirement.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2474, as amended, Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and
Social Security. Final County employees
retirement: final compensation: forfeiture of benefits:
employee contributions: death benefits.
The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (CERL) authorizes
counties to establish retirement systems pursuant to its provisions
in order to provide pension benefits to county, city, and district
employees and their beneficiaries. The CERL provides for a defined
retirement benefit based upon credited service, final compensation,
and age at retirement subject to specified formulas relating to
membership classification.
The California Public Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2013
(PEPRA) requires a public retirement system, as defined, including
county and district retirement systems created pursuant to CERL, to
modify its pension plan or plans to comply with the act and, among
other provisions, establishes new limits of pensionable compensation
that may not be exceeded whenever pensionable compensation is used in
the calculation of a benefit. PEPRA defines pensionable compensation
for purposes of its provisions.
This bill would clarify that the definition of final compensation
for members whose services is on a tenure that is temporary,
seasonal, intermittent, or part time in the CERL, as described, also
applies to those members meeting the same service criteria who are
subject to PEPRA.
The CERL provides that for a member who is subject to PEPRA for
all or any portion of his or her membership in the county retirement
system, final compensation means the highest average pensionable
compensation earned by the member during a period of at least 36
consecutive months, immediately preceding his or her retirement or
last separation from service if earlier, or during any other period
of 36 consecutive months designated by the member.
This bill would require the computation for any absence to be
based on the compensation of the position held by the member at the
beginning of the absence.
PEPRA requires a public employee, including one who is elected or
appointed to a public office, who is convicted of any state or
federal felony for conduct arising out of, or in the performance of,
his or her official duties in pursuit of the office or appointment,
or in connection with obtaining salary, disability retirement,
service retirement, or other benefits, to forfeit retirement benefits
earned or accrued from the earliest date of the commission of the
felony to the forfeiture date, as specified.
This bill would make a conforming change to the CERL to specify
that a person ceases to be a member for any portion of his or her
service as an elected public officer or as a public employee that is
forfeited under those circumstances.
Under the CERL, except as otherwise specified, a board of
supervisors or the governing body of a district may require that
members pay all or part of the contributions of a member or employer,
or both, for any retirement benefits provided under the CERL, and
designates those payments as employee contributions. Existing law
requires the contributions to be uniform either (1) with respect to
all members of a recognized bargaining unit or (2) within each of the
following classifications: local miscellaneous members, local police
officers, local firefighters, county peace officers, and all local
safety members other than local police officers, local firefighters,
and county peace officers and classifications covered pursuant to
specified provisions in PEPRA.
This bill would revise that latter provision to require the
contributions to be uniform either (1) with respect to all members of
a recognized bargaining unit or (2) within both of the following
categories: nonsafety and safety members referenced pursuant to
specified provisions in PEPRA.
The CERL provides that upon the death before retirement of a
member under specified circumstances, the retirement system is liable
for a death benefit. The CERL requires the death benefit to consist
of the member's accumulated contributions and an amount calculated
using the annual compensation earned by the deceased, as specified.
This bill would instead require that latter amount to be
calculated using the pensionable compensation earned by the deceased
member, if that member was subject to PEPRA.
The CERL provides that authorizes
the surviving spouses of members who die in service after a specified
number of years of service or as a result of service-connected
injury or disease may to elect a
benefit calculated using the annual compensation earned by the
deceased in lieu of a death benefit or life annuity.
This bill would instead require that benefit to be calculated
using the pensionable compensation earned by the deceased member, if
that member was subject to PEPRA.
The CERL provides that requires a
surviving spouse of a safety member who is killed in the performance
of duty or who dies as the result of an accident or injury caused by
external violence or physical force incurred in the performance of
his or her duty to be paid a one-time lump-sum benefit
calculated using the annual compensation earnable by the deceased.
This bill would instead require that benefit
those benefits to be calculated using the pensionable
compensation earned by the deceased member, if that member was
subject to PEPRA.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 31462.05 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
31462.05. (a) For a member who is subject
to the California Public Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2013 for
all or any portion of his or her membership in the county retirement
system, "final compensation" as defined in Section 7522.32 shall
apply. If
(b) If a member has less than
three years of service, that member's final compensation shall be
determined by dividing the total compensation by the number of months
of service credited to the member and multiplying by 12.
(c) The computation for any absence shall be based on the
compensation of the position held by the member at the beginning of
the absence.
SECTION 1. SEC. 2. Section 31462.2
of the Government Code is amended to read:
31462.2. (a) "Final compensation" for members whose service is on
a tenure that is temporary, seasonal, intermittent, or for part time
only means one-third of the total compensation earned for that
period of time during which the member rendered the equivalent of
three years of full-time service.
(b) The member may elect at or before the time he or she files an
application for retirement the period of time during which he or she
has earned three full years of credit upon which final compensation
shall be calculated. If he or she does not so elect, that period of
time immediately preceding his or her retirement shall be used.
(c) This section also applies to a member meeting the conditions
specified in subdivision (a), whose service is described in
subdivision (a), and who is subject to the California Public
Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2013 (Article 4 (commencing with
Section 7522) of Chapter 21 of Division 7 of Title 1).
SEC. 3. Section 31563 of the Government
Code is amended to read:
31563. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person
ceases to be a member for any portion of his or her service as an
elected public officer or as a public employee that is
forfeited pursuant to Section 1243 Sections
7522.70, 7522.72, and 7522.74 .
SEC. 4. Sectio n 31631 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
31631. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, a board of supervisors
or the governing body of a district may, by resolution, ordinance,
contract, or contract amendment under this chapter, without a change
in benefits, require that members pay all or part of the
contributions of a member or employer, or both, for any retirement
benefits provided under this chapter. All of those payments are
hereby designated as employee contributions. For members who are
represented in a bargaining unit, the payment requirement shall be
approved in a memorandum of understanding executed by the board of
supervisors or the governing body of a district and the employee
collective bargaining representative. The contributions shall be
uniform either (1) with respect to all members of a recognized
bargaining unit or (2) within each both
of the following classifications: local miscellaneous
members, local police officers, local firefighters, county peace
officers, and all local safety members other than local police
officers, local firefighters, and county peace officers and
classifications covered pursuant to Sections 7522.20 and 7522.25
categories: nonsafety and safety members subject to
Sections 7522.20 and 7522.25 .
(b) Nothing in this section shall modify a board of supervisors'
or the governing body of a district's authority under law as it
existed on December 31, 2012, including any restrictions on that
authority, to change the amount of member contributions.
SEC. 5. Section 31781 of the Government
Code is amended to read:
31781. The death benefit shall consist of:
(a) The member's accumulated contributions.
(b) An amount, provided from contributions by the county or
district, equal to one-twelfth of the annual compensation earnable
or pensionable compensation as defined in Section 7522.34,
whichever is applicable, by the deceased during the 12 months
immediately preceding his death, multiplied by the number of
completed years of service under the system, but not to exceed 50
percent of such annual compensation.
SEC. 2. SEC. 6. Section 31781.3 of
the Government Code is amended to read:
31781.3. The surviving spouse of a member who dies in service
after five years of service or as a result of service-connected
injury or disease may elect, in lieu of the death benefit in Section
31781 or the life annuity provided in Section 31781.1 or 31787, the
benefit that is the sum of both of the following:
(a) An amount, provided from contributions by the county or
district, equal to one-twelfth of the annual compensation earnable or
pensionable compensation as defined in Section 7522.34, whichever is
applicable, by the deceased during the 12 months immediately
preceding his or her death, multiplied by the number of completed
years of service under the system, but not to exceed 50 percent of
that compensation.
(b) A monthly allowance as provided in Section 31781.1 or 31787
reduced by a monthly amount which is the actuarial equivalent of the
amount in subdivision (a) as applied to the life of the surviving
spouse.
SEC. 3. SEC. 7. Section 31781.31 of
the Government Code is amended to read:
31781.31. Notwithstanding Sections 31781.1 and 31781.3, the
surviving spouse of a member subject to Section 31751 who dies in
service after 10 years of service, or as a result of
service-connected injury or disease, may elect, in lieu of the life
annuity provided in Section 31765.11 or the death benefit provided in
Section 31781.01, the benefit that is the sum of both of the
following:
(a) An amount, provided from contributions by the county or
district, equal to one-twelfth of the annual compensation earnable or
pensionable compensation as defined in Section 7522.34, whichever is
applicable, by the deceased during the 12 months immediately
preceding his or her death, multiplied by the number of completed
years of service under the system, but not to exceed 50 percent of
that compensation.
(b) A monthly allowance as provided in Section 31765.11 reduced by
a monthly amount which is the actuarial equivalent of the amount in
subdivision (a) as applied to the life of the surviving spouse.
SEC. 4. SEC. 8. Section 31787.6 of
the Government Code is amended to read:
31787.6. A surviving spouse of a safety member who is killed in
the performance of duty or who dies as the result of an accident or
injury caused by external violence or physical force, incurred in the
performance of his or her duty, shall be paid the following amount
in addition to all other benefits provided by this chapter:
A one-time lump-sum benefit equal to an amount, provided from
contributions by the county or district, equal to the annual
compensation earnable, earnable or
the pensionable compensation for a member
who is subject to the California Public Employees' Pension Reform
Act of 2013 (Article 4 (commencing with Section 7522) of Chapter 21
of Division 7 of Title 1) as defined in Section
7522.34, whichever is applicable , by the deceased at his or
her monthly rate of compensation at the time of his or her death.
This section is not applicable to members described in Section
31469.2.