BILL NUMBER: SB 581 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Wiggins
FEBRUARY 22, 2007
An act to amend Section 20230 of, and to repeal and add Chapter
4.5 (commencing with Section 50950) of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title
5 of the Government Code, relating to firefighters.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 581, as introduced, Wiggins. Firefighters: volunteer
firefighters length of service awards.
(1) The Public Employees' Retirement Law provides retirement
benefits for state employees and public employees of local agencies
that contract for retirement benefits with the Board of
Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System. Under that
law, data filed by a member or beneficiary with the Board of
Administration is confidential and shall not be divulged unless a
specified exception applies.
This bill would require the Board of Administration of the Public
Employees' Retirement System to transfer, upon request of the board
of the California State Fire Employees Welfare Benefit Corporation,
data and files of the members subject to that act that is in the
possession of the Board of Administration.
(2) Existing law establishes the Volunteer Firefighters Length of
Service Award Act and authorizes local agencies with regularly
organized fire departments to contract with the Board of
Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System to make the
volunteer firefighters of those local agencies members of the
service award system. Under existing law, a volunteer firefighter
subject to the service award system is entitled to an award upon
attaining 60 years of age and accruing a minimum of 10 years of
length of service award credit, and not to exceed 20 years of length
of service award credit. Under existing law, all moneys received
pursuant to these provisions are deposited in the Volunteer
Firefighters Length of Service Award Fund, a continuously
appropriated fund in the State Treasury.
This bill would repeal these provisions and instead authorize
those local agencies with regularly organized fire departments to
contract with the board of the California State Fire Employees
Welfare Benefit Corporation to make the volunteer firefighters of
those local agencies members of the service award system. The bill
would require that board to maintain a plan pursuant to specified
provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and to select a financial
institution or other qualified entity to act as trustee and establish
a trust for the award system, as specified. The bill would provide
that the representatives on the board administer the award system
subject to specified fiduciary duties and for the exclusive purpose
of providing benefits to members of the award system. The bill would
also require the board to adopt rules and regulations to administer
the award system, including, but not limited to, eligibility
requirements for membership in the award system, requirements for a
member to receive an award, and the amount of an award payable under
the act.
This bill would further require a volunteer firefighter who is a
member of the award system and the members of the qualifications
review commission, as specified, to certify, under penalty of
perjury, that the volunteer firefighter has actively participated in
specified fire department activities. By creating a new crime, the
bill would create a state-mandated local program.
(3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 20230 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
20230. (a) Data filed by any
a member or beneficiary with the board is
confidential, and no an individual
record shall not be divulged by any
an official or employee having access to it to
any a person other than the member to whom the
information relates or his or her authorized representative, the
contracting agency or school district by which he or she is employed,
any state department or agency, or the university. The information
shall be used by the board for the sole purpose of carrying into
effect the provisions of this part. Any information
Information that is requested for retirement
purposes by any a public agency shall
be treated as confidential by the agency.
The
(b) The gross amount of
any a benefit or any refund
of a PERS retirement system
contribution due to a member or beneficiary is not confidential and
may be released upon request to the board.
The
(c) The board may seek
reimbursement for reasonable administrative expenses incurred when
providing that information. Except as provided by this section, no
member's, beneficiary's or annuitant's address, home telephone
number, or other personal information shall be released.
For
(d) For purposes of this section,
"authorized representative" includes the spouse or beneficiary of a
member when no contrary appointment has been made and when, in the
opinion of the board, the member is prevented from appointing an
authorized representative because of mental or physical incapacity or
death.
(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the board shall transfer,
upon request of a board described in subdivision (f) of Section
50952, data and files in the possession of the board relating to
members of the Volunteer Firefighters Length of Service Award Act
previously administered by the board.
SEC. 2. Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 50950) of Part 1 of
Division 1 of Title 5 of the Government Code is repealed.
SEC. 3. Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 50950) is added to
Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 5 of the Government Code, to read:
CHAPTER 4.5. VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS LENGTH OF SERVICE AWARD
ACT
Article 1. General Provisions
50950. It is the purpose of this chapter to provide cities,
counties, cities and counties, or districts, that have fire
departments with volunteer firefighting members, the opportunity to
offer these members an award for life as an incentive. Nothing
contained in this chapter shall be deemed to supersede the provisions
of existing state law and the charters, ordinances, and rules of
local public agencies that establish and regulate the activities of
these fire departments. This chapter is intended, instead, to
strengthen these departments through the creation of an incentive for
the volunteer to respond to emergency calls and attend official
department training drills and meetings. It is the further intention
of this chapter to provide a means for local communities to bestow
fitting reward and recognition for long and faithful volunteer
service.
50951. (a) This chapter establishes the Volunteer Firefighters
Length of Service Award System and may be cited as the Volunteer
Firefighters Length of Service Award Act.
(b) Enrollment for an award shall not be construed as a
retirement, the receipt of an award shall not be construed as the
receipt of a retirement allowance or benefit, and service credited
under the Volunteer Firefighters Length of Service Award System shall
not be construed as service credited to a retirement system for
purposes of duplicating service credit or benefits in other public
retirement systems.
50952. For the purposes of this chapter, unless the context
otherwise requires, the definitions set forth below shall mean the
following:
(a) "Actuarial interest rate" means the interest rate fixed by the
board for purposes of actuarial valuation of the assets and
liabilities of the award system.
(b) "Annual interest rate" means the interest rate fixed by the
board for purposes of crediting interest.
(c) "Award" means monthly payments for life derived from
contributions by a department.
(d) "Award recipient" means a former member who satisfied all the
requirements as determined by the board to be eligible to receive an
award, and is receiving an award.
(e) "Award system" means the Volunteer Firefighters Length of
Service Award System established by this chapter.
(f) "Board" means the board of the California State Fire Employees
Welfare Benefit Corporation.
(g) "Certified prior service credit" means credit for service
performed prior to the contract operative date as certified by a
qualifications review commission. That prior service shall be
credited in the award system to the extent that prior service
qualifies as certified service credit pursuant to the rules and
regulations established by the board.
(h) "Certified service credit" means credit certified pursuant to
Section 50960 for services rendered by a member.
(i) "Contract operative date" means the first day of the month
next following the date on which the contract becomes effective.
(j) "Department" means any of the following:
(1) A regularly organized fire department of a city, county, city
and county, or district, having official recognition of the
government of the city, county, city and county, or district in which
the department is located.
(2) A regularly organized fire department of an unincorporated
town.
(k) "Fund" means the Volunteer Firefighters Length of Service
Award System Fund described in Section 50956.
(l) "Member" means a volunteer of a department, the governing body
of which has contracted with the board under this chapter, and who
has been certified by a qualifications review commission as having
satisfied all the requirements for membership as set established by
the board. Membership, once established, continues indefinitely until
the award system is terminated and the funds disbursed pursuant to
50974.
(m) "Service credit" means the aggregate of certified service
credit.
(n) "Service year" means the period beginning July 1 and ending
June 30 of the following year.
(o) "Volunteer" means a person registered as a volunteer member of
a regularly organized fire department as defined in subdivision (j).
Article 2. Administration, Award System, and Membership
50953. (a) The award system shall be administered by the board
and the board shall comply with the following requirements:
(1) The board shall maintain a plan as described in Section 457(e)
(11) of Title 26 of the United States Code.
(2) The representatives on the board shall be elected.
(3) The representatives on the board shall administer the award
system with the reasonable care, skill, prudence, and diligence under
the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent person acting in a
like capacity and familiar with the award system would use in the
conduct of an enterprise of a like character and with like aims.
(4) The representatives on the board shall be subject to the
prudent investor standard with regard to the fund.
(5) The award system shall be administered for the exclusive
purpose of providing benefits to members of the award system.
(6) The board shall select a financial institution or other entity
that qualifies under the laws of this state to act as a trustee of
and establish a trust described in Internal Revenue Service Revenue
Procedure 92-64.
(b) The board shall adopt rules and regulations to administer the
award system, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Eligibility requirements for a member to receive an award,
including, but not limited to, minimum age and minimum years of
certified service credit.
(2) Eligibility requirements for a member to include certified
prior service credit as certified service credit in calculating the
amount of his or her award or to qualify for an award.
(3) The amount of an award payable under this chapter and any cost
of living adjustments or supplemental payments based upon that
award.
(4) Eligibility requirements for membership in the award system.
(5) The maximum years of certified service credit a member may
accrue under the award system.
(6) Other rules and regulations that the board determines are
appropriate to administer this chapter.
(c) In addition to those powers and duties, the board shall
determine if participation in the award system is adequate to insure
that sufficient funds will be available for the payment of awards on
an actuarial reserve basis before any awards are paid. If the board
determines that participation in the award system is inadequate to
assure the financial success of the system, the board may terminate
the award system pursuant to Section 50974 or amend the award system
pursuant to the rules and regulations of the board.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the assets of the fund
attributable to the benefit of registered volunteers of a department
are subject to the claims of creditors of the department in the case
of the insolvency of the department. The assets of the fund that are
not attributable to the benefits of registered volunteers of an
insolvent department are not subject to the claims of the creditors
of the insolvent department.
50954. (a) The board shall, from time to time, determine and fix
the annual interest rate and actuarial interest rate.
(b) The board shall keep in convenient form the data necessary for
the actuarial valuation of the award system. The board shall, at
least quadrennially, cause to be made an actuarial investigation into
the mortality and service experience of members and persons
receiving awards and an actuarial valuation of the assets and
liabilities of the award system.
(c) When there is insufficient data upon which to establish
mortality rates or other actuarial assumptions required to evaluate
the obligations of the award system, the board may adopt appropriate
assumptions that, upon the advice and recommendation of the actuary,
are necessary.
50955. (a) On the basis of investigation and valuation, the board
shall adopt the mortality, service, and other tables as it deems
necessary, and shall make changes in the contributions required from
contracting departments as the board considers appropriate in order
to assure the actuarial soundness of this award system.
(b) The board shall credit all contributions of departments in the
fund with interest at the annual interest rate compounded at each
June 30.
(c) Data filed by a member or department with the board is
confidential, and no individual record shall be divulged by an
official or employee having access to that data to a person other
than the member to whom the information relates or his or her
authorized representative, or the department that employs the member.
That information shall be used by the board for the sole purpose of
carrying into effect the provisions of this chapter.
(d) Each volunteer member and department shall file with the board
the information and evidence as may be required by the board in
administration of this award system.
50956. The custodian of the fund, subject to the exclusive
control of the board to administer and invest the assets of the fund,
shall be a financial institution eligible to establish and
administer a trust described in Internal Revenue Service Revenue
Procedure 92-64. The assets in the fund shall be used to pay the
costs of administration and for the payment of awards under this
chapter.
50957. The Board of Administration of the Public Employees'
Retirement System shall transfer, upon request of the board, data and
files in the possession of the Board of Administration relating to
members of the Volunteer Firefighters Length of Service Award Act
previously administered by the Board of Administration.
Article 3. Service Credit and Contributions
50958. Only members may accumulate service credit in the award
system. A volunteer becomes a member when he or she satisfies the
minimum requirements for membership, as established by the board, and
the minimum service requirements as certified by a qualifications
review commission. Membership shall terminate on the day prior to the
effective date of an award pursuant to Section 50962.
50959. (a) The award system shall be funded by contributions paid
by contracting departments and income from the fund. The award
system is a noncontributory system, and no contributions shall be
required from members of the award system.
(b) As determined by actuarial valuation reported to the
contracting department by the award system, each contracting
department shall make contributions annually, not later than October
1 of each year, sufficient to meet the prescribed amount with respect
to volunteers of the contracting department, in accordance with the
conditions provided in its contract under the award system.
(c) Contributions of all contracting departments shall be applied
by the board during each fiscal year to meet the obligations of all
departments collectively, pursuant to the following order:
(1) In an amount equal to the liabilities accruing on account of
awards payable on account of current service.
(2) The balance of contributions on any other liability incurred
under this chapter.
50960. (a) Only those volunteers who have been certified by their
contracting department as having satisfactorily completed a service
year shall be credited with current service for that year. A member
is not required to qualify in consecutive years.
(b) Members of departments contracting on or after the effective
date of this chapter may initially be credited with a full service
year if the board authorizes credit for that service and the member
and his or her department satisfy the other requirements established
by the board, including, but not limited to, certification by the
department's qualifications review commission.
(c) A satisfactory service year credit shall be determined by a
member's active participation in all of the following fire department
activities.
(1) Training drills.
(2) Responses to emergency calls.
(3) Attendance at official department and association meetings.
(d) Contracting departments shall maintain adequate records to
show that a credited member was a participating member of the
department during the year of certification. The records may include,
but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Department run logs.
(2) Department training records.
(3) Certificates of training.
(4) Records of exposures to hazardous products.
(5) Minutes of departmental or association meetings.
50961. (a) The governing body of each contracting department
shall establish a qualifications review commission that shall include
the fire chief, one member of the governing body appointed by the
governing body, and one volunteer elected by the volunteers employed
by the contracting department.
(b) The qualifications review commission shall review the list of
department members each year, and prior to October 1 of each year
shall certify to the board those volunteers who have qualified.
(c) In no event shall a member be credited with more than the
maximum number of years of service allowed in the award system, as
established by the rules and regulations of the board.
(d) With respect to each contracting department that provides
benefits for prior service credit, the qualifications review
commission shall promulgate and publish guidelines for computing
prior service credit. The guidelines shall require the prior service
credit to be verified and certified and, in the event that there are
no records in existence, the members of the commission and the
volunteer shall sign an affidavit certifying that the prior service
met the criteria prescribed in Section 50960. The affidavit shall be
signed under penalty of perjury. Thereafter, the qualifications
review commission shall certify to the board certified prior service
credit that has been earned by each member.
50962. When the member's application for an award is received by
the board, an award shall be granted to accrue and become effective
pursuant to the terms, conditions, and eligibility requirements
established by the board.
50963. The board shall determine the terms, conditions, and
eligibility requirements for all of the following:
(a) The amount of an award payable under the award system.
(b) If a member is entitled to a cost of living adjustment and the
amount of that cost of living adjustment.
(c) If a member is entitled to receive and the amounts of
supplemental payments based upon an award.
(d) Any death benefits payable to a member's designated
beneficiary or the estate of the member.
(e) All other benefits authorized by the board under this chapter.
Article 4. Contract Provisions
50964. (a) Except as described in subdivision (b), a department
may participate in and make all of its volunteers members of the
award system by a contract entered into between the governing body of
the department and the board pursuant to this chapter.
(b) The board may prohibit a new contract with or may establish
terms and conditions regarding a new contract for a department that
has previously terminated a contract for participation under this
chapter.
50965. When the governing body of a department desires to
consider participation in the award system, the governing body shall
ask the board for a quotation of the approximate contribution to the
award system that would be required by the department for
participation in the award system.
50966. An employee organization, recognized under the provisions
of appropriate authority, may request the governing body of the
department to ask the board for a quotation of the approximate
contribution to the award system that would be required of the
department for participation in the award system, and if the employee
organization is willing to pay for the cost of that quotation, the
department shall make the request. The board shall furnish copies of
the quotation to both the department and the employee organization.
50967. On request of the board, the department shall furnish the
data concerning its volunteers as the board requires to make the
necessary valuations and investigations into the experience among the
volunteers.
50968. The approximate contribution quoted by the board and the
actual contribution to be made if a contract results shall be
determined by actuarial valuations of the future service liability
under the award system, on account of the volunteers involved in the
computation, and in consideration of other circumstances that may be
adopted by the board, upon recommendation of the actuary.
50969. The approximate and actual contributions payable by a
contracting department shall be similar to premiums under insurance
policies. The approximate contribution quoted by the board to the
department is subject to the contingency that the actual contribution
certified by the board after the approval of a contract may differ
from the approximate contribution because of any of the following:
(a) Time elapsed between the quotation and operative date of the
contract.
(b) Any changes in the facts or assumptions upon which the
quotation was based.
50970. (a) Approval of the contract by the governing body of the
department shall be by resolution or by any other means permitted by
law.
(b) The board shall inform the governing body of the projected
costs of the program.
50971. Errors in a contract may be corrected through amendments
approved by the adoption of suitable resolutions by the contracting
parties. All contract amendments shall be made in the same manner as
prescribed for the approval of the initial contract.
Article 5. Termination and Limitations
50972. The contract may be terminated by the governing body of a
contracting department by resolution or by any other means permitted
by law. All liability of the department with respect to its volunteer
members of the award system shall cease. All moneys deposited in the
fund shall be held for the continued payment of previously granted
awards and the costs of administration.
50973. The board may provide that an award under this chapter
shall not be payable, or begin to accrue, until the board
establishes, by appropriate resolution, that the fund contains
sufficient net assets to make the payments provided by this chapter
based upon an actuarial reserve basis.
50974. Upon termination of the award system, assets in the fund
shall be disbursed in the following order:
(a) An amount sufficient to pay awards shall be retained by the
board.
(b) An amount sufficient to pay reasonable administrative expenses
shall be retained by the board.
(c) From any balance in the fund after the above amounts have been
retained or disbursed, each department's accumulated contributions,
less a proportionate share of the amount retained for reasonable
administrative expenses, less the amount retained to pay awards of
that department's volunteers, shall be refunded to the department.
SEC. 4. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.