Bill Text: CA AB2474 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: County employees retirement: benefits.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 741, Statutes of 2014. [AB2474 Detail]

Download: California-2013-AB2474-Introduced.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 2474	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


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 31462.2, 31781.3, 31781.31, and 31787.6
of the Government Code, relating to county employees' retirement.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2474, as introduced, Committee on Public Employees, Retirement
and Social Security. Final compensation: 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 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 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 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 be paid a one-time
lump-sum benefit calculated using the annual compensation earnable by
the deceased.
   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.
   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 31462.2 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,  such
  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. 2.  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
 following combined benefit:   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  such annual compensation, plus
  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.  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  following combined benefit: 
 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  such annual
compensation, plus   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.  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  , 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),  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.