Bill Text: FL S2088 | 2012 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Public Retirement Plans
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Failed) 2012-03-09 - Died in Community Affairs [S2088 Detail]
Download: Florida-2012-S2088-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2012 CS for SB 2088 By the Committees on Governmental Oversight and Accountability; and Governmental Oversight and Accountability 585-02802-12 20122088c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public retirement plans; amending 3 s. 175.351, F.S.; revising provisions relating to 4 benefits paid from the premium tax by a municipality 5 or special fire control district that has its own 6 pension plan; providing for retroactive application; 7 amending s. 185.02, F.S.; revising the definition of 8 the term “compensation” or “salary” for purposes of 9 police officers’ pensions; amending s. 185.35, F.S.; 10 revising provisions relating to benefits paid by a 11 municipality that has its own pension plan; providing 12 for retroactive application; providing a declaration 13 of important state interest; providing an effective 14 date. 15 16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 17 18 Section 1. Subsection (6) is added to section 175.351, 19 Florida Statutes, to read: 20 175.351 Municipalities and special fire control districts 21 having their own pension plans for firefighters.—For any 22 municipality, special fire control district, local law 23 municipality, local law special fire control district, or local 24 law plan under this chapter, in order for municipalities and 25 special fire control districts with their own pension plans for 26 firefighters, or for firefighters and police officers if 27 included, to participate in the distribution of the tax fund 28 established pursuant to s. 175.101, local law plans must meet 29 the minimum benefits and minimum standards set forth in this 30 chapter. 31 (6) Notwithstanding any other provision, with respect to 32 any plan established under this chapter, if the municipality or 33 special fire control district and the plan members’ collective 34 bargaining representative or, if none, a majority of the plan 35 members, mutually consent to the retirement benefits provided in 36 the plan or to the use of income from the premium tax provided 37 pursuant to this chapter, the provisions of the agreement shall 38 be deemed to comply with this chapter for retirement purposes. 39 This subsection is retroactive in application to any agreement 40 entered into or effective on or after October 1, 2010. 41 Section 2. Subsection (4) of section 185.02, Florida 42 Statutes, is amended to read: 43 185.02 Definitions.—For any municipality, chapter plan, 44 local law municipality, or local law plan under this chapter, 45 the following words and phrases as used in this chapter shall 46 have the following meanings, unless a different meaning is 47 plainly required by the context: 48 (4) “Compensation” or “salary” means, for noncollectively 49 bargained service earned before July 1, 2011, or for service 50 earned under collective bargaining agreements in place before 51 July 1, 2011, the total cash remuneration including“overtime”52 paid by the primary employer to a police officer for services 53 rendered, but not including any payments for extra duty or 54 special detail work performed on behalf of a second party 55 employer. A local law plan may limit the amount of overtime 56 payments which can be used for retirement benefit calculation 57 purposes; however, such overtime limit may not be less than 300 58 hours per officer per calendar year unless a smaller number of 59 hours is mutually agreed to by the collective bargaining 60 representative and municipality. For noncollectively bargained 61 service earned on or after July 1, 2011, or for service earned 62 under collective bargaining agreements entered into on or after 63 July 1, 2011, the term has the same meaning except that when 64 calculating retirement benefits, up to 300 hours per year in 65 overtime compensation may be included unless a smaller number of 66 hours is mutually agreed to by a majority of the plan members 67 and the municipality as specified in the plan or collective 68 bargaining agreement, but payments for accrued unused sick or 69 annual leave may not be included. 70 (a) Any retirement trust fund or plan that meets the 71 requirements of this chapter does not, solely by virtue of this 72 subsection, reduce or diminish the monthly retirement income 73 otherwise payable to each police officer covered by the 74 retirement trust fund or plan. 75 (b) The member’s compensation or salary contributed as 76 employee-elective salary reductions or deferrals to any salary 77 reduction, deferred compensation, or tax-sheltered annuity 78 program authorized under the Internal Revenue Code shall be 79 deemed to be the compensation or salary the member would receive 80 if he or she were not participating in such program and shall be 81 treated as compensation for retirement purposes under this 82 chapter. 83 (c) For any person who first becomes a member in any plan 84 year beginning on or after January 1, 1996, compensation for 85 that plan year may not include any amounts in excess of the 86 Internal Revenue Code s. 401(a)(17) limitation, as amended by 87 the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, which limitation 88 of $150,000 shall be adjusted as required by federal law for 89 qualified government plans and shall be further adjusted for 90 changes in the cost of living in the manner provided by Internal 91 Revenue Code s. 401(a)(17)(B). For any person who first became a 92 member before the first plan year beginning on or after January 93 1, 1996, the limitation on compensation may not be less than the 94 maximum compensation amount that was allowed to be taken into 95 account under the planasin effect on July 1, 1993, which 96 limitation shall be adjusted for changes in the cost of living 97 since 1989 in the manner provided by Internal Revenue Code s. 98 401(a)(17)(1991). 99 Section 3. Subsection (6) is added to section 185.35, 100 Florida Statutes, to read: 101 185.35 Municipalities having their own pension plans for 102 police officers.—For any municipality, chapter plan, local law 103 municipality, or local law plan under this chapter, in order for 104 municipalities with their own pension plans for police officers, 105 or for police officers and firefighters if included, to 106 participate in the distribution of the tax fund established 107 pursuant to s. 185.08, local law plans must meet the minimum 108 benefits and minimum standards set forth in this chapter: 109 (6) Notwithstanding any other provision, with respect to 110 any plan established under this chapter, if the municipality and 111 the plan members’ collective bargaining representative or, if 112 none, a majority of the plan members, mutually consent to the 113 retirement benefits provided in the plan or to the use of income 114 from the premium tax provided pursuant to this chapter, the 115 provisions of the agreement shall be deemed to comply with this 116 chapter for retirement purposes. This subsection is retroactive 117 in application to any agreement entered into or effective on or 118 after October 1, 2010. 119 Section 4. The Legislature finds that a proper and 120 legitimate state purpose is served when employees and retirees 121 of the state and its political subdivisions, and the dependents, 122 survivors, and beneficiaries of such employees and retirees, are 123 extended the basic protections afforded by governmental 124 retirement systems that provide fair and adequate benefits and 125 that are managed, administered, and funded in an actuarially 126 sound manner as required by s. 14, Article X of the State 127 Constitution and part VII of chapter 112, Florida Statutes. 128 Therefore, the Legislature determines and declares that this act 129 fulfills an important state interest. 130 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.