Bill Text: GA SB286 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Retirement; tax commissioner or an employee of any such officer; membership; Employees' Retirement System of Georgia
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2012-07-01 - Effective Date [SB286 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2011-SB286-Introduced.html
12 SB286/AP
Senate
Bill 286
By:
Senators Heath of the 31st, Hill of the 4th, Stoner of the 6th, Hooks of the
14th and Murphy of the 27th
AS
PASSED
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Title 47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to retirement
and pensions, so as to provide a method of calculating accrued benefits for
persons subject to the Georgia State Employees' Pension and Savings Plan who
transfer between the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia and the Teachers
Retirement System of Georgia; to provide for the transfer of the accrued benefit
amount and the present value of the accrued benefit; to provide that the present
value shall be based on methods and assumptions of the transferring system; to
provide for the recalculation of benefits; to provide that tax commissioners,
tax collectors, and tax receivers and all employees in their offices who first
or again take office or become employed on or after July 1, 2012, shall not be
members of the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia by operation of law; to
provide that the governing authority of each county may elect to include such
officers and employees in the retirement system; to provide for employee and
employer contributions; to provide that no such person may be a member of
another public retirement system; to provide for related matters; to provide
conditions for an effective date and automatic repeal; to repeal conflicting
laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Title
47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to retirement and
pensions, is amended in Code Section 47-2-181, relating to transfer of service
credits and accumulated contributions from the Teachers Retirement System of
Georgia to the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia, by adding a new
subsection to read as follows:
"(d)(1)
At the time the membership of a person is transferred from the Teachers
Retirement System of Georgia to this retirement system subject to Article 10 of
this chapter, this retirement system shall receive the funds transferred from
the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia pursuant to Code Section 47-3-81 and,
as applicable, add the accrued benefit transferred from the Teachers Retirement
System of Georgia to the accrued benefit or the balance of employee
contributions and interest. The total benefits of any such member shall be
subject to the rules of this retirement system.
(2)
At the time the membership of a person subject to Article 10 of this chapter
transfers to the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia, this retirement system
shall:
(A)
Calculate the accumulated benefit using the service and compensation at the time
of the transfer;
(B)
Calculate the present value of the accrued benefit using methods and assumptions
adopted by the board of trustees; and
(C)
Transfer to the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia the greater of the present
value of the accumulated benefit or the balance of the employee contributions
and interest.
(3)
All service transferred pursuant to this subsection shall be calculated as
credit in this retirement system for all purposes in this retirement
system.
(4)
This retirement system and the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia shall
recalculate the accumulated benefit of any person transferred between such
retirement systems from January 1, 2009, through June 30, 2012, according to the
methods prescribed by this
subsection."
SECTION
2.
Said
title is further amended in Code Section 47-2-292, relating to merit system of
personnel administration for county revenue employees, membership in retirement
system, contributions, and credit for prior service, by adding a new subsection
to read as follows:
"(a.1)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code section, no person who first or
again takes office or becomes employed on or after July 1, 2012, shall become a
member of the retirement system pursuant to the provisions of this Code section.
Any person serving in any such position on July 1, 2012, who continues in
service without a break in service shall remain a member of this retirement
system. The reelection of any such officer or the election of any eligible
employee to such office shall not constitute a break in
service."
SECTION 3.
Said title is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
Said title is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"47-2-292.1.
(a)
The provisions of this Code section shall apply to tax commissioners, tax
collectors, and tax receivers and employees in their offices who first or again
take office or become employed on or after July 1, 2012.
(b)
On and after July 1, 2012, the governing authority of each county shall have the
option of including the county tax commissioner, tax collector, or tax receiver
and all employees of such person's office as members of the retirement system.
Such option shall be made by adopting a resolution and forwarding such
resolution to the board of trustees.
(c)
The official in charge of such office, if he or she is responsible for the
payment of the employees in that office, or the governing authority of the
county, if the official and the employees are paid by it, shall deduct or
collect from each member the employee contributions required by this chapter and
shall remit the same to the retirement system as required by regulations. The
governing authority of the county shall pay to the board of trustees the
employer contributions required by this chapter, upon receipt of an invoice from
the retirement system.
(d)
An election by a county governing authority made pursuant to subsection (b) of
this Code section may be revoked in the same manner as the election was made,
but the county's obligations as to any officer or employee who became a member
of the retirement system as a result of such election shall continue, and the
rights and benefits of any such officer or employee shall be unaffected by such
revocation.
(e)
All persons subject to the provisions of this Code section shall be members of
the retirement system under the provisions of Article 10 of this chapter as a
condition of holding office.
(f)
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Code section, no tax commissioner,
tax collector, tax receiver, or any employee of any such official shall be
eligible for membership in the retirement system if such officer or employee is
covered or becomes covered by any other public retirement or pension system,
excluding social security
coverage."
SECTION
4.
Said
title is further amended in Code Section 47-3-81, relating to transfer of
service credits from the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia to the Teachers
Retirement System of Georgia, limitations, and additional contributions or
adjustments required, by adding a new subsection to read as
follows:
"(c)(1)
At the time the membership of a person subject to Article 10 of Chapter 2 of
this title is transferred from the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia to
this retirement system, this retirement system shall receive the funds
transferred from the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia pursuant to Code
Section 47-2-181 and, as applicable, add the accrued benefit transferred from
the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia to the accrued benefit or the
balance of employee contributions and interest. The total benefits of any such
member shall be subject to the rules of this retirement system.
(2)
At the time the membership of a member of this retirement system transfers to
the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia and is subject to Article 10 of
Chapter 2 of this title, this retirement system shall:
(A)
Calculate the accumulated benefit using the service and compensation at the time
of the transfer;
(B)
Calculate the present value of the accrued benefit using methods and assumptions
adopted by the board of trustees; and
(C)
Transfer to the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia the greater of the
present value of the accumulated benefit or the balance of the employee
contributions and interest.
(3)
All service transferred pursuant to this subsection shall be calculated as
credit in this retirement system for all purposes in this retirement
system.
(4)
This retirement system and the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia shall
recalculate the accumulated benefit of any person transferred between such
retirement systems from January 1, 2009, through June 30, 2012, according to the
methods prescribed by this
subsection."
SECTION
5.
This
Act shall become effective on July 1, 2012, only if it is determined to have
been concurrently funded as provided in Chapter 20 of Title 47 of the Official
Code of Georgia Annotated, the "Public Retirement Systems Standards Law";
otherwise, this Act shall not become effective and shall be automatically
repealed in its entirety on July 1, 2012, as required by subsection (a) of Code
Section 47-20-50.
SECTION
6.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.