Bill Text: IL HB2087 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that current participants cannot establish service credit in the system after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Prohibits persons from becoming a member of GARS after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)

Status: (Failed) 2013-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB2087 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2011-HB2087-Introduced.html

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97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2011 and 2012 HB2087 Introduced , by Rep. Darlene J. Senger SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
40 ILCS 5/2-101 from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-101
40 ILCS 5/2-105 from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-105
40 ILCS 5/2-110 from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-110
Amends the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that current participants cannot establish service credit in the system after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Prohibits persons from becoming a member of GARS after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Effective immediately.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by changing
Sections 2-101, 2-105, and 2-110 as follows:
(40 ILCS 5/2-101) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-101)
Sec. 2-101. Creation of system. A retirement system is
created to provide retirement annuities, survivor's annuities,
and other benefits for certain members of the General Assembly,
certain elected state officials, and their beneficiaries.
The system shall be known as the "General Assembly
Retirement System". All its funds and property shall be a trust
separate from all other entities, maintained for the purpose of
securing payment of annuities and benefits under this Article.
(Source: P.A. 83-1440.)
(40 ILCS 5/2-105) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-105)
Sec. 2-105. Member. "Member": Members of the General
Assembly of this State who are elected before the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly,
including persons who enter military service while a member of
the General Assembly, and any person serving as Governor,
Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Treasurer,

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Comptroller, or Attorney General but only for service before
the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General
Assembly for the period of service in such office.
Any person who has served for 10 or more years as Clerk or
Assistant Clerk of the House of Representatives, Secretary or
Assistant Secretary of the Senate, or any combination thereof ,
may elect to become a member of this system while thenceforth
engaged in such service by filing a written election with the
board before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the
97th General Assembly. Any person so electing shall be deemed
an active member of the General Assembly for the purpose of
validating and transferring any service credits earned under
any of the funds and systems established under Articles 3
through 18 of this Code.
(Source: P.A. 85-1008.)
(40 ILCS 5/2-110) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 2-110)
Sec. 2-110. Service.
(A) "Service" means the period beginning on the day when a
person first became a member, and ending on the earlier of
either (i) the date under consideration, excluding all
intervening periods of nonmembership following resignation or
expiration of any term of office (ii) the effective date of
this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.
(B) "Service" includes:
(a) Military service during war by a person who entered

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such service while a member, whether rendered before or
after the expiration of any term of office; plus up to 2
years of military service that need not have immediately
followed service as a member, and need not have been served
during wartime, provided that the member makes
contributions to the System for such service (1) at the
rates provided in Section 2-126 based upon the member's
rate of compensation on the last date as a participant
prior to such military service, or on the first date as a
participant after such military service, whichever is
greater, plus (2) if payment is made on or after May 1,
1993, an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the
employer's normal cost of the benefits accrued for such
military service, plus (3) interest at the effective rate
from the date of first membership in the System to the date
of payment.
The amendment to this subdivision (B)(a) made by this
amendatory Act of 1993 shall apply to persons who are
active contributors to the System on or after November 30,
1992. A person who was an active contributor to the System
on November 30, 1992 but is no longer an active contributor
may apply to purchase military credit under this
subdivision (B)(a) within 60 days after the effective date
of this amendatory Act of 1993; if the person is an
annuitant, the resulting increase in annuity shall begin to
accrue on the first day of the month following the month in

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which the required payment is received by the System. The
change in the required contribution for purchased military
credit made by this amendatory Act of 1993 shall not
entitle any person to a refund of contributions already
paid.
(b) Service as a judge of a court of this State, but
credit for such service is subject to the following
conditions: (1) such person shall have been a member for at
least 4 years and contributed to the system for service as
a judge subsequent to July 8, 1947, at the rates herein
provided, including interest at 2% per annum to the date of
payment based on the salary in effect during such service;
(2) the member was not an eligible member of nor entitled
to credit for such service in any other retirement system
in the State maintained in whole or in part by public
contributions; and (3) the last 4 years of service prior to
retirement on annuity was rendered while a member.
(c) Service as a participating employee under Articles
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 or 18 of
the Illinois Pension Code. Credit for such service may be
established by a member and, if permitted by the credit
transfer Section of the appropriate Article, by a former
member who is not yet an annuitant, and is subject to the
following conditions: (1) that the credits accrued under
the above mentioned Articles have been transferred to this
system; and (2) that the member has contributed to this

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system an amount equal to (i) the contribution rate in
effect for participants at the date of membership in this
system multiplied by the salary then in effect for members
of the General Assembly for each year of service for which
credit is being transferred, plus (ii) the State's share of
the normal cost of benefits under this system expressed as
a percent of payroll, as determined by the system's actuary
as of the date of the participant's membership in this
system, multiplied by the salary then in effect for members
of the General Assembly, for each year of service for which
credit is being transferred, plus (iii) interest on items
(i) and (ii) above at 6% per annum compounded annually,
from the date of membership to the date of payment by the
participant, less (iv) the amount transferred to this
system on behalf of the participant on account of service
rendered while a participant under the above mentioned
Articles.
(d) Service, before October 1, 1975, as an officer
elected by the people of Illinois, for which creditable
service is required to be transferred from the State
Employees' Retirement System to this system by this
amendatory Act of 1975.
(e) Service rendered prior to January 1, 1964, as a
justice of the peace or police magistrate or as a civil
referee in the Municipal Court of Chicago, but credit for
such service may not be granted until the member has paid

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to the system an amount equal to (1) the contribution rate
for participants at the date of membership in this system
multiplied by the salary then in effect for members of the
General Assembly for each year of service for which credit
is being transferred, plus (2) the State's share of the
normal cost of benefits under this system expressed as a
percent of payroll, as determined by the system's actuary
as of the date of the participant's membership in this
system, multiplied by the salary then in effect for members
of the General Assembly, for each year of service for which
credit is allowed, plus, (3) interest on (1) and (2) above
at 6% per annum compounded annually from the date of
membership to the date of payment by the member. However, a
participant may not receive more than 6 years of credit for
such service nor may any member receive credit under this
paragraph for service for which credit has been granted in
any other public pension fund or retirement system in the
State.
(f) Service before January 16, 1981, as an officer
elected by the people of Illinois, for which creditable
service is transferred from the State Employees'
Retirement System to this system.
(B-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article,
"service" excludes service rendered on or after the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.
(C) Service during any fraction of a month shall be

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considered as a month of service.
Service includes the total period of time for which a
participant is elected as a member or officer, even though he
or she does not complete the term because of death,
resignation, judicial decision, or operation of law, provided
that the contributions required under this Article for such
entire period of office have been made by or on behalf of the
participant. In the case of a participant appointed or elected
to fill a vacancy, service includes the total period from
January 1 of the year in which his or her service commences to
the end of the term in which the vacancy occurs, provided the
participant contributes in the year of appointment an amount
equal to the contributions that would have been required had
the participant received salary for the entire year. The
foregoing provisions relating to a participant appointed or
elected to fill a vacancy shall not apply if the participant
was a member of the other legislative chamber at the time of
appointment or election.
(D) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Section,
if application to transfer or establish service credit under
paragraph (c) or (e) of subsection (B) of this Section is made
between January 1, 1992 and February 1, 1993, the contribution
required for such credit shall be an amount equal to (1) the
contribution rate in effect for participants at the date of
membership in this system multiplied by the salary then in
effect for members of the General Assembly for each year of

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service for which credit is being granted, plus (2) interest
thereon at 6% per annum compounded annually, from the date of
membership to the date of payment by the member, less (3) any
amount transferred to this system on behalf of the member on
account of such service credit.
(Source: P.A. 86-27; 86-1028; 87-794; 87-1265.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.