Pennsylvania Act 2002-234 — EDUCATION (24 PA.C.S.) AND STATE GOVERNMENT (71 PA.C.S.) - AMEND TERMINATION OF ANNUITIES, RETENTION AND REINSTATEMENT OF SERVICE CREDITS FOR SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITIES AND BENEFITS COMPLETION PLAN

Act text

EDUCATION (24 PA.C.S.) AND STATE GOVERNMENT (71 PA.C.S.) - AMEND
 TERMINATION OF ANNUITIES, RETENTION AND REINSTATEMENT OF SERVICE CREDITS
         FOR SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITIES AND BENEFITS COMPLETION PLAN
                 Act of Dec. 30, 2002, P.L. 2082, No. 234             Cl. 24
                             Session of 2002
                               No. 2002-234

     SB 315

                                  AN ACT

     Amending Titles 24 (Education) and 71 (State Government) of the
        Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, further providing for
        termination of annuities, for retention and reinstatement of
        service credits and for supplemental annuities commencing
        2003; and providing for benefits completion plan.

        The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     hereby enacts as follows:

        Section 1.  Section 8346 of Title 24 of the Pennsylvania
     Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a subsection to read:
      § 8346.  Termination of annuities.
        * * *
        (b.1)  Return to school service in an extracurricular
     position.--An annuitant may be employed under separate contract
     by a school entity or charter school in an extracurricular
     position outside regular instructional hours and not part of
     mandated curriculum without loss of annuity. Neither the
     annuitant nor the employer shall make contributions to the
     member's savings account or State accumulation account
     respectively for such service. Further, such contract shall
     contain a waiver whereby the annuitant waives any potential
     retirement benefits that could arise from the contract and
     releases the employer and the board from any liability for such
     benefits.
        * * *
        Section 2.  Section 5303 of Title 71 is amended by adding a
     subsection to read:
      § 5303.  Retention and reinstatement of service credits.
        * * *
        (h)  Purchase of certain service credit; Delaware River Joint
     Free Bridge Commission.--
            (1)  An active member who is an employee of the Delaware
        River Joint Toll Bridge Commission on the effective date of
        this subsection shall be eligible to obtain State service
        credit for the other one-half of the member's service as an
        employee of the former Delaware River Joint Free Bridge
        Commission after September 1, 1973, and before July 1, 1987,
        for which the member has received one-half year of State
        service credit for each year of service upon payment of the
        required contribution by the member.
            (2)  In order to elect the service credit, an active
        member shall file an application with the board no later than
        three years after the effective date of this subsection.
            (3)  The contribution to be paid by a member for the
        service credit shall be determined by the board to be equal
        to the amount paid as employee contributions to the fund by
        the member as an employee of the former Delaware River Joint
        Free Bridge Commission during the time period for which
        service credit is being purchased together with statutory
        interest to date of purchase.
            (4)  Upon application for the service credit, the member
        shall pay the contribution to the board in a lump sum within
        30 days or the contribution may be amortized with statutory
        interest through salary deductions over a period not to
        exceed three years as agreed upon by the member and the
        board.
            (5)  In no event shall the service be creditable if the
        member has received, is entitled to receive, eligible to
        receive now or in the future or is receiving retirement
        benefits for such service or has retirement credit or has now
        or acquires in the future retirement credit under a
        retirement system administered and wholly or partially paid
        for by any other governmental agency or by any private
        employer or a retirement program approved by the employer in
        accordance with section 5301(a)(12). In the event that State
        service credit is granted for the service and the member
        subsequently receives credit for the service that is
        prohibited by this paragraph, the State service credited
        shall be canceled and any member contributions and interest
        paid by the member under paragraphs (3) and (4) shall be
        refunded to the member by the board.
        Section 3.  Section 5708.7(g) of Title 71 is amended to read:
      § 5708.7.  Supplemental annuities commencing 2003.
        * * *
        (g)  Eligible benefit recipient.--As used in this section,
     the term "eligible benefit recipient" means a person:
            (1)  who is receiving a superannuation, withdrawal or
        disability annuity on July 1, 2003;
            (2)  whose most recent effective date of retirement is
        prior to [January 1,] July 2, 2002; and
            (3)  whose credited service does not include any service
        credited as either Class AA, Class D-4 or Class T-D service.
     Notwithstanding the above, the supplemental annuities provided
     under this section shall not be payable to an annuitant
     receiving a superannuation or withdrawal annuity prior to the
     first day of July coincident with or following the annuitant's
     attainment of superannuation age.
        Section 4.  Title 71 is amended by adding a section to read:
      § 5941. Benefits completion plan.
        Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the board
     shall establish and serve as trustee of a retirement benefit
     plan within the meaning of, in conformity with and then only to
     the extent and so long as permitted by IRC § 415(m) for the
     purpose of providing such retirement benefits as would otherwise
     have been payable under this part to annuitants of the system on
     or after July 2, 2001, but for the application of the
     limitations on benefits of IRC § 415. The board may, in its sole
     discretion and within the limits of IRC § 415(m) and this
     section, determine all terms and provisions of the plan,
     including, but not limited to, the cost of and procedures for
     funding the plan as provided in this section. The Commonwealth
     and other employers whose employees are members of the system
     shall make contributions to the plan on behalf of all members in
     such amounts as shall be certified by the board.
        Section 5.  The addition of 24 Pa.C.S. § 8346(b.1) shall
     apply retroactively to July 1, 2001.
        Section 6.  No payments from the plan authorized by 71
     Pa.C.S. § 5941 shall be made until the first calendar month
     beginning 90 days following the receipt by the State Employees'
     Retirement Board of a determination by the Internal Revenue
     Service that the plan established by the State Employees'
     Retirement Board conforms with section 415(m) of the Internal
     Revenue Code of 1986 (Public Law 99-514, 26 U.S.C. § 415(m)) and
     such regulations as may have been promulgated thereunder and
     until the assets of the plan as provided in 71 Pa.C.S. § 5941
     are sufficient to satisfy the plan's projected liabilities in
     the following year.
        Section 7.  This act shall take effect as follows:
            (1)  The addition of 71 Pa.C.S. § 5303(h) shall take
        effect in 60 days.
            (2)  The remainder of this act shall take effect
        immediately.

     APPROVED--The 30th day of December, A. D. 2002.

     MARK S. SCHWEIKER