Public Act 098-0391
 
HB1375 EnrolledLRB098 04254 EFG 34281 b


  
    AN ACT concerning public employee retirement 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 
Section 4-114 as follows:
 
    (40 ILCS 5/4-114)  (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 4-114)

    Sec. 4-114. Pension to survivors.   If a firefighter who is 
not receiving a
disability pension under Section 4-110 or 
4-110.1 dies (1) as a result of any
illness or accident, or (2) 
from any cause while in receipt of a disability
pension under 
this Article, or (3) during retirement after 20 years service, 
or
(4) while vested for or in receipt of a pension payable 
under subsection (b)
of Section 4-109, or (5) while a deferred 
pensioner, having made all required
contributions, a pension 
shall be paid to his or her survivors, based on the
monthly 
salary attached to the firefighter's rank on the last day of 
service
in the fire department, as follows:


        (a)(1) To the surviving spouse, a monthly pension of

    40% of the monthly salary, and if there is a surviving 
    spouse, to the guardian of any minor child or
children 
    including a child which has been conceived but not yet 
    born, 12%
of such monthly salary for each such child  until 
    attainment of age 18 or
until the child's marriage, 
    whichever occurs first.  Beginning July 1,
1993, the monthly 
    pension to the surviving spouse shall be 54% of the
monthly 
    salary for all persons receiving a surviving spouse pension 
    under
this Article, regardless of whether the deceased 
    firefighter was in service
on or after the effective date 
    of this amendatory Act of 1993.


        (2) Beginning July 1, 2004, unless the amount provided 
    under paragraph (1) of this subsection (a) is greater, the 
    total monthly pension payable under
this paragraph (a), 
    including any amount payable on account of children, to the 
    surviving spouse of a firefighter who died (i) while

    receiving a retirement pension, (ii) while he or she was a 
    deferred pensioner with at least 20 years of creditable 
    service, or (iii) while he or she was in active service 
    having at least 20 years of creditable service, regardless 
    of age, shall be no less than 100% of the monthly 
    retirement pension earned by

the deceased firefighter at 
    the time of death, regardless of whether death occurs 
    before or after attainment of age 50, including any

    increases under Section 4-109.1.  This minimum applies to 
    all such surviving
spouses who are eligible to receive a 
    surviving spouse pension, regardless of
whether the 
    deceased firefighter was in service on or after the 
    effective date
of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General 
    Assembly, and notwithstanding any
limitation on maximum 
    pension under paragraph (d) or any other provision of
this 
    Article.


        (3) If the pension paid on and after July 1, 2004 to 
    the surviving spouse of a firefighter who died on or after 
    July 1, 2004 and before the effective date of this 
    amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly was less than 
    the minimum pension payable under paragraph (1) or (2) of 
    this subsection (a), the fund shall pay a lump sum equal to 
    the difference within 90 days after the effective date of 
    this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly.

        The pension to the surviving spouse shall terminate in 
    the event of the
surviving spouse's remarriage prior to 
    July 1, 1993; remarriage on or after
that date does not 
    affect the surviving spouse's pension, regardless of

    whether the deceased firefighter was in service on or after 
    the effective
date of this amendatory Act of 1993.


        The surviving spouse's pension shall be subject to the 
    minimum established
in Section 4-109.2.


        (b) Upon the death of the surviving spouse leaving one 
    or more minor
children, or upon the death of a firefighter 
    leaving one or more minor
children but no surviving spouse, 
    to the duly appointed guardian of each such child, for 
    support
and maintenance of each such child until the child 
    reaches age 18 or
marries, whichever occurs first, a 
    monthly pension of 20% of the monthly
salary.


        In a case where the deceased firefighter left one or 
    more minor children but no surviving spouse and the 
    guardian of a child is receiving a pension of 12% of the 
    monthly salary  on the effective date of this amendatory 
    Act, the pension is increased by this amendatory Act to 20% 
    of the monthly salary for each such child, beginning on the 
    pension payment date occurring on or next following the 
    effective date of this amendatory Act. The changes to this 
    Section made by this amendatory Act of the 98th General 
    Assembly apply without regard to whether the deceased 
    firefighter was in service
on or after the effective date 
    of this amendatory Act.
        (c) If a deceased firefighter leaves no surviving 
    spouse or unmarried
minor children under age 18, but leaves 
    a dependent father or mother, to
each dependent parent a 
    monthly pension of 18% of the monthly salary.  To
qualify 
    for the pension, a dependent parent must furnish 
    satisfactory proof
that the deceased firefighter was at the 
    time of his or her death the sole
supporter of the parent 
    or that the parent was the deceased's dependent for
federal 
    income tax purposes.


        (d) The total pension provided under paragraphs (a), 
    (b) and (c) of this
Section shall not exceed 75% of the 
    monthly salary of the deceased firefighter
(1) when paid to 
    the survivor of a firefighter who has attained 20 or more

    years of service credit and who receives or is eligible to 
    receive a retirement
pension under this Article, or (2) 
    when paid to the survivor of a firefighter
who dies as a 
    result of illness or accident, or (3) when paid to the 
    survivor
of a firefighter who dies from any cause while in 
    receipt of a disability
pension under this Article, or (4) 
    when paid to the survivor of a deferred
pensioner.  For all 
    other survivors of deceased firefighters, the total 
    pension
provided under paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this 
    Section shall not exceed 50%
of the retirement annuity the 
    firefighter would have received on the date of
death.


        The maximum pension limitations in this paragraph (d) 
    do not control
over any contrary provision of this Article 
    explicitly establishing a minimum
amount of pension or 
    granting a one-time or annual increase in pension.


        (e) If a firefighter leaves no eligible survivors under 
    paragraphs (a),
(b) and (c), the board shall refund to the 
    firefighter's estate the amount
of his or her accumulated 
    contributions, less the amount of pension
payments, if any, 
    made to the firefighter while living.


        (f) (Blank).


        (g) If a judgment of dissolution of marriage between a 
    firefighter and
spouse is judicially set aside subsequent 
    to the firefighter's death, the
surviving spouse is 
    eligible for the pension provided in paragraph (a) only
if 
    the judicial proceedings are filed within 2 years after the 
    date of the
dissolution of marriage and within one year 
    after the firefighter's death and
the board is made a party 
    to the proceedings. In such case the pension shall be

    payable only from the date of the court's order setting 
    aside the judgment of
dissolution of marriage.


        (h) Benefits payable on account of a child under this 
    Section shall
not be reduced or terminated by reason of the 
    child's attainment of age 18
if he or she is then dependent 
    by reason of a physical or mental disability
but shall 
    continue to be paid as long as such dependency continues.

    Individuals over the age of 18 and adjudged as a disabled 
    person pursuant
to Article XIa of the Probate Act of 1975, 
    except for persons receiving
benefits under Article III of 
    the Illinois Public Aid Code, shall be
eligible to receive 
    benefits under this Act.


        (i) Beginning January 1, 2000, the pension of the 
    surviving spouse of
a firefighter who dies on or after 
    January 1, 1994 as a result of sickness,
accident, or 
    injury incurred in or resulting from the performance of an 
    act of
duty or from the cumulative effects of acts of duty 
    shall not be less than 100%
of the salary attached to the 
    rank held by the deceased firefighter on the last
day of 
    service, notwithstanding subsection (d) or any other 
    provision of
this Article.


        (j) Beginning July 1, 2004, the pension of the 
    surviving spouse of
a firefighter who dies on or after 
    January 1, 1988 as a result of sickness,
accident, or 
    injury incurred in or resulting from the performance of an 
    act of
duty or from the cumulative effects of acts of duty 
    shall not be less than 100%
of the salary attached to the 
    rank held by the deceased firefighter on the last
day of 
    service, notwithstanding subsection (d) or any other 
    provision of
this Article.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, if a 
person who first becomes a firefighter under this Article on or 
after January 1, 2011 and who is not receiving a
disability 
pension under Section 4-110 or 4-110.1 dies (1) as a result of 
any
illness or accident, (2) from any cause while in receipt of 
a disability
pension under this Article, (3) during retirement 
after 20 years service, (4) while vested for or in receipt of a 
pension payable under subsection (b)
of Section 4-109, or (5) 
while a deferred pensioner, having made all required

contributions, then  a pension shall be paid to his or her 
survivors in the amount of 66 2/3% of the firefighter's earned 
pension at the date of death. Nothing in this Section shall act 
to diminish the
survivor's benefits described in subsection (j) 
of this Section.
    Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, the 
monthly
pension of a survivor of a person who first becomes a 
firefighter under this Article on or after January 1, 2011 
shall be increased on the January 1 after attainment of age 60 
by the recipient of the survivor's pension and
each January 1 
thereafter by 3% or one-half the annual unadjusted percentage 
increase in the consumer price index-u for the
12 months ending 
with the September preceding each November 1, whichever is 
less, of the originally granted survivor's pension. If the 
annual unadjusted percentage change in
the consumer price 
index-u for a 12-month period ending in September is zero or, 
when compared with the preceding period, decreases, then the 
survivor's pension shall not
be increased. 
    For the purposes of this Section, "consumer price index-u" 
means the index published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of 
the United States Department of Labor that measures the average 
change in prices of goods and services purchased by all urban 
consumers, United States city average, all items, 1982-84 = 
100. The new amount resulting from each annual adjustment shall 
be determined by the Public Pension Division of the Department 
of Insurance and made available to the boards of the pension 
funds. 
(Source: P.A. 95-279, eff. 1-1-08; 96-1495, eff. 1-1-11.)

 
    Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding 
Section 8.37 as follows:
 
    (30 ILCS 805/8.37 new)
    Sec. 8.37. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 
of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the 
implementation of any mandate created by this amendatory Act of 
the 98th General Assembly.
 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.