SB1456sam002 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Robert F. Martwick

Filed: 5/6/2025

10400SB1456sam002 LRB104 09627 RPS 25862 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1456

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1456 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 1. This Act may be referred to as the Public Pension Board Member Training Act.

Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by adding Section 1-109.4 as follows:

(40 ILCS 5/1-109.4 new)

Sec. 1-109.4. Pension board member training.

(a) In this Section:

"Pension board" means any governing body, committee, board, or other similar group responsible for overseeing, managing, or investing the assets of a pension fund or retirement system for public employees in the State.

"Pension board member" means an individual serving on a pension board, except for an individual serving as a trustee of a pension fund established under Article 3 or Article 4.

(b) Within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly, the State Treasurer shall develop and implement a curriculum designed to provide pension board members relevant training on:

(1) legal and fiduciary responsibilities of pension fund management;

(2) ethical considerations in public pension governance;

(3) actuarial assessments and reporting requirements;

(4) relevant State and federal laws regarding pensions and retirement benefits;

(5) risk management and actuarial funding policies; and

(6) other subjects deemed necessary by the State Treasurer to effectively govern pension funds.

(c) The State Treasurer shall:

(1) create, maintain, and update the curriculum as reasonably necessary to reflect relevant material changes in law and best practices;

(2) provide the required training on the curriculum online at no cost to the pension board member, with resources to facilitate completion of the training;

(3) provide in-person training on the curriculum in the State when the State Treasurer deems appropriate and for which the State Treasurer may, but is not required to, charge a reasonable fee; and

(4) establish a system for documenting and tracking the completion of training by pension board members.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, every pension board member shall complete the training provided by the State Treasurer on an annual basis. Completion of the annual training shall be documented, and the documentation shall be provided to the State Treasurer.

Every pension board member who serves on a pension board on June 30, 2026 shall successfully complete the initial annual training on or before December 31, 2026.

Every pension board member who becomes a pension board member on or after July 1, 2026 shall successfully complete the initial annual training within 6 months after becoming a pension board member. Completion of the initial annual training shall be documented, and the documentation shall be provided to the State Treasurer.

(e) A pension board member who completes at least one hour of training conducted by a pension board on fiduciary duties and the topics specified in subsection (b) shall be deemed to satisfy the training requirements of this Section for the year in which the training occurred. A pension board member who is a judge who serves as a trustee and undergoes the training required under Section 1-113.18, as provided by the Supreme Court of Illinois, shall be deemed to satisfy the training requirements of this Section for the year in which the training occurred. If a pension board member has been deemed under this subsection to satisfy the requirements of this Section, the pension board shall document that determination in its meeting minutes, which shall be provided to the State Treasurer.

(f) Attendance at pension board business meetings shall not be deemed to fulfill the annual training requirement under this Section. However, the annual training may occur during a committee or board meeting of the pension board if the training is conducted as a separate agenda item during the meeting.

(g) After successfully completing the initial annual training, a pension board member may thereafter satisfy the annual training requirement of this Section by successfully completing a course of training sponsored or organized by a not-for-profit organization with a primary purpose of providing education to public pension fund trustees if: (1) the State Treasurer has certified that the training provided meets the curriculum requirements of this Section within the previous 12 months; and (2) the training is provided in-person at a training facility in the State that is accredited and affiliated with a State of Illinois certified college or university.

(h) Beginning in 2027, by January 15 and July 15 of each year, the State Treasurer shall compile a report and make it available to the public on the State Treasurer's website that lists pension board members who have not completed the training required under this Section and those pension board members' titles and pension board they serve on.

(i) Any moneys collected by the State Treasurer pursuant to this Section shall be deposited into the State Treasurer's Administrative Fund.

(j) The State Treasurer may adopt rules for the implementation and enforcement of this Section.".