97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB4008

 

Introduced 1/18/2012, by Rep. Daniel J. Burke

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
40 ILCS 5/13-310  from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 13-310
40 ILCS 5/13-601  from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 13-601

    Amends the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that an employee who first enters service on or after the January 1, 2013 and becomes disabled shall, on and after the 31st day of disability (rather than the 31st after which he or she last worked), be entitled to ordinary disability benefits during the remainder of that disability (instead of only after having exhausted his or her sick leave). Provides that if employee contributions in the account of an employee who enters service after the effective date of the amendatory Act have not, before his or her death and the death of his or her spouse, been paid as a retirement, spouse's, or child's annuity, then a refund shall be paid in an amount equal to the excess of the contributions over the amounts paid on those annuities, without interest. Specifies that if there are surviving children of the employee or annuitant who are eligible for a child's annuity, then that refund may not be paid until the youngest eligible child reaches age 23.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by changing
5Sections 13-310 and 13-601 as follows:
 
6    (40 ILCS 5/13-310)  (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 13-310)
7    Sec. 13-310. Ordinary disability benefit.
8    (a) Any employee who becomes disabled as the result of any
9cause other than injury or illness incurred in the performance
10of duty for the employer or any other employer, or while
11engaged in self-employment activities, shall be entitled to an
12ordinary disability benefit. The eligible period for this
13benefit shall be 25% of the employee's total actual service
14prior to the date of disability with a cumulative maximum
15period of 5 years.
16    (b) The benefit shall be allowed only if the employee files
17an application in writing with the Board, and a medical report
18is submitted by at least one licensed and practicing physician
19as part of the employee's application.
20    The benefit is not payable for any disability which begins
21during any period of unpaid leave of absence. No benefit shall
22be allowed for any period of disability prior to 30 days before
23application is made, unless the Board finds good cause for the

 

 

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1delay in filing the application. The benefit shall not be paid
2during any period for which the employee receives or is
3entitled to receive any part of salary.
4    The benefit is not payable for any disability which begins
5during any period of absence from duty other than allowable
6vacation time in any calendar year. An employee whose
7disability begins during any such ineligible period of absence
8from service may not receive benefits until the employee
9recovers from the disability and is in service for at least 15
10consecutive working days after such recovery.
11    (b-1) In the case of an employee who first enters service
12on or after June 13, 1997, an ordinary disability benefit is
13not payable for the first 3 days of disability that would
14otherwise be payable under this Section if the disability does
15not continue for at least 11 additional days.
16    (b-2) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory
17Act of the 94th General Assembly, an employee who first entered
18service on or after June 13, 1997 is also eligible for ordinary
19disability benefits on the 31st day after the last day worked,
20provided all sick leave is exhausted.
21    (b-3) An employee who first enters service on or after
22January 1, 2013 and becomes disabled shall, on and after the
2331st day of disability, be entitled to ordinary disability
24benefits during the remainder of that disability.
25    (c) The benefit shall be 50% of the employee's salary at
26the date of disability, and shall terminate when the earliest

 

 

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1of the following occurs:
2        (1) The employee returns to work or receives a
3    retirement annuity paid wholly or in part under this
4    Article;
5        (2) The disability ceases;
6        (3) The employee willfully and continuously refuses to
7    follow medical advice and treatment to enable the employee
8    to return to work. However this provision does not apply to
9    an employee who relies in good faith on treatment by prayer
10    through spiritual means alone in accordance with the tenets
11    and practice of a recognized church or religious
12    denomination, by a duly accredited practitioner thereof;
13        (4) The employee (i) refuses to submit to a reasonable
14    physical examination within 30 days of application by a
15    physician appointed by the Board, (ii) in the case of
16    chronic alcoholism, the employee refuses to join a
17    rehabilitation program licensed by the Department of
18    Public Health of the State of Illinois and certified by the
19    Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Hospitals, (iii)
20    fails or refuses to consent to and sign an authorization
21    allowing the Board to receive copies of or to examine the
22    employee's medical and hospital records, or (iv) fails or
23    refuses to provide complete information regarding any
24    other employment for compensation he or she has received
25    since becoming disabled; or
26        (5) The eligible period for this benefit has been

 

 

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1    exhausted.
2    Effective January 1, 2013, the The first payment of the
3benefit shall be made not later than one month after the
4benefit is same has been granted, and each subsequent payment
5payments shall be made monthly at intervals of not more than 30
6days.
7(Source: P.A. 94-621, eff. 8-18-05.)
 
8    (40 ILCS 5/13-601)  (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 13-601)
9    Sec. 13-601. Refunds.
10    (a) Withdrawal from service. Upon withdrawal from service,
11an employee who first became a member before January 1, 2011,
12who is under age 55 (age 50 if the employee first entered
13service before June 13, 1997), or an employee age 55 (age 50 if
14the employee first entered service before June 13, 1997) or
15over but less than age 60 having less than 20 years of service,
16or an employee age 60 or over having less than 5 years of
17service shall be entitled, upon application, to a refund of
18total contributions from salary deductions or amounts
19otherwise paid under this Article by the employee. An employee
20who first becomes a member on or after January 1, 2011, who
21withdraws before age 62 regardless of length of service, or who
22withdraws with less than 10 years of service regardless of age
23is entitled to a refund of total contributions from salary
24deductions or amounts otherwise paid under this Article by the
25employee. The refund shall not include interest credited to the

 

 

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1contributions. The Board may, in its discretion, withhold
2payment of a refund for a period not to exceed one year from
3the date of filing an application for refund.
4    (b) Surviving spouse's annuity contributions. A refund of
5all amounts deducted from salary or otherwise contributed by an
6employee for the surviving spouse's annuity shall be paid upon
7retirement to any employee who on the date of retirement is
8either not married or is married but whose spouse is not
9eligible for a surviving spouse's annuity paid wholly or in
10part under this Article. The refund shall include interest on
11each contribution at the rate of 3% per annum compounded
12annually from the date of the contribution to the date of the
13refund.
14    (c) Payment of Refunds After Death. Whenever any refund is
15payable after the death of the employee or annuitant as
16provided for in this Article, the refund shall be paid as
17follows: to the employee's surviving spouse, but if there is no
18surviving spouse then in accordance with the employee's written
19designation of beneficiary filed with the Board on the
20prescribed form before the employee's death. If there is no
21such designation of beneficiary, then to the employee's
22surviving children in equal parts to each. If there are no such
23children, the refund shall be paid to the heirs of the employee
24according to the law of descent and distribution of the State
25of Illinois.
26    If a personal representative of the estate has not been

 

 

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1appointed within 90 days from the date on which a refund became
2payable, the refund may be applied, in the discretion of the
3Board, toward the payment of the employee's or the surviving
4spouse's burial expenses. Any remaining balance shall be paid
5to the heirs of the employee according to the law of descent
6and distribution of the State of Illinois.
7    Whenever the total accumulations to the account of an
8employee from employee contributions other than the
9contribution for the cost of living increase, including
10interest to the employee's date of withdrawal, have not been
11paid to the employee and surviving spouse as a retirement or
12spouse's annuity before the death of the employee and spouse, a
13refund shall be paid as follows: an amount equal to the excess
14of such amounts over the amounts paid on such annuities without
15interest on either such amount.
16    If employee contributions in the account of an employee who
17enters service after the effective date of this amendatory Act
18of the 97th General Assembly (excluding contributions for the
19cost of living increase, but including interest up to the date
20of the employee's withdrawal) have not, before his or her death
21and the death of his or her spouse, been paid as a retirement
22annuity to the employee, a spouse's annuity to his or her
23surviving spouse, or a child's annuity to his or her surviving
24child or children, then a refund shall be paid in an amount
25equal to the excess of the contributions over the amounts paid
26on the annuities, without interest. If there are surviving

 

 

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1children of the employee or annuitant who are eligible for a
2child's annuity under Section 13-308, then the refund may not
3be paid until the youngest eligible child reaches age 23.
4    If a reversionary annuity becomes payable under Section
513-303, the refund provided in this section shall not be paid
6until the death of the reversionary annuitant and the refund
7otherwise payable under this section shall be then further
8reduced by the amount of the reversionary annuity paid.
9    (d) In lieu of annuity. Notwithstanding the provisions set
10forth in subsection (a) of this section, whenever an employee's
11or surviving spouse's annuity will be less than $200 per month,
12the employee or surviving spouse, as the case may be, may elect
13to receive a refund of accumulated employee contributions;
14provided, however, that if the election is made by a surviving
15spouse the refund shall be reduced by any amounts theretofore
16paid to the employee in the form of an annuity.
17    (e) Forfeiture of rights. An employee or surviving spouse
18who receives a refund forfeits the right to receive an annuity
19or any other benefit payable under this Article except that if
20the refund is to a surviving spouse, any child or children of
21the employee shall not be deprived of the right to receive a
22child's annuity as provided in Section 13-308 of this Article,
23and the payment of a child's annuity shall not reduce the
24amount refundable to the surviving spouse.
25(Source: P.A. 95-586, eff. 8-31-07; 96-251, eff. 8-11-09;
2696-1490, eff. 1-1-11.)