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90_HB0756
40 ILCS 5/7-145.1 new
40 ILCS 5/7-145.2 new
30 ILCS 805/8.21 new
Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Article of
the Pension Code to provide an optional plan of additional
benefits and contributions for elected county officers and
their survivors. Amends the State Mandates Act to require
implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.
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LRB9003250EGfg
1 AN ACT to amend the Illinois Pension Code by adding
2 Sections 7-145.1 and 7-145.2 and to amend the State Mandates
3 Act.
4 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
5 represented in the General Assembly:
6 Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by
7 adding Sections 7-145.1 and 7-145.2 as follows:
8 (40 ILCS 5/7-145.1 new)
9 Sec. 7-145.1. Alternative annuity for county officers.
10 (a) An elected county officer may elect to establish
11 alternative credits for an alternative annuity by electing in
12 writing to make additional optional contributions in
13 accordance with this Section and procedures established by
14 the board. The elected county officer may discontinue making
15 the additional optional contributions by notifying the Fund
16 in writing in accordance with this Section and procedures
17 established by the board.
18 Additional optional contributions for the alternative
19 annuity shall be as follows:
20 (1) For service after the option is elected, an
21 additional contribution of 3% of salary shall be
22 contributed to the Fund on the same basis and under the
23 same conditions as contributions required under Section
24 7-173.
25 (2) For service before the option is elected, an
26 additional contribution of 3% of the salary for the
27 applicable period of service, plus interest at the
28 effective rate from the date of service to the date of
29 payment. All payments for past service must be paid in
30 full before credit is given. No additional optional
31 contributions may be made for any period of service for
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1 which credit has been previously forfeited by acceptance
2 of a refund, unless the refund is repaid in full with
3 interest at the effective rate from the date of refund to
4 the date of repayment.
5 (b) In lieu of the retirement annuity otherwise payable
6 under this Article, an elected county officer who (1) has
7 elected to participate in the Fund and make additional
8 optional contributions in accordance with this Section and
9 (2) has attained age 55 with at least 8 years of service
10 credit may elect to have his retirement annuity computed as
11 follows: 3% of the participant's salary at the time of
12 termination of service for each of the first 8 years of
13 service credit, plus 4% of that salary for each of the next 4
14 years of service credit, plus 5% of that salary for each year
15 of service credit in excess of 12 years, subject to a maximum
16 of 80% of that salary. To the extent that the elected county
17 officer has made additional optional contributions with
18 respect to only a portion of his years of service credit, his
19 retirement annuity will first be determined in accordance
20 with this Section to the extent that additional optional
21 contributions were made, and then in accordance with the
22 remaining Sections of this Article to the extent of years of
23 service credit with respect to which additional optional
24 contributions were not made.
25 (c) In lieu of the disability benefits otherwise payable
26 under this Article, an elected county officer who (1) has
27 elected to participate in the Fund, and (2) has become
28 permanently disabled and as a consequence is unable to
29 perform the duties of his office, and (3) was making optional
30 contributions in accordance with this Section at the time the
31 disability was incurred, may elect to receive a disability
32 annuity calculated in accordance with the formula in
33 subsection (b). For the purposes of this subsection, an
34 elected county officer shall be considered permanently
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1 disabled only if: (i) disability occurs while in service as
2 an elected county officer and is of such a nature as to
3 prevent him from reasonably performing the duties of his
4 office at the time; and (ii) the board has received a written
5 certification by at least 2 licensed physicians appointed by
6 it stating that the officer is disabled and that the
7 disability is likely to be permanent.
8 (d) Refunds of additional optional contributions shall
9 be made on the same basis and under the same conditions as
10 provided under Section 7-166, 7-167 and 7-168. Interest
11 shall be credited at the effective rate on the same basis and
12 under the same conditions as for other contributions.
13 (e) The plan of optional alternative benefits and
14 contributions shall be available to persons who are elected
15 county officers and active contributors to the Fund on or
16 after November 15, 1994. A person who was an elected county
17 officer and an active contributor to the Fund on November 15,
18 1994 but is no longer an active contributor may apply to make
19 additional optional contributions under this Section at any
20 time within 90 days after the effective date of this
21 amendatory Act of 1997; if the person is an annuitant, the
22 resulting increase in annuity shall begin to accrue on the
23 first day of the month following the month in which the
24 required payment is received by the Fund.
25 (f) For the purposes of this Section and Section
26 7-145.2, the terms "elected county officer" and "elected
27 county office" include, but are not limited to: (1) the
28 county clerk, recorder, treasurer, coroner, assessor (if
29 elected), auditor, sheriff, and State's Attorney; members of
30 the county board; and the clerk of the circuit court; and (2)
31 a person who has been appointed to fill a vacancy in an
32 office that is normally filled by election on a countywide
33 basis, for the duration of his or her service in that office.
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1 (40 ILCS 5/7-145.2 new)
2 Sec. 7-145.2. Alternative survivor's benefits for
3 survivors of county officers.
4 In lieu of the survivor's benefits otherwise payable
5 under this Article, the spouse or eligible child of any
6 deceased elected county officer who (1) had elected to
7 participate in the Fund, and (2) was either making additional
8 optional contributions in accordance with Section 7-145.1 on
9 the date of death, or was receiving an annuity calculated
10 under that Section at the time of death, may elect to receive
11 an annuity beginning on the date of the elected county
12 officer's death, provided that the spouse and officer must
13 have been married on the date of the last termination of his
14 or her service as an elected county officer and for a
15 continuous period of at least one year immediately preceding
16 his or her death.
17 The annuity shall be payable beginning on the date of the
18 elected county officer's death if the spouse is then age 50
19 or over, or beginning at age 50 if the age of the spouse is
20 less than 50 years. If a minor unmarried child or children
21 of the county officer, under age 18, also survive, and the
22 child or children are under the care of the eligible spouse,
23 the annuity shall begin as of the date of death of the
24 elected county officer without regard to the spouse's age.
25 The annuity to a spouse shall be 66 2/3% of the amount of
26 retirement annuity earned by the elected county officer on
27 the date of death, subject to a minimum payment of 10% of
28 salary, provided that if an eligible spouse, regardless of
29 age, has in his or her care at the date of death of the
30 elected county officer any unmarried child or children of the
31 county officer, under age 18, the minimum annuity shall be
32 30% of the elected officer's salary, plus 10% of salary on
33 account of each minor child of the elected county officer,
34 subject to a combined total payment on account of a spouse
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1 and minor children not to exceed 50% of the deceased
2 officer's salary. In the event there shall be no spouse of
3 the elected county officer surviving, or should a spouse
4 remarry or die while eligible minor children still survive
5 the elected county officer, each such child shall be entitled
6 to an annuity equal to 20% of salary of the elected officer
7 subject to a combined total payment on account of all such
8 children not to exceed 50% of salary of the elected county
9 officer. The salary to be used in the calculation of these
10 benefits shall be the same as that prescribed for determining
11 a retirement annuity as provided in Section 7-145.1.
12 Upon the death of an elected county officer occurring
13 after termination of service or while in receipt of a
14 retirement annuity, the combined total payment to a spouse
15 and minor children, or to minor children alone if no eligible
16 spouse survives, shall be limited to 75% of the amount of
17 retirement annuity earned by the county officer.
18 Adopted children shall have status as children of the
19 elected county officer only if the proceedings for adoption
20 were commenced at least one year prior to the date of the
21 elected county officer's death.
22 Marriage of a child or attainment of age 18, whichever
23 first occurs, shall render the child ineligible for further
24 consideration in the payment of an annuity to a spouse or in
25 the increase in the amount thereof. Upon attainment of
26 ineligibility of the youngest minor child of the elected
27 county officer, the annuity shall immediately revert to the
28 amount payable upon death of an elected county officer
29 leaving no minor children surviving him or her. If the
30 spouse is under age 50 at such time, the annuity as revised
31 shall be deferred until such age is attained. Remarriage of
32 a widow or widower prior to attainment of age 55 shall
33 disqualify the spouse from the receipt of an annuity.
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1 Section 10. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding
2 Section 8.21 as follows:
3 (30 ILCS 805/8.21 new)
4 Sec. 8.21. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6
5 and 8 of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required
6 for the implementation of any mandate created by this
7 amendatory Act of 1997.
8 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
9 becoming law.