HB1444 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 06763 EFG 36865 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB1444

Introduced 2/10/2005, by Rep. Raymond Poe

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

40 ILCS 5/14-104	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 14-104
40 ILCS 5/14-130	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 14-130

Amends the State Employees Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that a member who participated in the University of Illinois Government Public Service Internship Program may establish creditable service for up to 2 years of that participation. Provides that, instead of repaying the entire amount of a refund, a member may repay a portion of the refund and receive credit for the portion of the refund that was repaid. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning public employee 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 Sections 14-104 and 14-130 as follows:

(40 ILCS 5/14-104) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 14-104)

Sec. 14-104. Service for which contributions permitted. Contributions provided for in this Section shall cover the period of service granted. Except as otherwise provided in this Section, the contributions shall be based upon the employee's compensation and contribution rate in effect on the date he last became a member of the System; provided that for all employment prior to January 1, 1969 the contribution rate shall be that in effect for a noncovered employee on the date he last became a member of the System. Except as otherwise provided in this Section, contributions permitted under this Section shall include regular interest from the date an employee last became a member of the System to the date of payment.

These contributions must be paid in full before retirement either in a lump sum or in installment payments in accordance with such rules as may be adopted by the board.

(a) Any member may make contributions as required in this Section for any period of service, subsequent to the date of establishment, but prior to the date of membership.

(b) Any employee who had been previously excluded from membership because of age at entry and subsequently became eligible may elect to make contributions as required in this Section for the period of service during which he was ineligible.

(c) An employee of the Department of Insurance who, after January 1, 1944 but prior to becoming eligible for membership, received salary from funds of insurance companies in the process of rehabilitation, liquidation, conservation or dissolution, may elect to make contributions as required in this Section for such service.

(d) Any employee who rendered service in a State office to which he was elected, or rendered service in the elective office of Clerk of the Appellate Court prior to the date he became a member, may make contributions for such service as required in this Section. Any member who served by appointment of the Governor under the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois and did not participate in this System may make contributions as required in this Section for such service.

(e) Any person employed by the United States government or any instrumentality or agency thereof from January 1, 1942 through November 15, 1946 as the result of a transfer from State service by executive order of the President of the United States shall be entitled to prior service credit covering the period from January 1, 1942 through December 31, 1943 as provided for in this Article and to membership service credit for the period from January 1, 1944 through November 15, 1946 by making the contributions required in this Section. A person so employed on January 1, 1944 but whose employment began after January 1, 1942 may qualify for prior service and membership service credit under the same conditions.

(f) An employee of the Department of Labor of the State of Illinois who performed services for and under the supervision of that Department prior to January 1, 1944 but who was compensated for those services directly by federal funds and not by a warrant of the Auditor of Public Accounts paid by the State Treasurer may establish credit for such employment by making the contributions required in this Section. An employee of the Department of Agriculture of the State of Illinois, who performed services for and under the supervision of that Department prior to June 1, 1963, but was compensated for those services directly by federal funds and not paid by a warrant of the Auditor of Public Accounts paid by the State Treasurer, and who did not contribute to any other public employee retirement system for such service, may establish credit for such employment by making the contributions required in this Section.

(g) Any employee who executed a waiver of membership within 60 days prior to January 1, 1944 may, at any time while in the service of a department, file with the board a rescission of such waiver. Upon making the contributions required by this Section, the member shall be granted the creditable service that would have been received if the waiver had not been executed.

(h) Until May 1, 1990, an employee who was employed on a full-time basis by a regional planning commission for at least 5 continuous years may establish creditable service for such employment by making the contributions required under this Section, provided that any credits earned by the employee in the commission's retirement plan have been terminated.

(i) Any person who rendered full time contractual services to the General Assembly as a member of a legislative staff may establish service credit for up to 8 years of such services by making the contributions required under this Section, provided that application therefor is made not later than July 1, 1991.

(j) By paying the contributions otherwise required under this Section, plus an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the employer's normal cost of the benefit plus interest, but with all of the interest calculated from the date the employee last became a member of the System or November 19, 1991, whichever is later, to the date of payment, an employee may establish service credit for a period of up to 2 years spent in active military service for which he does not qualify for credit under Section 14-105, provided that (1) he was not dishonorably discharged from such military service, and (2) the amount of service credit established by a member under this subsection (j), when added to the amount of military service credit granted to the member under subsection (b) of Section 14-105, shall not exceed 5 years. The change in the manner of calculating interest under this subsection (j) made by this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly applies to credit purchased by an employee on or after its effective date and does not entitle any person to a refund of contributions or interest already paid.

(k) An employee who was employed on a full-time basis by the Illinois State's Attorneys Association Statewide Appellate Assistance Service LEAA-ILEC grant project prior to the time that project became the State's Attorneys Appellate Service Commission, now the Office of the State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor, an agency of State government, may establish creditable service for not more than 60 months service for such employment by making contributions required under this Section.

(l) By paying the contributions otherwise required under this Section, plus an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the employer's normal cost of the benefit plus interest, a member may establish service credit for periods of less than one year spent on authorized leave of absence from service, provided that (1) the period of leave began on or after January 1, 1982 and (2) any credit established by the member for the period of leave in any other public employee retirement system has been terminated. A member may establish service credit under this subsection for more than one period of authorized leave, and in that case the total period of service credit established by the member under this subsection may exceed one year. In determining the contributions required for establishing service credit under this subsection, the interest shall be calculated from the beginning of the leave of absence to the date of payment.

(m) Any person who rendered contractual services to a member of the General Assembly as a worker in the member's district office may establish creditable service for up to 3 years of those contractual services by making the contributions required under this Section. The System shall determine a full-time salary equivalent for the purpose of calculating the required contribution. To establish credit under this subsection, the applicant must apply to the System by March 1, 1998.

(n) Any person who rendered contractual services to a member of the General Assembly as a worker providing constituent services to persons in the member's district may establish creditable service for up to 8 years of those contractual services by making the contributions required under this Section. The System shall determine a full-time salary equivalent for the purpose of calculating the required contribution. To establish credit under this subsection, the applicant must apply to the System by March 1, 1998.

(o) A member who participated in the Illinois Legislative Staff Internship Program may establish creditable service for up to one year of that participation by making the contribution required under this Section. The System shall determine a full-time salary equivalent for the purpose of calculating the required contribution. Credit may not be established under this subsection for any period for which service credit is established under any other provision of this Code.

(p) A member who participated in the University of Illinois Government Public Service Internship Program (GPSI) may establish creditable service for up to 2 years of that participation by making the contribution required under this Section. The System shall determine a full-time salary equivalent for the purpose of calculating the required contribution. Credit may not be established under this subsection for any period for which service credit is established under any other provision of this Code.

(Source: P.A. 92-54, eff. 7-12-01.)

(40 ILCS 5/14-130) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 14-130)

Sec. 14-130. Refunds; rules.

(a) Upon withdrawal a member is entitled to receive, upon written request, a refund of the member's contributions, including credits granted while in receipt of disability benefits, without credited interest. The board, in its discretion may withhold payment of the refund of a member's contributions for a period not to exceed 1 year after the member has ceased to be an employee.

For purposes of this Section, a member will be considered to have withdrawn from service if a change in, or transfer of, his position results in his becoming ineligible for continued membership in this System and eligible for membership in another public retirement system under this Act.

(b) A member receiving a refund forfeits and relinquishes all accrued rights in the System, including all accumulated creditable service. If the person again becomes a member of the System and establishes at least 2 years of creditable service, the member may repay all the moneys previously refunded or a portion of the moneys previously refunded representing contributions for one or more whole months of creditable service. If a member repays a portion of moneys previously refunded, he or she may later repay some or all of the remaining portion of those previously refunded moneys.

A However, a former member may restore credits previously forfeited by acceptance of a refund without returning to service by applying in writing and repaying to the System, by April 1, 1993, the amount of the refund plus regular interest calculated from the date of refund to the date of repayment.

The repayment of refunds issued prior to January 1, 1984 shall consist of the amount refunded plus 5% interest per annum compounded annually for the period from the date of the refund to the end of the month in which repayment is made. The repayment of refunds issued after January 1, 1984 shall consist of the amount refunded plus regular interest for the period from the date of refund to the end of the month in which repayment is made. The repayment of the refund of a person who accepts an alternative retirement cancellation payment under Section 14-108.5 shall consist of the entire amount paid to the person under subsection (c) of Section 14-108.5 plus regular interest for the period from the date of the refund to the end of the month in which repayment is made. However, in the case of a refund that is repaid in a lump sum between January 1, 1991 and July 1, 1991, repayment shall consist of the amount refunded plus interest at the rate of 2.5% per annum compounded annually from the date of the refund to the end of the month in which repayment is made.

Upon repayment, the member shall receive credit for the service for which the refund has been repaid, and the corresponding , member contributions and regular interest that was forfeited by acceptance of the refund, as well as regular interest for the period of non-membership. Such repayment shall be made in full before retirement either in a lump sum or in installment payments in accordance with such rules as may be adopted by the board.

(b-5) The Board may adopt rules governing the repayment of refunds and establishment of credits in cases involving awards of back pay or reinstatement. The rules may authorize repayment of a refund in installment payments and may waive the payment of interest on refund amounts repaid in full within a specified period.

(c) A member no longer in service who is unmarried and does not have an eligible survivors annuity beneficiary on the date of application therefor is entitled to a refund of contributions for widow's annuity or survivors annuity purposes, or both, as the case may be, without interest. A widow's annuity or survivors annuity shall not be payable upon the death of a person who has received this refund, unless prior to that death the amount of the refund has been repaid to the System, together with regular interest from the date of the refund to the date of repayment.

(d) Any member who has service credit in any position for which an alternative retirement annuity is provided and in relation to which an increase in the rate of employee contribution is required, shall be entitled to a refund, without interest, of that part of the member's employee contribution which results from that increase in the employee rate if the member does not qualify for that alternative retirement annuity at the time of retirement.

(Source: P.A. 93-839, eff. 7-30-04.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.