ASSEMBLY, No. 1005
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblymen MORAN and CONNORS
An Act concerning pensions payable to certain retirants from the Consolidated Police and Firemen's Pension Fund, the Police and Firemen's Retirement System of New Jersey, and the Public Employees' Retirement System of New Jersey, amending R.S.43:16-1 and P.L.1944, c.255 and supplementing P.L.1955, c.257 (C.43:15A-97 et seq.) and P.L.1958, c.143 (C.43:3B-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. R.S.43:16-1 is amended to read as follows:
43:16-1. a. In all municipalities any active member of a police department or of a paid or part-paid fire department or of a county police department including active members of the paid or part-paid fire department of any fire district located in any township which has adopted the provisions of an act entitled "An act providing for the retirement of policemen and firemen of the police and fire departments in municipalities of this State, including all police officers having supervision or regulation of traffic upon county roads, and providing a pension for such retired policemen and firemen and members of the police and fire departments, and the widows, children and sole dependent parents of deceased members of said department," approved April 15, 1920 (P.L.1920, c.160) or of chapter 16 of Title 43 of the Revised Statutes, who shall have served honorably in the police or fire department for a period of 25 years, or any employee member of any such department who shall have served honorably in such department for a period of 25 years and who has reached the age of 60 years shall, on his own application, be retired on a service retirement pension equal to 60% of his final compensation. Any active member of the police or paid or part-paid fire department including active members of the paid or part-paid fire department of any fire district as aforesaid who shall have served honorably for a period of 25 years and reached the age of 65 years and any employee member of any such department who shall have served honorably in such department for a period of 25 years and reached the age of 70 years shall be retired on a service retirement pension equal to 60% of his final compensation.
The amount of the service retirement pension of any member of such police or paid or part-paid fire department, who has served for more than 25 years and who retires after [the effective date of this 1984 amendatory act] August 8, 1984, shall be increased by an amount equal to 1% of his final compensation for each year of service in excess of 25 years but not more than 30 years and 1% of his final compensation for each year of service in excess of 30 years rendered prior to his reaching age 65.
b. The service retirement pension payable under subsection a. of this section to any person who served honorably in a police or fire department for a period of 25 years and retired from the service of the department prior to the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (now pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall, commencing on the first day of the month following that effective date, be increased by an amount equal to 5% of the person's final compensation or by such lesser amount as would, if added to the pension payable at the time of retirement, provide a total service retirement pension of 70% of final compensation. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed either to require a reduction in the pension payable to any retirant or to provide for the payment of any adjustment in such a benefit with respect to any period of time prior to the first day of the month following that effective date.
(cf: P.L.1984, c.127, s.1)
2. Section 16 of P.L.1964, c.241 (C.43:16A-11.1) is amended to read as follows:
16. a. Should a member resign after having established 25 years of creditable service, he may elect "special retirement," provided, that such election is communicated by such member to the retirement system by filing a written application, duly attested, stating at what time subsequent to the execution and filing thereof he desires to be retired. He shall receive, in lieu of the payment provided in section 11, a retirement allowance which shall consist of:
(1) An annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of his aggregate contributions, and
(2) A pension in the amount which, when added to the member's annuity, will provide a total retirement allowance of 65% of his final compensation, plus 1% of his final compensation multiplied by the number of years of creditable service over 25 but not over 30; provided, however, that any member who has earned, prior to July 1, 1979, more than 30 years of creditable service, shall receive an additional 1% of his final compensation for each year of his creditable service over 30.
The board of trustees shall retire him at the time specified or at such other time within one month after the date so specified as the board finds advisable.
Upon the receipt of proper proofs of the death of such a retired member, there shall be paid to his beneficiary an amount equal to one-half of the final compensation received by the member.
b. The "special retirement" allowance payable under subsection a. of this section to any person who retired under the retirement system prior to December 20, 1989 shall, commencing on the first day of the month following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (now pending before the Legislature as this bill), be increased by an amount equal to 5% of the person's final compensation or by such lesser amount as would, if added to the allowance payable at the time of retirement, provide a total retirement allowance of 70% of final compensation, except that in the case of such a retirant who retired on or after July 1, 1979 and had earned prior to that date more than 30 years of creditable service, the amount of the increase shall be equal to 5% of the person's final compensation irrespective of the total retirement allowance which such an increase would provide. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed either to require a reduction in the retirement allowance payable to any retirant or to provide for the payment of any adjustment in such an allowance with respect to any period of time prior to the first day of the month following that effective date.
(cf: P.L.1989, c.204, s.4)
3. (New section) a. Should a law enforcement officer member resign after having established 25 years of creditable service, the member shall receive, in addition to the service retirement allowance provided in section 4 of P.L.1955, c.257 (C.43:15A-100), a supplementary "special" retirement allowance equal to 5% of the member's final compensation or such lesser amount as will, if added to the member's service retirement allowance, provide a total retirement allowance of 70% of the member's final compensation.
b. The supplementary "special" retirement allowance payable under subsection a. of this section shall, commencing on the first day of the month following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (now pending before the Legislature as this bill), be payable to any former member of the retirement system who, prior to that effective date, retired as a law enforcement officer member of the retirement system after having established 25 years of creditable service. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed either to require a reduction in the retirement allowance payable to any retirant or to provide for the payment of any adjustment in such an allowance with respect to any period of time prior to the first day of the month following that effective date.
4. (New section) The provisions of section 7 of P.L.1969, c.169 (C.43:3B-8) shall not apply to R.S.43:16-1 or section 16 of P.L.1964, c.241 (C.43:16A-11.1) as amended by P.L. , c. (C. ) (now pending before the Legislature as this bill), or to section 3 of that P.L. , c. (C. ), and the annual cost of living adjustment received by retirants and beneficiaries under P.L.1958, c.143 (C.43:3B-1 et seq.) shall be calculated as of the date of the benefit year of the member of the appropriate pension fund or retirement system.
5. This act shall take effect on the 90th day following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill provides for an increase in the pension allowance payable to certain previously retired members of the Consolidated Police and Firemen's Pension Fund (CPFPF) and the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS), and to certain past and prospective law enforcement officer (LEO) retirants under the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). To be eligible for the increase, a retirant from any of the specified retirement systems must have rendered at least 25 years of creditable service under the system. The amount of the increase would be 5% of the retirant's final compensation, or such lesser amount as would provide the retirant with a total pension of 70% of final compensation.
This legislation is intended to establish pension benefit parity between the individuals to whom it applies and their fellow public safety officers who retired from the PFRS after a 5% increase in the "special retirement" allowance under that system, enacted into law as P.L.1989, c.204, became effective on December 20, 1989.
Increases pensions of certain retired public safety officer members of PERS, CPFPF and PFRS.