ASSEMBLY, No. 1240
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblyman AZZOLINA
An Act concerning public employee veteran member benefits and amending P.L.1954, c.84.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 61 of P.L.1954, c.84 (C.43:15A-61) is amended to read as follows:
61. a. [Any public employee veteran member in office, position or employment of this State or of a county, municipality, public agency, school district or board of education on January 2, 1955, who remains in continuous service thereafter and who has or shall have attained the age of 60 years and who has or shall have been for 20 years in office, position or employment of this State or of a county, municipality, public agency, school district or board of education, shall have the privilege of retiring for service and of receiving, instead of the retirement allowance provided under section 48 of this act, a retirement allowance of one-half of the compensation received during the last year of employment upon which contributions to the annuity savings fund or contingent reserve fund are made.](Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. .)
b. Any public employee veteran [becoming a member after January 2, 1955, who shall be] member in office, position or employment of this State or of a county, municipality, public agency, school district or board of education [and] who shall have attained [62] 60 years of age and who has 20 years of continuous or aggregate service credit in such office, position or employment[,]shall have the privilege of retiring for service and receiving, instead of the retirement allowance provided under section 48 of this act, a retirement allowance of one-half of the compensation received during the last year of employment, or one-half of the highest compensation received during any other year of employment, upon which contributions to the annuity savings fund or contingent reserve fund are made, whichever is greater. [The provisions of this subsection shall also apply to any veteran who was a member on January 2, 1955, but whose service was not continuous thereafter.]
c. Any public employee veteran member who has been for 20 years in the aggregate in office, position or employment of this State or of a county, municipality, public agency, school district or board of education as of January 2, 1955, shall have the privilege of retiring for ordinary disability and of receiving, instead of the retirement allowance provided under section 45 of this act, a retirement allowance of one-half of the compensation received during the last year of employment upon which contributions to the annuity savings fund or contingent reserve fund are made. Such retirement shall be subject to the provisions governing ordinary disability retirement in sections 42 and 44 of this act.
d. Any public employee veteran member who shall be in office, position or employment of this State or of a county, municipality, public agency, school district or board of education and who shall have attained 60 years of age and who has at least 35 years of aggregate service credit in such office, position or employment, shall have the privilege of retiring for service and receiving a retirement allowance of one-sixtieth of the compensation he received during the last year of employment upon which contributions to the annuity savings fund or contingent reserve fund are made for each year of creditable service.
e. The death benefit provided in section 48 shall apply in the case of any member retiring under the provisions of subsections a., b. and d. of this section. The death benefit provided in section 45 shall apply in the case of any member retiring under the provisions of subsection c. of this section.
(cf: P.L.1985, c.220, s.1)
2. (New section) a. The special veterans' retirement allowance for which a retirant of the Public Employees' Retirement System would qualify pursuant to this amendatory act, P.L.199 , c. (now pending before the Legislature as this bill), is applicable to retirements on or after the effective date of that act, and to retirements on or after July 1, 1984 and prior to the effective date of that act but only for benefit payments on or after the effective date of that act.
b. The provisions of section 7 of P.L.1969, c.169 (C.43:3B-8) are not applicable to the benefit increases pursuant to this act, P.L.199, c. (now pending before the Legislature as this bill). For retirees and beneficiaries who receive benefit increases, the benefit year for the purposes of the Pension Adjustment Act (P.L.1958, c.143; C.43:3B-1 et seq.) is the year that this act, P.L.199, c. (now pending before the Legislature as this bill), takes effect. The pension adjustment benefits being paid to these retirees and beneficiaries on the effective date of that act shall continue to be paid to them as a fixed supplement. The fixed supplement shall not be used to determine pension adjustment benefits.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill lowers from 62 to 60 the age at which a member of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) who is a veteran and has 20 years of continuous or aggregate service credit in the retirement system can retire on the veterans' retirement allowance. The bill provides that the veterans' retirement allowance shall be either one-half of the compensation during the last year of employment, as provided under the current law, or one-half of the highest compensation received during any other year of employment, whichever is greater.
The bill also provides that in addition to those public employee veterans who retire after the effective date of the act, retirants on or after July 1, 1984 and prior to the effective date of the act shall also qualify for the veterans' retirement allowance but only for benefit payments on or after the effective date of that act.
Makes certain changes in retirement provisions for PERS members who are veterans.