ASSEMBLY, No. 1726
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
INTRODUCED MARCH 18, 1996
By Assemblywoman BUONO
An Act concerning membership in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System of New Jersey and supplementing P.L.1944, c.255 (C.43:16A-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, a county prosecutor, first assistant county prosecutor or assistant county prosecutor who is enrolled in the Public Employees' Retirement System shall be permitted to transfer membership in that system to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System by waiving all rights and benefits which would otherwise be provided by the Public Employees' Retirement System. Any such employee shall likewise be permitted to continue membership in the Public Employees' Retirement System by waiving all rights and benefits which would otherwise be provided by the Police and Firemen's Retirement System. Such waivers shall be accomplished by filing forms satisfactory to the Division of Pensions and Benefits in the Department of the Treasury within 90 days of the effective date of this act. In the absence of the filing of a timely waiver by any eligible employee, the pension status of that employee shall remain unchanged and the membership of the employee shall not be transferred to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System.
2. Within 120 days of the effective date of any transfer pursuant to this act, the Public Employees' Retirement System shall remit to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System all accumulated deductions standing to the credit of each transferred employee and, within 180 days of that effective date, remit the pro-rata part of the reserve fund constituting the employer's obligations under the former system applicable to each employee's account. The Police and Firemen's Retirement System shall enter the respective sums so remitted to it to the credit of the employee in the annuity savings fund and to the credit of the employer in the pension accumulation fund.
3. The transferred member shall have the same obligations, rights and benefits as other members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System. Deductions from the member's salary and contributions on the member's behalf shall be made as required by the Police and Firemen's Retirement System and shall be the same as deductions and contributions payable by or for other members of the retirement system. Any service credit which has been established in the Public Employees' Retirement System by the transferred employee shall be established in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System without further assessment of cost to either the employer or the employee.
4. All outstanding obligations, such as loans, purchases and other arrearages, shall be satisfied by the transferred employee as previously scheduled for payment to the Public Employees' Retirement System.
5. Any county prosecutor, first assistant county prosecutor or assistant county prosecutor who begins employment after the effective date of this act shall be required to enroll in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System, provided the employee is otherwise eligible for membership by meeting appointment, age and health requirements prescribed of all members.
6. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill allows any county prosecutor, first assistant county prosecutor or assistant county prosecutor currently enrolled in the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) to transfer to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS) and provides that any such new employee shall be enrolled in PFRS. Any service credit which has been established in PERS by the transferred employee shall be established in PFRS without further assessment of cost to either the employer or the employee.
Provides for PFRS membership for county prosecutors, first assistant county prosecutors and assistant county prosecutors.