ASSEMBLY, No. 2223

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED JUNE 27, 1996

By Assemblyman ZECKER

An Act concerning certain county pension funds and amending P.L.1956, c.169.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. Section 1 of P.L.1956, c.169 (C.43:15A-111) is amended to read as follows:

    1. This act shall become operative with regard to a pension fund, other than the Public Employees' Retirement System, the Teachers' Pension and Annuity Fund [and], a county pension fund established pursuant to R.S.43:10-1 et seq. for employees of a county of the first class having a population of less than 800,000 according to the 1980 federal decennial census, or a county pension fund established pursuant to P.L.1948, c.310 (C.43:10-18.50 et seq.) for employees of a county having a population of from 300,000 to 325,000 inhabitants according to the Federal census of 1940, supported in whole or in part by the State or by 1 or more counties, municipalities, or school districts, 60 days after a majority of the members of such pension fund qualified to vote in a referendum as required by 218(d)(3) of the Social Security Act shall have voted to be covered under the terms of that act, provided that the conditions for holding such referendum as set forth in P.L.1951, c.253, as amended and supplemented have been met.

(cf: P.L.1995, c.71, s.1)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    Under current law, if members of the Employees' Retirement System (ERS) of Passaic County choose to join Social Security, their retirement system would be terminated and they would be forced to enroll in the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). This bill would allow members of the Passaic County ERS to vote to join Social Security without having that county fund terminated if they so choose. The pension fund would be divided into two divisions, one to be composed of positions of members who desire Social Security coverage and the other to be composed of positions of members who do not desire that coverage.