ASSEMBLY, No. 2971
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
INTRODUCED MAY 12, 1997
By Assemblymen ASSELTA, GIBSON and Kelly
An Act allowing emergency medical technicians to transfer to and enroll in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System 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. As used in this act:
"emergency medical technician" means any paid, permanent, uniformed, full-time employee of a firefighting unit or emergency medical services unit who is subject to the training and physical and mental fitness requirements established by the employer. "Emergency medical technician" shall also mean any administrative or supervisory employee of a firefighting unit or emergency medical services unit whose duties include general or direct supervision or training of employees engaged in the provision of emergency medical services;
"emergency medical services unit" means an agency of the State or a county or municipality, including an authority thereof, responsible for the provision of emergency medical or ambulance services; and
"firefighting unit" means a State, county or municipal fire department, fire district or agency responsible for the control and extinguishing of fires.
2. An emergency medical technician who is enrolled in the Public Employees' Retirement System, established pursuant to P.L.1954, c.84 (C.43:15A-1 et seq.), may transfer membership to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System, established pursuant to P.L.1944, c.255 (C.43:16A-1 et seq.), by waiving all rights and benefits which would otherwise be provided by the Public Employees' Retirement System. An emergency medical technician may 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 after the effective date of this act. In the absence of the filing of a timely waiver by an eligible emergency medical technician, the pension status of that emergency medical technician shall remain unchanged, and the membership of the emergency medical technician shall not be transferred to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System.
3. Within 120 days after the effective date of 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 as a member of that retirement system, and within 180 days following the effective date of this act remit the pro-rata part of the reserve fund constituting the employer's obligations under the Public Employees' Retirement System applicable to the employee's account, and the Police and Firemen's Retirement System shall than 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 of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System. Regular interest shall be added to the employer's obligations if the moneys are not remitted within the periods prescribed by this section.
4. The transferred employees shall be members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System and deductions from their salaries and contributions on their behalf shall thereafter be made as required by P.L.1944, c.255 (C.43:16A-1 et seq.). The transferred employees shall have the same contribution obligation and enjoy the same rights and benefits as other members of the retirement system. Any credit for public service which had been established in the Public Employees' Retirement System by the transferred employee shall be established in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System.
5. The actuary of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System shall calculate the liability of each employer of employees becoming members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System under this act, taking into account the value of moneys remitted by the Public Employees' Retirement System. In the event that the value of the money so remitted is less than the total which is required by the Police and Firemen's Retirement System to provide the transferred member with credit for all public service, the employee shall be responsible for the amount equal to the difference between these two values.
6. Any emergency medical technician hired on or after the effective date of this act shall be enrolled in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System.
7. The Director of the Division of Pensions and Benefits in the Department of the Treasury may promulgate rules and regulations
pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the purposes of this act.
8. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill allows emergency medical technicians to transfer to and enroll in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System. It provides that an emergency medical technician who is enrolled in the Public Employees' Retirement System may transfer membership 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 emergency medical technician may 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 after the effective date of this act.
The actuary of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System shall calculate the liability of each employer of employees becoming members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System under this act, taking into account the value of moneys remitted by the Public Employees' Retirement System. In the event that the value of the money so remitted is less than the total which is required by the Police and Firemen's Retirement System to provide the transferred member with credit for all public service, the employee shall be responsible for the amount equal to the difference between these two values.
Any emergency medical technician hired on or after the effective date of this act shall be enrolled in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System. The bill applies to emergency medical technicians who are paid, permanent, uniformed, full-time employees of a firefighting unit or emergency medical services unit.
Allows emergency medical technicians to transfer to and enroll in PFRS.