HF 2467

as introduced - 81st Legislature (1999 - 2000) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to retirement; judges retirement plan; using 
  1.3             high three-year average salary to compute benefits; 
  1.4             increasing member and employer contribution rates; 
  1.5             increasing benefit maximums; reducing early retirement 
  1.6             penalties; amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, sections 
  1.7             490.121, subdivision 21; 490.123, subdivisions 1a and 
  1.8             1b; and 490.124, subdivisions 1, 3, and by adding a 
  1.9             subdivision. 
  1.10  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.11     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.121, 
  1.12  subdivision 21, is amended to read: 
  1.13     Subd. 21.  [FINAL AVERAGE COMPENSATION.] "Final average 
  1.14  compensation" means the total amount average of the highest 
  1.15  three years of salary payable to a judge in during the highest 
  1.16  five years of the last ten years prior to the event of maturity 
  1.17  of benefits, divided by five; provided, however, that of covered 
  1.18  service, or during all years of covered service if total covered 
  1.19  service is less than ten years.  If the number of years of 
  1.20  service is less than ten, the highest five shall be counted, and 
  1.21  if the number of total years is of covered service are less than 
  1.22  five three years, "final average compensation" is the aggregate 
  1.23  salary in such the period shall be divided by the number of 
  1.24  months in such the period and multiplied by 12. 
  1.25     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.123, 
  1.26  subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
  1.27     Subd. 1a.  [MEMBER CONTRIBUTION RATES.] (a) A judge who is 
  2.1   covered by the federal old age, survivors, disability, and 
  2.2   health insurance program shall contribute to the fund from each 
  2.3   salary payment a sum equal to 8.00 ..... percent of salary.  
  2.4      (b) A judge not so covered shall contribute to the fund 
  2.5   from each salary payment a sum equal to 8.15 ..... percent of 
  2.6   salary. 
  2.7      (c) The contribution under this subdivision is payable by 
  2.8   salary deduction. 
  2.9      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.123, 
  2.10  subdivision 1b, is amended to read: 
  2.11     Subd. 1b.  [EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTION RATE.] (a) The employer 
  2.12  contribution rate on behalf of a judge is 20.5 ..... percent of 
  2.13  salary. 
  2.14     (b) The employer contribution must be paid by the state 
  2.15  court administrator and is payable at the same time as member 
  2.16  contributions under subdivision 1a are remitted. 
  2.17     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.124, 
  2.18  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  2.19     Subdivision 1.  [BASIC RETIREMENT ANNUITY.] Except as 
  2.20  further qualified hereinafter from and after in this section, 
  2.21  upon the mandatory retirement date, normal retirement date, 
  2.22  early retirement date, or one year from the disability 
  2.23  retirement date, as the case may be applicable, a retirement 
  2.24  annuity shall be payable to a retiring or disabled judge from 
  2.25  the judges' retirement fund in an amount equal to:  (1) the 
  2.26  percent specified in section 356.19, subdivision 7, multiplied 
  2.27  by the judge's final average compensation multiplied by the 
  2.28  number of years and fractions of years of allowable service 
  2.29  rendered prior to July 1, 1980; plus (2) the percent specified 
  2.30  in section 356.19, subdivision 8, multiplied by the judge's 
  2.31  final average compensation multiplied by the number of years and 
  2.32  fractions of years of allowable service rendered after June 30, 
  2.33  1980; provided that the annuity must not exceed 70 percent of 
  2.34  the judge's annual salary for the 12 months immediately 
  2.35  preceding retirement.  
  2.36     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.124, is 
  3.1   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  3.2      Subd. 1a.  [BENEFIT MAXIMUMS.] (a) Except for the first 
  3.3   year of a disability retirement under subdivision 4, an annuity 
  3.4   provided under this section must not exceed the percent 
  3.5   specified in paragraph (b) of the judge's annual salary for the 
  3.6   12 months immediately preceding the commencement of the annuity. 
  3.7      (b) If the annuity commences before January 1, 2001, the 
  3.8   applicable percentage is 70 percent.  If the annuity commences 
  3.9   after December 31, 2000, and before January 1, 2002, the 
  3.10  applicable percentage is 75 percent.  If the annuity commences 
  3.11  on or after January 1, 2002, the applicable percentage is 80 
  3.12  percent. 
  3.13     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 490.124, 
  3.14  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.15     Subd. 3.  [EARLY RETIREMENT.] The retirement annuity 
  3.16  provided by subdivision 1 of any judge electing to retire at an 
  3.17  early retirement date shall be reduced by one-half one-quarter 
  3.18  of one percent per month from the retirement date to the normal 
  3.19  retirement date. 
  3.20     Sec. 7.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.21     Sections 1 to 6 are effective on the day following final 
  3.22  enactment.