The Florida Senate

185.18  Disability retirement.--For any municipality, chapter plan, local law municipality, or local law plan under this chapter:

(1)  A police officer having 10 or more years of credited service, or a police officer who becomes totally and permanently disabled in the line of duty, regardless of length of service, may retire from the service of the city under the plan if he or she becomes totally and permanently disabled as defined in subsection (2) by reason of any cause other than a cause set out in subsection (3) on or after the effective date of the plan. Such retirement shall herein be referred to as disability retirement.

(2)  A police officer will be considered totally disabled if, in the opinion of the board of trustees, he or she is wholly prevented from rendering useful and efficient service as a police officer; and a police officer will be considered permanently disabled if, in the opinion of the board of trustees, such police officer is likely to remain so disabled continuously and permanently from a cause other than as specified in subsection (3).

(3)  A police officer will not be entitled to receive any disability retirement income if the disability is a result of:

(a)  Excessive and habitual use by the police officer of drugs, intoxicants, or narcotics;

(b)  Injury or disease sustained by the police officer while willfully and illegally participating in fights, riots, civil insurrections or while committing a crime;

(c)  Injury or disease sustained by the police officer while serving in any armed forces;

(d)  Injury or disease sustained by the police officer after employment has terminated;

(e)  Injury or disease sustained by the police officer while working for anyone other than the city and arising out of such employment.

(4)  No police officer shall be permitted to retire under the provisions of this section until examined by a duly qualified physician or surgeon, to be selected by the board of trustees for that purpose, and is found to be disabled in the degree and in the manner specified in this section. Any police officer retiring under this section may be examined periodically by a duly qualified physician or surgeon or board of physicians and surgeons to be selected by the board of trustees for that purpose, to determine if such disability has ceased to exist.

(5)  The benefit payable to a police officer who retires from the service of the city with a total and permanent disability as a result of a disability is the monthly income payable for 10 years certain and life for which, if the police officer's disability occurred in the line of duty, his or her monthly benefit shall be the accrued retirement benefit, but shall not be less than 42 percent of his or her average monthly compensation as of the police officer's disability retirement date. If after 10 years of service the disability is other than in the line of duty, the police officer's monthly benefit shall be the accrued normal retirement benefit, but shall not be less than 25 percent of his or her average monthly compensation as of the police officer's disability retirement date.

(6)  The monthly retirement income to which a police officer is entitled in the event of his or her disability retirement shall be payable on the first day of the first month after the board of trustees determines such entitlement. However, the monthly retirement income shall be payable as of the date the board determines such entitlement, and any portion due for a partial month shall be paid together with the first payment. The last payment will be, if the police officer recovers from the disability, the payment due next preceding the date of such recovery or, if the police officer dies without recovering from his or her disability, the payment due next preceding death or the 120th monthly payment, whichever is later. In lieu of the benefit payment as provided in this subsection, a police officer may select an optional form as provided in s. 185.161 Any monthly retirement income payments due after the death of a disabled police officer shall be paid to the police officer's designated beneficiary (or beneficiaries) as provided in ss. 185.162 and 185.21

(7)  If the board of trustees finds that a police officer who is receiving a disability retirement income is no longer disabled, as provided herein, the board of trustees shall direct that the disability retirement income be discontinued. Recovery from disability as used herein shall mean the ability of the police officer to render useful and efficient service as a police officer.

(8)  If the police officer recovers from disability and reenters the service of the city as a police officer, his or her service will be deemed to have been continuous, but the period beginning with the first month for which the police officer received a disability retirement income payment and ending with the date he or she reentered the service of the city may not be considered as credited service for the purposes of the plan.

History.--s. 16, ch. 28230, 1953; s. 6, ch. 59-320; s. 6, ch. 61-85; s. 2, ch. 61-119; s. 2, ch. 70-128; s. 14, ch. 86-42; s. 948, ch. 95-147; s. 59, ch. 99-1.