HOUSE AMENDMENT
                                                   Bill No. HB 347   Barcode 064963
    Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only)
                            CHAMBER ACTION
              Senate                               House
                                   .                    
                                   .                    
 1                                 .                    
                                   .                    
 2                                 .                    
                                   .                    
 3                                 .                    
                                   .                    
 4  ______________________________________________________________
 5                                           ORIGINAL STAMP BELOW
 6  
 7  
 8  
 9  
10  ______________________________________________________________
11  The Committee on State Administration offered the following:
12  
13         Amendment (with title amendment) 
14  Remove from the bill:  Everything after the enacting clause
15  
16  and insert in lieu thereof:  Subsection (1), paragraph (a) of
17  subsection (2), paragraph (e) of subsection (4), paragraph (b)
18  of subsection (8), and paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection
19  (9) of section 121.4501, Florida Statutes, are amended, and
20  paragraph (f) is added to subsection (9) of said section, to
21  read:
22         121.4501  Public Employee Optional Retirement
23  Program.--
24         (1)  The Trustees of the State Board of Administration
25  shall establish an optional defined contribution retirement
26  program for members of the Florida Retirement System under
27  which retirement benefits will be provided for eligible
28  employees who elect to participate in the program. The
29  benefits to be provided for or on behalf of participants in
30  such optional retirement program shall be provided through
31  employee-directed investments, in accordance with s. 401(a) of
                                  1
    File original & 9 copies    03/15/01                          
    hsa0005                     02:16 pm         00347-sa  -064963

HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 the Internal Revenue Code and its related regulations. The 2 employers shall contribute, as provided in this section and s. 3 121.571, to the Public Employee Optional Retirement Program 4 Trust Fund toward the funding of such optional benefits. 5 (2) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term: 6 (a) "Approved provider" or "provider" means a private 7 sector company that is selected and approved by the state 8 board to offer one or more investment products or services to 9 the Public Employee Optional Retirement Program, including a 10 "bundled provider" that offers participants both a full range 11 of individually allocated investment products and a full range 12 of administrative and customer services, to include accounting 13 and administration of individual participant benefits and 14 contributions; individual participant recordkeeping; asset 15 purchase, control, and safekeeping; direct execution of the 16 participant's instructions as to asset and contribution 17 allocation; calculation of daily net asset values; direct 18 access to participant account information; periodic reporting 19 to participants, at least quarterly, on account balances and 20 transactions; direct advice and guidance on its investments 21 options; a broad array of distribution options; and asset 22 allocation and retirement counseling and education. Private 23 sector companies include investment management companies, 24 insurance companies, depositories, and mutual fund companies. 25 26 The term does not include any renewed member of the Florida 27 Retirement System, any member participating in the Deferred 28 Retirement Option Program established under s. 121.091(13), or 29 any employee participating in an optional retirement program 30 established under s. 121.051(2)(c) or s. 121.35. 31 (4) PARTICIPATION; ENROLLMENT.-- 2 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 (e) After the period during which an eligible employee 2 had the choice to elect the defined benefit program or the 3 Public Employee Optional Retirement Program, the employee 4 shall have one opportunity, that is, a second election, at the 5 employee's discretion, to choose to move from the defined 6 benefit program to the Public Employee Optional Retirement 7 Program or from the Public Employee Optional Retirement 8 Program to the defined benefit program. This paragraph shall 9 be contingent upon approval from the Internal Revenue Service 10 for including the choice described herein within the programs 11 offered by the Florida Retirement System. 12 1. If the employee chooses to move to the Public 13 Employee Optional Retirement Program, the applicable 14 provisions of this section shall govern the transfer. 15 2. If the employee chooses to move from the Public 16 Employee Optional Retirement Program to the defined benefit 17 program, the employee must transfer from his or her optional 18 program Public Employee Optional Retirement Program account an 19 amount equal to the sum of the following: 20 a. The value of any account balance representing the 21 actuarial present value of the employee's accrued benefit 22 transferred to the optional program at the time of the initial 23 transfer, and 24 b. The product of the participant's salary during the 25 period of participation in the optional program times the 26 greater of the applicable contribution rate or the applicable 27 employer normal cost rate in effect for the Florida Retirement 28 System defined benefit program membership class to which the 29 member belonged during each fiscal year of such period, and 30 c. Interest on the sum of the amounts calculated under 31 a. and b. The interest rate shall be equal to the greater of 3 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 the annualized rate of return earned on investments of the 2 assets of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund as 3 calculated by the State Board of Adminstration for each fiscal 4 year of the participation period or the Florida Retirement 5 System Actuarial Valuation assumed rate of return of 8 percent 6 and from other employee moneys as necessary, a sum 7 representing all contributions that would have been made to 8 the defined benefit plan for that employee and the actual 9 return that would have been earned on those contributions had 10 they been invested in the defined benefit program. 11 12 If, at the time of a member's election to transfer to the 13 defined benefit program, the member's optional program account 14 does not contain the total amount required to be transferred 15 to the defined benefit program, the member must pay the 16 remaining balance. If the member's optional program account 17 contains more than the amount required to be transferred to 18 the defined benefit program, such additional amount shall 19 remain in the member's optional program account. 20 3. The second election must be made no later than 3 21 years after the initial election. 22 4. The second election shall be voided if, within 3 23 years of the second election, the participant terminates his 24 or her employment with his or her employer for reasons other 25 than death or disability. 26 (8) ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM.-- 27 (b)1. The state board shall select and contract with 28 one third-party administrator to provide administrative 29 services, where those services do not duplicate services 30 provided by the Division of Retirement within the Department 31 of Management Services. With the approval of the state board, 4 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 the third-party administrator may subcontract with other 2 organizations or individuals to provide components of the 3 administrative services. As a cost of administration, the 4 board may compensate any such contractor for its services, in 5 accordance with the terms of the contract, as is deemed 6 necessary or proper by the board. The third-party 7 administrator may not be an approved provider or be affiliated 8 with an approved provider. 9 2. These administrative services include, but are not 10 limited to, enrollment of eligible employees, collection of 11 employer contributions, disbursement of such contributions to 12 approved providers in accordance with the allocation 13 directions of participants; services relating to consolidated 14 billing; individual and collective, plan-wide recordkeeping 15 and accounting; asset purchase, control, and safekeeping; and 16 direct disbursement of funds to and from the third-party 17 administrator, the division, the board, employers, 18 participants, approved providers, and beneficiaries. Nothing 19 in this section shall prevent or prohibit a bundled provider 20 from providing any administrative or customer service, 21 including accounting and administration of individual 22 participant benefits and contributions; individual participant 23 recordkeeping; asset purchase, control, and safekeeping; 24 direct execution of the participant's instructions as to asset 25 and contribution allocation; calculation of daily net asset 26 values; direct access to participant account information; 27 periodic reporting to participants, at least quarterly, on 28 account balances and transactions. 29 3. The state board shall select and contract with one 30 or more organizations to provide educational services. With 31 approval of the board, the organizations may subcontract with 5 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 other organizations or individuals to provide components of 2 the educational services. As a cost of administration, the 3 board may compensate any such contractor for its services in 4 accordance with the terms of the contract, as is deemed 5 necessary or proper by the board. The education organization 6 may not be an approved provider or be affiliated with an 7 approved provider. 8 4. Educational services shall be designed by the board 9 and department to assist employers, eligible employees, 10 participants, and beneficiaries in order to maintain 11 compliance with United States Department of Labor regulations 12 under s. 404(c) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act 13 of 1974 and to assist employees in their choice of defined 14 benefit or defined contribution retirement alternatives. 15 Educational services include, but are not limited to, 16 disseminating educational materials; providing retirement 17 planning education; explaining the differences between the 18 defined benefit retirement plan and the defined contribution 19 retirement plan; and offering financial planning guidance on 20 matters such as investment diversification, investment risks, 21 investment costs, and asset allocation. An approved provider 22 may also provide educational information, including retirement 23 planning and investment allocation information concerning its 24 products and services. 25 (9) INVESTMENT OPTIONS OR PRODUCTS; PERFORMANCE 26 REVIEW.-- 27 (a) The board shall develop policy and procedures for 28 selecting, evaluating, and monitoring the performance of 29 approved providers and investment products to which employees 30 may direct retirement contributions under the program. In 31 accordance with such policy and procedures, the board shall 6 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 designate and contract with five for a number of investment 2 products as determined by the board. The board shall select 3 one or more bundled providers who offer nine multiple 4 investment products and related services, including at least 5 one provider who offers guaranteed annuities when such an 6 approach is determined by the board to afford value to the 7 participants otherwise not available through individual 8 investment products. The board shall review and manage all 9 educational materials, contract terms, fee schedules, and 10 other aspects of the approved provider relationships to ensure 11 that no provider is unduly favored or penalized by virtue of 12 its status within the plan. 13 (b) The board shall consider investment options or 14 products it considers appropriate to give participants the 15 opportunity to accumulate retirement benefits, subject to the 16 following: 17 1. The Public Employee Optional Retirement Program 18 must offer a diversified mix of low-cost investment products 19 that span the risk-return spectrum, and shall include a 20 guaranteed account as well as investment products that offer 21 the option of receiving lifetime income consistent with the 22 long-term retirement security of a pension plan and similar to 23 the lifetime income benefit provided by the Florida Retirement 24 System. 25 2. Investment options or products offered by the group 26 of approved providers may include mutual funds, group annuity 27 contracts, individual retirement annuities, interests in 28 trusts, collective trusts, separate accounts, and other such 29 financial instruments, and shall include products that give 30 participants the option of committing their contributions for 31 an extended time period in an effort to obtain higher returns 7 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 than could be obtained from investment products offering full 2 liquidity. 3 3. The board shall not contract with any provider that 4 imposes a front-end, back-end, contingent, or deferred sales 5 charge, or any other fee that limits or restricts the ability 6 of participants to select any investment product available in 7 the optional program. This prohibition shall not apply to fees 8 or charges that are imposed on withdrawals from products that 9 give participants the option of committing their contributions 10 for an extended time period in an effort to obtain higher 11 returns than could be obtained from investment products 12 offering full liquidity. 13 4. Fees or charges for insurance features, such as 14 mortality and expense risk charges, shall be reasonable 15 relative to the benefits provided. 16 (f)1. An approved provider shall comply with all 17 applicable federal and state securities and insurance laws and 18 regulations, as well as the applicable rules and guidelines of 19 the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) 20 governing the ethical marketing of investment products. In 21 furtherance of this mandate, an approved provider must agree 22 in its contract with the board to establish and maintain a 23 compliance education and monitoring system to supervise the 24 activities of all personnel who directly communicate with 25 individual participants and recommend investment products, 26 which system is consistent with NASD rules. 27 2. Approved provider personnel who directly 28 communicate with individual participants and who recommend 29 investment products shall make an independent and unbiased 30 determination as to whether an investment product is suitable 31 for a particular participant. 8 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963
HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 347 Barcode 064963 Amendment No. ___ (for drafter's use only) 1 3. The board shall develop procedures to receive and 2 resolve participant complaints against a provider, and, when 3 appropriate, refer such complaints to the appropriate 4 regulatory agency. 5 4. Approved providers shall be responsible for the 6 accuracy of all information presented to participants. An 7 approved provider shall not represent itself to participants 8 as the sole provider of investment products or services under 9 the optional retirement program. Any participant inquiries to 10 an approved provider regarding the products or services of 11 another approved provider shall be referred to the third party 12 administrator. 13 5. Approved providers are prohibited from selling any 14 customer list or participant identification information 15 generated through their offering of products or services 16 through the optional retirement program. 17 18 19 ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T =============== 20 And the title is amended as follows: 21 On page 1, lines 6 through 8, 22 remove from the title of the bill: all of said lines 23 24 and insert in lieu thereof: 25 the program; revising sum required for 26 participant transfer; limiting participants' 27 second election; providing requirements for 28 approved providers regarding federal and state 29 laws and regulations, and for communications 30 with participants; 31 9 File original & 9 copies 03/15/01 hsa0005 02:16 pm 00347-sa -064963