| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Florida Retirement System; amending |
| 3 | s. 121.055, F.S.; during a specified period of time, |
| 4 | permitting local government employees who are members of |
| 5 | the Senior Management Service Class, who have withdrawn |
| 6 | from the Florida Retirement System, to elect membership in |
| 7 | the defined benefit program or the public employee |
| 8 | optional retirement program of the system; prescribing |
| 9 | requirements in making such election; providing for |
| 10 | payment of the costs of such membership; amending s. |
| 11 | 175.041, F.S.; providing that any municipality that |
| 12 | provides fire protection services to another municipality |
| 13 | under an interlocal agreement is eligible to receive |
| 14 | premium taxes; authorizing the municipality that receives |
| 15 | the fire protection services to enact an ordinance levying |
| 16 | the tax; authorizing the Division of Retirement within the |
| 17 | Department of Management Services to distribute the |
| 18 | premium taxes; amending s. 175.101, F.S.; authorizing any |
| 19 | municipality that has entered into an interlocal agreement |
| 20 | for fire protection services with another municipality to |
| 21 | impose an excise tax on entities that are engaged in the |
| 22 | business of property insurance; providing an effective |
| 23 | date. |
| 24 |
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| 25 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 26 |
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| 27 | Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section |
| 28 | 121.055, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 29 | 121.055 Senior Management Service Class.--There is hereby |
| 30 | established a separate class of membership within the Florida |
| 31 | Retirement System to be known as the "Senior Management Service |
| 32 | Class," which shall become effective February 1, 1987. |
| 33 | (1) |
| 34 | (b)1. Except as provided in subparagraph 2., effective |
| 35 | January 1, 1990, participation in the Senior Management Service |
| 36 | Class shall be compulsory for the president of each community |
| 37 | college, the manager of each participating city or county, and |
| 38 | all appointed district school superintendents. Effective |
| 39 | January 1, 1994, additional positions may be designated for |
| 40 | inclusion in the Senior Management Service Class of the Florida |
| 41 | Retirement System, provided that: |
| 42 | a. Positions to be included in the class shall be |
| 43 | designated by the local agency employer. Notice of intent to |
| 44 | designate positions for inclusion in the class shall be |
| 45 | published once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of |
| 46 | general circulation published in the county or counties |
| 47 | affected, as provided in chapter 50. |
| 48 | b. Up to 10 nonelective full-time positions may be |
| 49 | designated for each local agency employer reporting to the |
| 50 | Department of Management Services; for local agencies with 100 |
| 51 | or more regularly established positions, additional nonelective |
| 52 | full-time positions may be designated, not to exceed 1 percent |
| 53 | of the regularly established positions within the agency. |
| 54 | c. Each position added to the class must be a managerial |
| 55 | or policymaking position filled by an employee who is not |
| 56 | subject to continuing contract and serves at the pleasure of the |
| 57 | local agency employer without civil service protection, and who: |
| 58 | (I) Heads an organizational unit; or |
| 59 | (II) Has responsibility to effect or recommend personnel, |
| 60 | budget, expenditure, or policy decisions in his or her areas of |
| 61 | responsibility. |
| 62 | 2. In lieu of participation in the Senior Management |
| 63 | Service Class, members of the Senior Management Service Class |
| 64 | pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph 1. may withdraw from |
| 65 | the Florida Retirement System altogether. The decision to |
| 66 | withdraw from the Florida Retirement System shall be irrevocable |
| 67 | for as long as the employee holds such a position. Any service |
| 68 | creditable under the Senior Management Service Class shall be |
| 69 | retained after the member withdraws from the Florida Retirement |
| 70 | System; however, additional service credit in the Senior |
| 71 | Management Service Class shall not be earned after such |
| 72 | withdrawal. Such members shall not be eligible to participate |
| 73 | in the Senior Management Service Optional Annuity Program. |
| 74 | 3. Effective January 1, 2006, through June 30, 2006, an |
| 75 | employee who has withdrawn from the Florida Retirement System |
| 76 | under subparagraph 2. has one opportunity to elect to |
| 77 | participate in either the defined benefit program or the Public |
| 78 | Employee Optional Retirement Program of the Florida Retirement |
| 79 | System. |
| 80 | a. If the employee elects to participate in the Public |
| 81 | Employee Optional Retirement Program, membership shall be |
| 82 | prospective, and the applicable provisions of s. 121.4501(4) |
| 83 | shall govern the election. |
| 84 | b. If the employee elects to participate in the defined |
| 85 | benefit program of the Florida Retirement System, the employee |
| 86 | shall, upon payment to the system trust fund of the amount |
| 87 | calculated under sub-sub-subparagraph (I), receive service |
| 88 | credit for prior service based upon the time during which the |
| 89 | employee had withdrawn from the system. |
| 90 | (I) The cost for such credit shall be an amount |
| 91 | representing the actuarial accrued liability for the affected |
| 92 | period of service. The cost shall be calculated using the |
| 93 | discount rate and other relevant actuarial assumptions that were |
| 94 | used to value the Florida Retirement System defined benefit plan |
| 95 | liabilities in the most recent actuarial valuation. The |
| 96 | calculation shall include any service already maintained under |
| 97 | the defined benefit plan in addition to the period of |
| 98 | withdrawal. The actuarial accrued liability attributable to any |
| 99 | service already maintained under the defined benefit plan shall |
| 100 | be applied as a credit to the total cost resulting from the |
| 101 | calculation. The division shall ensure that the transfer sum is |
| 102 | prepared using a formula and methodology certified by an |
| 103 | actuary. |
| 104 | (II) The employee must transfer a sum representing the net |
| 105 | cost owed for the actuarial accrued liability in sub-sub- |
| 106 | subparagraph (I) immediately following the time of such |
| 107 | movement, determined assuming that attained service equals the |
| 108 | sum of service in the defined benefit program and the period of |
| 109 | withdrawal. |
| 110 | Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 175.041, Florida |
| 111 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 112 | 175.041 Firefighters' Pension Trust Fund created; |
| 113 | applicability of provisions.--For any municipality, special fire |
| 114 | control district, chapter plan, local law municipality, local |
| 115 | law special fire control district, or local law plan under this |
| 116 | chapter: |
| 117 | (3) The provisions of this chapter shall apply only to |
| 118 | municipalities organized and established pursuant to the laws of |
| 119 | the state and to special fire control districts, and said |
| 120 | provisions shall not apply to the unincorporated areas of any |
| 121 | county or counties except with respect to special fire control |
| 122 | districts that include unincorporated areas, nor shall the |
| 123 | provisions hereof apply to any governmental entity whose |
| 124 | firefighters are eligible to participate in the Florida |
| 125 | Retirement System. |
| 126 | (a) Special fire control districts that include, or |
| 127 | consist exclusively of, unincorporated areas of one or more |
| 128 | counties may levy and impose the tax and participate in the |
| 129 | retirement programs enabled by this chapter. |
| 130 | (b) With respect to the distribution of premium taxes, a |
| 131 | single consolidated government consisting of a former county and |
| 132 | one or more municipalities, consolidated pursuant to s. 3 or s. |
| 133 | 6(e) (6)(e), Art. VIII of the State Constitution, is also |
| 134 | eligible to participate under this chapter. The consolidated |
| 135 | government shall notify the division when it has entered into an |
| 136 | interlocal agreement to provide fire services to a municipality |
| 137 | within its boundaries. The municipality may enact an ordinance |
| 138 | levying the tax as provided in s. 175.101. Upon being provided |
| 139 | copies of the interlocal agreement and the municipal ordinance |
| 140 | levying the tax, the division may distribute any premium taxes |
| 141 | reported for the municipality to the consolidated government as |
| 142 | long as the interlocal agreement is in effect. |
| 143 | (c) Any municipality that has entered into an interlocal |
| 144 | agreement to provide fire protection services to any other |
| 145 | incorporated municipality, in its entirety, for a period of 12 |
| 146 | months or more may be eligible to receive the premium taxes |
| 147 | reported for such other municipality. In order to be eligible |
| 148 | for such premium taxes, the municipality providing the fire |
| 149 | services must notify the division that it has entered into an |
| 150 | interlocal agreement with another municipality. The municipality |
| 151 | receiving the fire services may enact an ordinance levying the |
| 152 | tax as provided in s. 175.101. Upon being provided copies of the |
| 153 | interlocal agreement and the municipal ordinance levying the |
| 154 | tax, the division may distribute any premium taxes reported for |
| 155 | the municipality receiving the fire services to the |
| 156 | participating municipality providing the fire services as long |
| 157 | as the interlocal agreement is in effect. |
| 158 | Section 3. Section 175.101, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 159 | to read: |
| 160 | 175.101 State excise tax on property insurance premiums |
| 161 | authorized; procedure.--For any municipality, special fire |
| 162 | control district, chapter plan, local law municipality, local |
| 163 | law special fire control district, or local law plan under this |
| 164 | chapter: |
| 165 | (1) Each municipality or special fire control district in |
| 166 | this state described and classified in s. 175.041, having a |
| 167 | lawfully established firefighters' pension trust fund or |
| 168 | municipal fund or special fire control district fund, by |
| 169 | whatever name known, providing pension benefits to firefighters |
| 170 | as provided under this chapter, may assess and impose on every |
| 171 | insurance company, corporation, or other insurer now engaged in |
| 172 | or carrying on, or who shall hereinafter engage in or carry on, |
| 173 | the business of property insurance as shown by the records of |
| 174 | the Office of Insurance Regulation of the Financial Services |
| 175 | Commission an excise tax in addition to any lawful license or |
| 176 | excise tax now levied by each of the municipalities or special |
| 177 | fire control districts, respectively, amounting to 1.85 percent |
| 178 | of the gross amount of receipts of premiums from policyholders |
| 179 | on all premiums collected on property insurance policies |
| 180 | covering property within the corporate limits of such |
| 181 | municipalities or within the legally defined boundaries of |
| 182 | special fire control districts, respectively. Whenever the |
| 183 | boundaries of a special fire control district that has lawfully |
| 184 | established a firefighters' pension trust fund encompass a |
| 185 | portion of the corporate territory of a municipality that has |
| 186 | also lawfully established a firefighters' pension trust fund, |
| 187 | that portion of the tax receipts attributable to insurance |
| 188 | policies covering property situated both within the municipality |
| 189 | and the special fire control district shall be given to the fire |
| 190 | service provider. The agent shall identify the fire service |
| 191 | provider on the property owner's application for insurance. |
| 192 | Remaining revenues collected pursuant to this chapter shall be |
| 193 | distributed to the municipality or special fire control district |
| 194 | according to the location of the insured property. |
| 195 | (2) In the case of multiple peril policies with a single |
| 196 | premium for both the property and casualty coverages in such |
| 197 | policies, 70 percent of such premium shall be used as the basis |
| 198 | for the 1.85-percent tax. |
| 199 | (3) This excise tax shall be payable annually on March 1 |
| 200 | of each year after the passage of an ordinance, in the case of a |
| 201 | municipality, or resolution, in the case of a special fire |
| 202 | control district, assessing and imposing the tax authorized by |
| 203 | this section. Installments of taxes shall be paid according to |
| 204 | the provision of s. 624.5092(2)(a), (b), and (c). |
| 205 |
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| 206 | This section also applies to any municipality consisting of a |
| 207 | single consolidated government which is made up of a former |
| 208 | county and one or more municipalities, consolidated pursuant to |
| 209 | the authority in s. 3 or s. 6(e), Art. VIII of the State |
| 210 | Constitution, and to property insurance policies covering |
| 211 | property within the boundaries of the consolidated government, |
| 212 | regardless of whether the properties are located within one or |
| 213 | more separately incorporated areas within the consolidated |
| 214 | government, provided the properties are being provided fire |
| 215 | protection services by the consolidated government. This section |
| 216 | also applies to any municipality, as provided in s. |
| 217 | 175.041(3)(c), which has entered into an interlocal agreement to |
| 218 | receive fire protection services from another municipality |
| 219 | participating under chapter 175. The excise tax may be levied on |
| 220 | all premiums collected on property insurance policies covering |
| 221 | property located within the corporate limits of the municipality |
| 222 | receiving the fire protection services, but will be available |
| 223 | for distribution to the municipality providing the fire |
| 224 | protection services. |
| 225 | Section 4. This act shall take effect October 1, 2005. |