Florida Senate - 2008 SENATOR AMENDMENT

Bill No. CS for SB 2170

820742

CHAMBER ACTION

Senate

.

.

.

.

.

House



1

Senator Fasano moved the following amendment:

2

3

     Senate Amendment (with title amendment)

4

     Delete line(s) 186

5

and insert:

6

     Section 5. Effective January 1, 2009, section 121.45,

7

Florida Statutes, is repealed.

8

     Section 6.  Effective January 1, 2009, paragraph (f) of

9

subsection (2) of section 121.4501, Florida Statutes, is amended

10

to read:

11

     121.4501  Public Employee Optional Retirement Program.--

12

     (2)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this part, the term:

13

     (f)  "Eligible employee" means an officer or employee, as

14

defined in s. 121.021(11), who:

15

     1.  Is a member of, or is eligible for membership in, the

16

Florida Retirement System, including any renewed member of the

17

Florida Retirement System initially enrolled before January 1,

18

2009; or

19

     2.  Participates in, or is eligible to participate in, the

20

Senior Management Service Optional Annuity Program as established

21

under s. 121.055(6), the State Community College Optional

22

Retirement Program as established under s. 121.051(2)(c), or the

23

State University System Optional Retirement Program established

24

under s. 121.35.

25

26

The term does not include any member participating in the

27

Deferred Retirement Option Program established under s.

28

121.091(13), a retiree of a state-administered retirement system

29

initially reemployed on or after January 1, 2009, or a mandatory

30

participant of the State University System Optional Retirement

31

Program established under s. 121.35.

32

     Section 7.  Effective January 1, 2009, paragraph (b) of

33

subsection (1) of section 121.591, Florida Statutes, is amended

34

to read:

35

     121.591  Benefits payable under the Public Employee Optional

36

Retirement Program of the Florida Retirement System.--Benefits

37

may not be paid under this section unless the member has

38

terminated employment as provided in s. 121.021(39)(a) or is

39

deceased and a proper application has been filed in the manner

40

prescribed by the state board or the department. The state board

41

or department, as appropriate, may cancel an application for

42

retirement benefits when the member or beneficiary fails to

43

timely provide the information and documents required by this

44

chapter and the rules of the state board and department. In

45

accordance with their respective responsibilities as provided

46

herein, the State Board of Administration and the Department of

47

Management Services shall adopt rules establishing procedures for

48

application for retirement benefits and for the cancellation of

49

such application when the required information or documents are

50

not received. The State Board of Administration and the

51

Department of Management Services, as appropriate, are authorized

52

to cash out a de minimis account of a participant who has been

53

terminated from Florida Retirement System covered employment for

54

a minimum of 6 calendar months. A de minimis account is an

55

account containing employer contributions and accumulated

56

earnings of not more than $5,000 made under the provisions of

57

this chapter. Such cash-out must either be a complete lump-sum

58

liquidation of the account balance, subject to the provisions of

59

the Internal Revenue Code, or a lump-sum direct rollover

60

distribution paid directly to the custodian of an eligible

61

retirement plan, as defined by the Internal Revenue Code, on

62

behalf of the participant. If any financial instrument issued for

63

the payment of retirement benefits under this section is not

64

presented for payment within 180 days after the last day of the

65

month in which it was originally issued, the third-party

66

administrator or other duly authorized agent of the State Board

67

of Administration shall cancel the instrument and credit the

68

amount of the instrument to the suspense account of the Public

69

Employee Optional Retirement Program Trust Fund authorized under

70

s. 121.4501(6). Any such amounts transferred to the suspense

71

account are payable upon a proper application, not to include

72

earnings thereon, as provided in this section, within 10 years

73

after the last day of the month in which the instrument was

74

originally issued, after which time such amounts and any earnings

75

thereon shall be forfeited. Any such forfeited amounts are assets

76

of the Public Employee Optional Retirement Program Trust Fund and

77

are not subject to the provisions of chapter 717.

78

     (1)  NORMAL BENEFITS.--Under the Public Employee Optional

79

Retirement Program:

80

     (b)  If a participant elects to receive his or her benefits

81

upon termination of employment as defined in s. 121.021(39), the

82

participant must submit a written application or an equivalent

83

form to the third-party administrator indicating his or her

84

preferred distribution date and selecting an authorized method of

85

distribution as provided in paragraph (c). The participant may

86

defer receipt of benefits until he or she chooses to make such

87

application, subject to federal requirements.

88

     Section 8.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in this

89

act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2008.

90

91

================ T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================

92

And the title is amended as follows:

93

     On line(s) 30, after the semicolon,

94

insert:

95

repealing s. 121.45, F.S., relating to interstate compacts

96

for pension portability; amending s. 121.4501, F.S.;

97

revising the definition of the term "eligible employee"

98

for purposes of the Public Employee Optional Retirement

99

Program; amending s. 121.591, F.S.; providing a cross-

100

reference;

4/23/2008  6:04:00 PM     11-08554-08

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.