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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to the State Board of Administration; 2
amending s. 121.4501, F.S.; revising the federal 3
regulations that apply to the statement of fiduciary 4
standards and responsibilities for the Florida 5
Retirement System Investment Plan; amending s. 6
121.591, F.S.; revising the timeframe after which 7
third-party administrators or duly authorized agents 8
of the board are required to cancel financial 9
instruments issued for a specified purpose; revising 10
the timeframe after which certain amounts transferred 11
to the suspense account are forfeited by the employee; 12
amending s. 215.47, F.S.; authorizing the board to 13
invest no more than a specified percentage in 14
investments that comply with a specified fiduciary 15
standard; requiring the State Board of Administration 16
to file a certain report by a specified date with the 17
Investment Advisory Council, members of the Board of 18
Trustees, and the Legislature; authorizing the State 19
Board of Administration and its affiliated limited 20
liability entities to issue securities and borrow 21
money through specified means, subject to specified 22
limitations; providing an effective date. 23
24
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 25
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Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subsection (15) of section 27
121.4501, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 28
121.4501 Florida Retirement System Investment Plan. — 29
(15) STATEMENT OF FIDUCIARY STANDARDS AND 30
RESPONSIBILITIES.— 31
(c) Subparagraph (8)(b)2. a nd paragraph (b) incorporate 32
the federal law concept of participant control, established by 33
regulations of the United States Department of Labor under s. 34
404(c) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 35
(ERISA). The purpose of this paragraph i s to assist employers 36
and the state board in maintaining compliance with s. 404(c), 37
while avoiding unnecessary costs and eroding member benefits 38
under the investment plan. Pursuant to 29 C.F.R. s. 2550.404a -39
5(d)(4)(i) 29 C.F.R. s. 2550.404c -1(b)(2)(i)(B)(1)(viii), the 40
state board or its designated agents shall deliver to members of 41
the investment plan a copy of the prospectus most recently 42
provided to the plan, and, pursuant to 29 C.F.R. s. 2550.404a -43
5(d)(4) 29 C.F.R. s. 2550.404c -1(b)(2)(i)(B)(2)(ii) , shall 44
provide such members an opportunity to obtain this information, 45
except that: 46
1. The requirement to deliver a prospectus shall be 47
satisfied by delivery of a fund profile or summary profile that 48
contains the information that would be included in a summar y 49
prospectus as described by Rule 498 under the Securities Act of 50
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1933, 17 C.F.R. s. 230.498. If the transaction fees, expense 51
information or other information provided by a mutual fund in 52
the prospectus does not reflect terms negotiated by the state 53
board or its designated agents, the requirement is satisfied by 54
delivery of a separate document described by Rule 498 55
substituting accurate information; and 56
2. Delivery shall be effected if delivery is through 57
electronic means and the following standards are satisfied: 58
a. Electronically-delivered documents are prepared and 59
provided consistent with style, format, and content requirements 60
applicable to printed documents; 61
b. Each member is provided timely and adequate notice of 62
the documents that are to be de livered, and their significance, 63
and of the member's right to obtain a paper copy of such 64
documents free of charge; 65
c. Members have adequate access to the electronic 66
documents, at locations such as their worksites or public 67
facilities, and have the abili ty to convert the documents to 68
paper free of charge by the state board, and the board or its 69
designated agents take appropriate and reasonable measures to 70
ensure that the system for furnishing electronic documents 71
results in actual receipt. Members have pr ovided consent to 72
receive information in electronic format, which consent may be 73
revoked; and 74
d. The state board, or its designated agent, actually 75
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provides paper copies of the documents free of charge, upon 76
request. 77
Section 2. Section 121.591, Flori da Statutes, is amended 78
to read: 79
121.591 Payment of benefits. —Benefits may not be paid 80
under the Florida Retirement System Investment Plan unless the 81
member has terminated employment as provided in s. 82
121.021(39)(a) or is deceased and a proper applicatio n has been 83
filed as prescribed by the state board or the department. 84
Benefits, including employee contributions, are not payable 85
under the investment plan for employee hardships, unforeseeable 86
emergencies, loans, medical expenses, educational expenses, 87
purchase of a principal residence, payments necessary to prevent 88
eviction or foreclosure on an employee's principal residence, or 89
any other reason except a requested distribution for retirement, 90
a mandatory de minimis distribution authorized by the 91
administrator, or a required minimum distribution provided 92
pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code. The state board or 93
department, as appropriate, may cancel an application for 94
retirement benefits if the member or beneficiary fails to timely 95
provide the information an d documents required by this chapter 96
and the rules of the state board and department. In accordance 97
with their respective responsibilities, the state board and the 98
department shall adopt rules establishing procedures for 99
application for retirement benefits and for the cancellation of 100
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such application if the required information or documents are 101
not received. The state board and the department, as 102
appropriate, are authorized to cash out a de minimis account of 103
a member who has been terminated from Florida Re tirement System 104
covered employment for a minimum of 6 calendar months. A de 105
minimis account is an account containing employer and employee 106
contributions and accumulated earnings of not more than $5,000 107
made under the provisions of this chapter. Such cash -out must be 108
a complete lump-sum liquidation of the account balance, subject 109
to the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, or a lump -sum 110
direct rollover distribution paid directly to the custodian of 111
an eligible retirement plan, as defined by the Internal Revenue 112
Code, on behalf of the member. Any nonvested accumulations and 113
associated service credit, including amounts transferred to the 114
suspense account of the Florida Retirement System Investment 115
Plan Trust Fund authorized under s. 121.4501(6), shall be 116
forfeited upon payment of any vested benefit to a member or 117
beneficiary, except for de minimis distributions or minimum 118
required distributions as provided under this section. If any 119
financial instrument issued for the payment of retirement 120
benefits under this section is not presented for payment within 121
180 days after the date of the instrument's issuance the last 122
day of the month in which it was originally issued , the third-123
party administrator or other duly authorized agent of the state 124
board shall cancel the instrument and credit the amount of the 125
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instrument to the suspense account of the Florida Retirement 126
System Investment Plan Trust Fund authorized under s. 127
121.4501(6). Any amounts transferred to the suspense account are 128
payable upon a proper application, not to include earnings 129
thereon, as provided in this section, within 10 years after the 130
date of the instrument's issuance last day of the month in which 131
the instrument was originally issued , after which time such 132
amounts and any earnings attributable to em ployer contributions 133
shall be forfeited. Any forfeited amounts are assets of the 134
trust fund and are not subject to chapter 717. 135
(1) NORMAL BENEFITS. —Under the investment plan: 136
(a) Benefits in the form of vested accumulations as 137
described in s. 121.4501(6) are payable under this subsection in 138
accordance with the following terms and conditions: 139
1. Benefits are payable only to a member, an alternate 140
payee of a qualified domestic relations order, or a beneficiary. 141
2. Benefits shall be paid by th e third-party administrator 142
or designated approved providers in accordance with the law, the 143
contracts, and any applicable board rule or policy. 144
3. The member must be terminated from all employment with 145
all Florida Retirement System employers, as provide d in s. 146
121.021(39). 147
4. Benefit payments may not be made until the member has 148
been terminated for 3 calendar months, except that the state 149
board may authorize by rule for the distribution of up to 10 150
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percent of the member's account after being terminated for 1 151
calendar month if the member has reached the normal retirement 152
date as defined in s. 121.021. 153
5. If a member or former member of the Florida Retirement 154
System receives an invalid distribution, such person must either 155
repay the full amount within 9 0 days after receipt of final 156
notification by the state board or the third -party administrator 157
that the distribution was invalid, or, in lieu of repayment, the 158
member must terminate employment from all participating 159
employers. If such person fails to repay the full invalid 160
distribution within 90 days after receipt of final notification, 161
the person may be deemed retired from the investment plan by the 162
state board and is subject to s. 121.122. If such person is 163
deemed retired, any joint and several liability set out in s. 164
121.091(9)(e)2. is void, and the state board, the department, or 165
the employing agency is not liable for gains on payroll 166
contributions that have not been deposited to the person's 167
account in the investment plan, pending resolution of the 168
invalid distribution. The member or former member who has been 169
deemed retired or who has been determined by the state board to 170
have taken an invalid distribution may appeal the agency 171
decision through the complaint process as provided under s. 172
121.4501(9)(g)3. As used in this subparagraph, the term "invalid 173
distribution" means any distribution from an account in the 174
investment plan which is taken in violation of this section, s. 175
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121.091(9), or s. 121.4501. 176
(b) If a member elects to receive his or her benefits upon 177
termination of employment as defined in s. 121.021, the member 178
must submit a written application or an application by 179
electronic means to the third -party administrator indicating his 180
or her preferred distribution date and selecting an authorized 181
method of distribution as provided in paragraph (c). The member 182
may defer receipt of benefits until he or she chooses to make 183
such application, subject to federal requirements. 184
(c) Upon receipt by the third -party administrator of a 185
properly executed applicat ion for distribution of benefits, the 186
total accumulated benefit is payable to the member pro rata 187
across all Florida Retirement System benefit sources as: 188
1. A lump-sum or partial distribution to the member; 189
2. A lump-sum direct rollover distribution w hereby all 190
accrued benefits, plus interest and investment earnings, are 191
paid from the member's account directly to the custodian of an 192
eligible retirement plan, as defined in s. 402(c)(8)(B) of the 193
Internal Revenue Code, on behalf of the member; or 194
3. Periodic distributions, as authorized by the state 195
board. 196
(d) The distribution payment method selected by the member 197
or beneficiary, and the retirement of the member or beneficiary, 198
is final and irrevocable at the time a benefit distribution 199
payment is cashed, deposited, or transferred to another 200
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financial institution. Any additional service that remains 201
unclaimed at retirement may not be claimed or purchased, and the 202
type of retirement may not be changed, except that if a member 203
recovers from a disability, the member may subsequently request 204
benefits under subsection (2). 205
(e) A member may not receive a distribution of employee 206
contributions if a pending qualified domestic relations order is 207
filed against the member's investment plan account. 208
(2) DISABILITY RETIREMENT BENEFITS. —Benefits provided 209
under this subsection are payable in lieu of the benefits that 210
would otherwise be payable under the provisions of subsection 211
(1). Such benefits must be funded from employer contributions 212
made under s. 121.571, tra nsferred employee contributions and 213
funds accumulated pursuant to paragraph (a), and interest and 214
earnings thereon. 215
(a) Transfer of funds.—To qualify to receive monthly 216
disability benefits under this subsection: 217
1. All moneys accumulated in the member' s account, 218
including vested and nonvested accumulations as described in s. 219
121.4501(6), must be transferred from such individual accounts 220
to the division for deposit in the disability account of the 221
Florida Retirement System Trust Fund. Such moneys must be 222
accounted for separately. Earnings must be credited on an annual 223
basis for amounts held in the disability accounts of the Florida 224
Retirement System Trust Fund based on actual earnings of the 225
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trust fund. 226
2. If the member has retained retirement credit ea rned 227
under the pension plan as provided in s. 121.4501(3), a sum 228
representing the actuarial present value of such credit within 229
the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund shall be reassigned by 230
the division from the pension plan to the disability program as 231
implemented under this subsection and shall be deposited in the 232
disability account of the trust fund. Such moneys must be 233
accounted for separately. 234
(b) Disability retirement; entitlement. — 235
1. A member of the investment plan who becomes totally and 236
permanently disabled, as defined in paragraph (d), after 237
completing 8 years of creditable service, or a member who 238
becomes totally and permanently disabled in the line of duty 239
regardless of length of service, is entitled to a monthly 240
disability benefit. 241
2. In order for service to apply toward the 8 years of 242
creditable service required for regular disability benefits, or 243
toward the creditable service used in calculating a service -244
based benefit as provided under paragraph (g), the service must 245
be creditable service as described below: 246
a. The member's period of service under the investment 247
plan shall be considered creditable service, except as provided 248
in subparagraph d. 249
b. If the member has elected to retain credit for service 250
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under the pension plan as provi ded under s. 121.4501(3), all 251
such service shall be considered creditable service. 252
c. If the member elects to transfer to his or her member 253
accounts a sum representing the present value of his or her 254
retirement credit under the pension plan as provided u nder s. 255
121.4501(3), the period of service under the pension plan 256
represented in the present value amounts transferred shall be 257
considered creditable service, except as provided in 258
subparagraph d. 259
d. If a member has terminated employment and has taken 260
distribution of his or her funds as provided in subsection (1), 261
all creditable service represented by such distributed funds is 262
forfeited for purposes of this subsection. 263
(c) Disability retirement effective date. —The effective 264
retirement date for a member who applies and is approved for 265
disability retirement shall be established as provided under s. 266
121.091(4)(a)2. and 3. 267
(d) Total and permanent disability. —A member shall be 268
considered totally and permanently disabled if, in the opinion 269
of the division, he or she is prevented, by reason of a 270
medically determinable physical or mental impairment, from 271
rendering useful and efficient service as an officer or 272
employee. 273
(e) Proof of disability. —Before approving payment of any 274
disability retirement benefit, the division shall require proof 275
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that the member is totally and permanently disabled as provided 276
under s. 121.091(4)(c). 277
(f) Disability retirement benefit. —Upon the disability 278
retirement of a member under this subsection, the member shall 279
receive a monthly benefit that begins accruing on the first day 280
of the month of disability retirement, as approved by the 281
division, and is payable on the last day of that month and each 282
month thereafter during his or her lifetime and continued 283
disability. All disability ben efits must be paid out of the 284
disability account of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund 285
established under this subsection. 286
(g) Computation of disability retirement benefit. —The 287
amount of each monthly payment must be calculated as provided 288
under s. 121.091(4)(f). Creditable service under both the 289
pension plan and the investment plan shall be applicable as 290
provided under paragraph (b). 291
(h) Reapplication.—A member whose initial application for 292
disability retirement is denied may reapply for disabilit y 293
benefits as provided in s. 121.091(4)(g). 294
(i) Membership.—Upon approval of a member's application 295
for disability benefits, the member shall be transferred to the 296
pension plan, effective upon his or her disability retirement 297
effective date. 298
(j) Option to cancel.—A member whose application for 299
disability benefits is approved may cancel the application if 300
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the cancellation request is received by the division before a 301
disability retirement warrant has been deposited, cashed, or 302
received by direct deposit. Upon cancellation: 303
1. The member's transfer to the pension plan under 304
paragraph (i) shall be nullified; 305
2. The member shall be retroactively reinstated in the 306
investment plan without hiatus; 307
3. All funds transferred to the Florida Retirement System 308
Trust Fund under paragraph (a) must be returned to the member 309
accounts from which the funds were drawn; and 310
4. The member may elect to receive the benefit payable 311
under subsection (1) in lieu of disability benefits. 312
(k) Recovery from disability. — 313
1. The division may require periodic reexaminations at the 314
expense of the disability program account of the Florida 315
Retirement System Trust Fund. Except as provided in subparagraph 316
2., all other matters relating to recovery from disability shall 317
be as provided under s. 121.091(4)(h). 318
2. Upon recovery from disability, the recipient of 319
disability retirement benefits under this subsection shall be a 320
compulsory member of the investment plan. The net difference 321
between the recipient's original account balance tran sferred to 322
the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund, including earnings and 323
total disability benefits paid to such recipient, if any, shall 324
be determined as provided in sub -subparagraph a. 325
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a. An amount equal to the total benefits paid shall be 326
subtracted from that portion of the transferred account balance 327
consisting of vested accumulations as described under s. 328
121.4501(6), if any, and an amount equal to the remainder of 329
benefit amounts paid, if any, shall be subtracted from any 330
remaining nonvested accum ulations. 331
b. Amounts subtracted under sub -subparagraph a. must be 332
retained within the disability account of the Florida Retirement 333
System Trust Fund. Any remaining account balance shall be 334
transferred to the third -party administrator for disposition as 335
provided under sub-subparagraph c. or sub -subparagraph d., as 336
appropriate. 337
c. If the recipient returns to covered employment, 338
transferred amounts must be deposited in individual accounts 339
under the investment plan, as directed by the member. Vested and 340
nonvested amounts shall be accounted for separately as provided 341
in s. 121.4501(6). 342
d. If the recipient fails to return to covered employment 343
upon recovery from disability: 344
(I) Any remaining vested amount must be deposited in 345
individual accounts under the investment plan, as directed by 346
the member, and is payable as provided in subsection (1). 347
(II) Any remaining nonvested amount must be held in a 348
suspense account and is forfeitable after 5 years as provided in 349
s. 121.4501(6). 350
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3. If present value was rea ssigned from the pension plan 351
to the disability program as provided under subparagraph (a)2., 352
the full present value amount must be returned to the defined 353
benefit account within the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund 354
and the member's associated retireme nt credit under the pension 355
plan must be reinstated in full. Any benefit based upon such 356
credit must be calculated as provided in s. 121.091(4)(h)1. 357
(l) Nonadmissible causes of disability. —A member is not 358
entitled to a disability retirement benefit if th e disability 359
results from any injury or disease as described in s. 360
121.091(4)(i). 361
(m) Disability retirement of justice or judge by order of 362
Supreme Court.— 363
1. If a member is a justice of the Supreme Court, judge of 364
a district court of appeal, circuit j udge, or judge of a county 365
court who has served for the years equal to, or greater than, 366
the vesting requirement in s. 121.021(45) as an elected 367
constitutional judicial officer, including service as a judicial 368
officer in any court abolished pursuant to Art . V of the State 369
Constitution, and who is retired for disability pursuant to s. 370
12, Art. V of the State Constitution, the member's Option 1 371
monthly disability benefit amount as provided in s. 372
121.091(6)(a)1. shall be two -thirds of his or her monthly 373
compensation as of the member's disability retirement date. The 374
member may alternatively elect to receive an actuarially 375
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adjusted disability retirement benefit under any other option as 376
provided in s. 121.091(6)(a) or to receive the normal benefit 377
payable under subsection (1). 378
2. If any justice or judge who is a member of the 379
investment plan is retired for disability pursuant to s. 12, 380
Art. V of the State Constitution and elects to receive a monthly 381
disability benefit under the provisions of this paragraph: 382
a. Any present value amount that was transferred to his or 383
her investment plan account and all employer and employee 384
contributions made to such account on his or her behalf, plus 385
interest and earnings thereon, must be transferred to and 386
deposited in the dis ability account of the Florida Retirement 387
System Trust Fund; and 388
b. The monthly disability benefits payable under this 389
paragraph shall be paid from the disability account of the 390
Florida Retirement System Trust Fund. 391
(n) Death of retiree or beneficiary. —Upon the death of a 392
disabled retiree or beneficiary of the retiree who is receiving 393
monthly disability benefits under this subsection, the monthly 394
benefits shall be paid through the last day of the month of 395
death and shall terminate, or be adjusted, if ap plicable, as of 396
that date in accordance with the optional form of benefit 397
selected at the time of retirement. The department may adopt 398
rules necessary to administer this paragraph. 399
(3) DEATH BENEFITS. —Under the Florida Retirement System 400
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Investment Plan: 401
(a) Survivor benefits are payable in accordance with the 402
following terms and conditions, except as provided in subsection 403
(4): 404
1. To the extent vested, benefits are payable only to a 405
member's beneficiary or beneficiaries as designated by the 406
member as provided in s. 121.4501(20). 407
2. Benefits shall be paid by the third -party administrator 408
or designated approved providers in accordance with the law, the 409
contracts, and any applicable state board rule or policy. 410
3. To receive benefits, the member must be deceased. 411
(b) Except as provided in subsection (4), in the event of 412
a member's death, all vested accumulations as described in s. 413
121.4501(6), less withholding taxes remitted to the Internal 414
Revenue Service, shall be distributed, as provided in paragr aph 415
(c) or as described in s. 121.4501(20), as if the member retired 416
on the date of death. No other death benefits are available for 417
survivors of members, except for benefits, or coverage for 418
benefits, as are otherwise provided by law or separately 419
provided by the employer, at the employer's discretion. 420
(c) Except as provided in subsection (4), upon receipt by 421
the third-party administrator of a properly executed application 422
for distribution of benefits, the total accumulated benefit is 423
payable by the third-party administrator to the member's 424
surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries, as: 425
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1. A lump-sum distribution payable to the beneficiary or 426
beneficiaries, or to the deceased member's estate; 427
2. An eligible rollover distribution, if permitted, on 428
behalf of the surviving spouse of a deceased member, whereby all 429
accrued benefits, plus interest and investment earnings, are 430
paid from the deceased member's account directly to the 431
custodian of an eligible retirement plan, as described in s. 432
402(c)(8)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code, on behalf of the 433
surviving spouse; or 434
3. A partial lump-sum payment whereby a portion of the 435
accrued benefit is paid to the deceased member's surviving 436
spouse or other designated beneficiaries, less withholding taxes 437
remitted to the Internal Revenue Service, and the remaining 438
amount is transferred directly to the custodian of an eligible 439
retirement plan, if permitted, as described in s. 402(c)(8)(B) 440
of the Internal Revenue Code, on behalf of the surviving spouse. 441
The proportions must be specified by the member or the surviving 442
beneficiary. 443
444
This paragraph does not abrogate other applicable provisions of 445
state or federal law providing for payment of death benefits. 446
(4) LINE-OF-DUTY DEATH BENEFITS FOR INVESTMENT PLAN 447
MEMBERS.—Benefits are provided under this subsection to the 448
spouse and child or children of members in the investment plan 449
when such members are killed in the line of duty and are payable 450
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in lieu of the benefits that would otherwise be payable under 451
subsection (1) or subs ection (3). Benefits provided by this 452
subsection supersede any other distribution that may have been 453
provided by the member's designation of beneficiary. Such 454
benefits must be funded from employer contributions made under 455
s. 121.571, transferred employee c ontributions and funds 456
accumulated pursuant to paragraph (a), and interest and earnings 457
thereon. 458
(a) Transfer of funds.—To qualify to receive monthly 459
benefits under this subsection: 460
1. All moneys accumulated in the member's account, 461
including vested and nonvested accumulations as described in s. 462
121.4501(6), must be transferred from such individual accounts 463
to the division for deposit in the survivor benefit account of 464
the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund. Moneys in the survivor 465
benefit account must be accounted for separately. Earnings must 466
be credited on an annual basis for amounts held in the survivor 467
benefit account of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund 468
based on actual earnings of the trust fund. 469
2. If the member has retained retirement c redit earned 470
under the pension plan as provided in s. 121.4501(3), a sum 471
representing the actuarial present value of such credit within 472
the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund shall be transferred by 473
the division from the pension plan to the survivor bene fit 474
retirement program as implemented under this subsection and 475
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shall be deposited in the survivor benefit account of the trust 476
fund. 477
(b) Survivor retirement; entitlement. —An investment plan 478
member who is killed in the line of duty on or after July 1, 479
2002, regardless of length of creditable service, may have 480
survivor benefits paid as provided in s. 121.091(7)(d) and (i) 481
to: 482
1. The surviving spouse for the spouse's lifetime; or 483
2. If there is no surviving spouse or the surviving spouse 484
dies, the member's child or children under 18 years of age and 485
unmarried until the 18th birthday of the member's youngest 486
child. Such payments may be extended until the 25th birthday of 487
any child of the member if the child is unmarried and enrolled 488
as a full-time student as provided in s. 121.091(7)(d) and (i). 489
(c) Survivor benefit retirement effective date. — 490
1. The effective retirement date for the surviving spouse 491
or eligible child of a Special Risk Class member who is killed 492
in the line of duty is: 493
a. The first day of the month following the member's death 494
if the member dies on or after July 1, 2016. 495
b. July 1, 2016, for a member of the Special Risk Class 496
when killed in the line of duty on or after July 1, 2013, but 497
before July 1, 2016, if the application is rec eived before July 498
1, 2016; or the first day of the month following the receipt of 499
such application. 500
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2. Except as provided in subparagraph 1., the effective 501
retirement date for the surviving spouse or eligible child of an 502
investment plan member who is kil led in the line of duty is: 503
a. The first day of the month following the member's death 504
if the member dies on or after July 1, 2017. 505
b. July 1, 2017, if the member is killed in the line of 506
duty on or after July 1, 2002, but before July 1, 2017, if the 507
application is received before July 1, 2017; or the first day of 508
the month following the receipt of such application. 509
510
If the investment plan account balance has already been paid out 511
to the surviving spouse or the eligible unmarried dependent 512
child or children, the benefit payable shall be actuarially 513
reduced by the amount of the payout. 514
(d) Line-of-duty death benefit.— 515
1. The following individuals are eligible to receive a 516
retirement benefit under s. 121.091(7)(d) and (i) if the 517
member's account balanc e is surrendered and an application is 518
received and approved: 519
a. The surviving spouse. 520
b. If there is no surviving spouse or the surviving spouse 521
dies, the member's child or children under 18 years of age and 522
unmarried until the 18th birthday of the me mber's youngest 523
child, or until the 25th birthday of the member's child if the 524
child is unmarried and enrolled as a full -time student. 525
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2. Such surviving spouse or such child or children shall 526
receive a monthly survivor benefit that begins accruing on the 527
first day of the month of survivor benefit retirement, as 528
approved by the division, and is payable on the last day of that 529
month and each month thereafter during the surviving spouse's 530
lifetime or on behalf of the unmarried children of the member 531
until the 18th birthday of the youngest child, or until the 25th 532
birthday of any of the member's unmarried children who are 533
enrolled as full-time students. Survivor benefits must be paid 534
out of the survivor benefit account of the Florida Retirement 535
System Trust Fund established under this subsection. 536
537
If the investment plan account balance has already been paid out 538
to the surviving spouse or the eligible unmarried dependent 539
child or children, the benefit payable shall be actuarially 540
reduced by the amount of the payout. 541
(e) Computation of survivor benefit retirement benefit. —542
The amount of each monthly payment must be calculated as 543
provided under s. 121.091(7)(d) and (i). 544
(f) Death of the surviving spouse or children. — 545
1. Upon the death of a surviving spouse, the monthly 546
benefits shall be paid through the last day of the month of 547
death and shall terminate or be paid on behalf of the unmarried 548
child or children until the 18th birthday of the youngest child, 549
or the 25th birthday of any of the member's unmarried children 550
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who are enrolled as full -time students. 551
2. If the surviving spouse dies and the benefits are being 552
paid on behalf of the member's unmarried children as provided in 553
subparagraph 1., benefits shall be paid through the last day of 554
the month until the later of the month the youngest child 555
reaches his or her 18th birthday, the month of the 25th birthday 556
of any of the member's unmarried children enrolled as full -time 557
students, or the month of the death of the youngest child. 558
(5) LIMITATION ON LEGAL P ROCESS.—The benefits payable to 559
any person under the Florida Retirement System Investment Plan, 560
and any contributions accumulated under the plan, are not 561
subject to assignment, execution, attachment, or any legal 562
process, except for qualified domestic rela tions orders by a 563
court of competent jurisdiction, income deduction orders as 564
provided in s. 61.1301, and federal income tax levies. 565
Section 3. Subsection (6) of section 215.47, Florida 566
Statutes, is amended, and subsection (22) is added to that 567
section, to read: 568
215.47 Investments; authorized securities; loan of 569
securities.—Subject to the limitations and conditions of the 570
State Constitution or of the trust agreement relating to a trust 571
fund, moneys available for investments under ss. 215.44 -215.53 572
may be invested as follows: 573
(6) With no more than 5 percent of any fund to be invested 574
in any investment that complies with the fiduciary standard of 575
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care set forth in subsection (10) as deemed appropriate by the 576
board, notwithstanding investment limitation s otherwise 577
expressed in this section . Before The board shall file a report 578
by each January 31 with the Investment Advisory Council, each 579
member of the Board of Trustees, the President of the Senate, 580
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives which lists all 581
investments made by the board pursuant to this s ubsection during 582
the previous calendar year engages in any investment activity 583
not otherwise authorized under ss. 215.44 -215.53, excluding 584
investments in publicly traded securities, options, financial 585
futures, or similar instruments, the board shall presen t to the 586
Investment Advisory Council a proposed plan for such investment . 587
Such plan must include, but not be limited to, a detailed 588
analysis of the investment, the expected benefits and potential 589
risks of such activity, and the methods for monitoring and 590
measuring the performance of the investment. 591
(22) With no more than 5 percent of any fund, the State 592
Board of Administration or its affiliated limited liability 593
entities may issue securities and borrow money through loans or 594
other financial obligations, i ncluding bonds, equity securities, 595
and other security instruments, any of which may be unsecured; 596
secured by investments authorized by subsection (15) or related 597
cash flows; guaranteed by the related fund; or governed by 598
financial covenants. 599
Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 600