Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H2915 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3488 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2915
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Paul McMurtry
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to updating judicial retirement benefits.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Paul McMurtry11th Norfolk1/17/2025 1 of 6
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3488 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2915
18	18	By Representative McMurtry of Dedham, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 2915) of
19	19	Paul McMurtry relative to updating judicial retirement benefits. Public Service.
20	20	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
21	21	SEE HOUSE, NO. 2598 OF 2023-2024.]
22	22	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
23	23	_______________
24	24	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
25	25	(2025-2026)
26	26	_______________
27	27	An Act relative to updating judicial retirement benefits.
28	28	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
29	29	of the same, as follows:
30	30	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 32 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition,
31	31	2is hereby amended by striking out section 65C and inserting in place thereof the following
32	32	3section:-
33	33	4 Section 65C: Joint and Survivor Allowance
34	34	5 (1) A chief justice, justice, associate justice, judge, associate judge, or special justice,
35	35	6hereinafter in this section called judge, who is retired or who resigns and who is entitled to a
36	36	7pension or retirement allowance for life under the provisions of section sixty-five A, sixty-five B
37	37	8sixty-five D, sixty-five F, or sixty-five I may elect to receive, in lieu thereof, a pension or
38	38	9retirement allowance for life at a lesser annual rate with provision that upon his death, there shall
39	39	10be paid to such surviving eligible beneficiary as such member shall have nominated in his 2 of 6
40	40	11written election of this option, two-thirds of such pension or retirement allowance for life at a
41	41	12lesser annual rate provided, however, that if such eligible beneficiary dies on or after the date
42	42	13such lesser retirement allowance becomes effective and before the death of such member, such
43	43	14member thereafter shall be paid a full retirement allowance and may not choose another option.
44	44	15Such full retirement allowance shall be determined by multiplying the amount of the lesser
45	45	16retirement allowance at the time of the death of such eligible beneficiary by a fraction the
46	46	17numerator of which is the yearly amount of the full retirement allowance which such member
47	47	18would have received at the time his retirement allowance became effective, and the denominator
48	48	19of which is the yearly amount of the lesser retirement allowance which such member received at
49	49	20the time his retirement allowance first became effective. The yearly amount of such lesser
50	50	21retirement allowance shall be determined so that the value, on the date such allowance becomes
51	51	22effective, of the prospective payments to such member and to such eligible beneficiary shall be
52	52	23the actuarial equivalent of the value on such date of the full retirement allowance; provided,
53	53	24however, that the yearly amount of such lesser retirement allowance shall be decreased to reflect
54	54	25the costs to the system of providing full retirement allowances in accordance with the first
55	55	26sentence of this paragraph. Such election shall be in writing on a prescribed form and filed with
56	56	27the appropriate retiring authority at the time of retirement or resignation or within thirty days
57	57	28thereafter. The computation of said actuarial equivalent shall be subject to supervision and
58	58	29verification in accordance with the provisions of section twenty-one by the actuary appointed by
59	59	30the public employee retirement administration commission.
60	60	31 No person shall be eligible for nomination as beneficiary under the joint and survivor
61	61	32allowance under this section unless such person is the spouse, former spouse who has not
62	62	33remarried, child, father, mother, sister or brother of such member. 3 of 6
63	63	34 If a spouse receiving an allowance as beneficiary under this option dies leaving any
64	64	35children of the deceased member and of such spouse who are under age eighteen, such amount as
65	65	36would have been paid to such spouse shall be divided into such number of equal shares as there
66	66	37are such children, and each such share shall be paid to a guardian for the benefit of each such
67	67	38child until the child reaches age eighteen.
68	68	39 (2) At any time prior to his retirement a judge upon his written notice on a prescribed
69	69	40form filed with the state retirement board prior to his death, may nominate an eligible beneficiary
70	70	41as set forth under subdivision (1) of this section, who if such member dies before being retired
71	71	42shall receive the yearly amount of the joint and survivor allowance to which such member would
72	72	43have been entitled had his retirement taken place on the date of his death.
73	73	44 If a judge, who would be entitled, upon resigning, to a pension or retirement allowance
74	74	45for life under sections sixty-five A, sixty-five B or sixty-five D, dies before resigning, the
75	75	46provisions of paragraph (d) of subdivision (2) or section 12 of chapter 32 shall apply.
76	76	47 If a judge forty-five years of age or over but under the age of seventy who would be
77	77	48entitled, upon resigning, to a pension or retirement allowance for life under section sixty-five A
78	78	49or sixty-five D except for not having attained age seventy, or if a judge forty-five years of age or
79	79	50over but under the age of sixty-five, who would be entitled upon resigning to a pension or
80	80	51retirement allowance under said section sixty-five A or sixty-five D, except for not having
81	81	52attained age sixty-five, or if a judge fifty-five years of age or over but under age sixty-five, who
82	82	53would be entitled upon resigning to a pension or retirement allowance for life under section
83	83	54sixty-five B, except for not having attained age sixty-five dies before resigning, the judge's
84	84	55eligible beneficiary shall receive a pension or retirement allowance for life computed as 4 of 6
85	85	56provided in the second paragraph except that, in making such computation the proportion of the
86	86	57annual rate of salary payable to a judge under section sixty-five A or sixty-five D or the
87	87	58proportion of the average yearly earning for the required years of service payable to a judge
88	88	59under section sixty-five B shall be reduced by one per cent for each year or part thereof by which
89	89	60the date of death precedes the attainment of the age at which the judge would have received,
90	90	61upon resigning, his pension or retirement allowance for life under section sixty-five A, sixty-five
91	91	62B or sixty-five D, respectively.
92	92	63 Pensions under this section payable to surviving beneficiaries shall be paid from the
93	93	64same source and in the same manner as the salaries of like judicial officers of the court from
94	94	65which the judge was retired or resigned or of which he was a judge at the time of his death are
95	95	66paid. Retirement allowances under this section payable to surviving beneficiaries of judges
96	96	67subject to the requirements of paragraphs (a) and (b) of section sixty-five D shall be paid
97	97	68pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (h) of section sixty-five D.
98	98	69 The provisions of subdivisions (1) and (2) of this section shall not apply to a surviving
99	99	70spouse unless such surviving spouse and such deceased judge were living together at the time of
100	100	71such judge's death or, if living apart, they were living apart, in the opinion of the appropriate
101	101	72retiring authority, for justifiable cause other than desertion or moral turpitude on the part of such
102	102	73surviving spouse. Payments under said second and third paragraphs shall terminate upon the
103	103	74remarriage of such surviving spouse.
104	104	75 In determining whether a judge who was appointed prior to January second, nineteen
105	105	76hundred and seventy-five, has served in any office or offices at least ten years continuously and
106	106	77would be for the purposes of the second or third paragraphs of this section, entitled to a pension 5 of 6
107	107	78for life under section sixty-five A or sixty-five B the period, not exceeding one year, of his
108	108	79wartime service as defined in section one of chapter thirty-one, whether before or after his
109	109	80appointment as a judge, shall be added to and deemed continuous with the period of his service
110	110	81in any such office or offices.
111	111	82 In determining whether a judge who was appointed prior to January second, nineteen
112	112	83hundred and seventy-five, has served in any such office or offices at least ten years continuously
113	113	84and would be, for the purposes of the second or third paragraph of this section, entitled to a
114	114	85pension for life under section sixty-five A or sixty-five B, each three years spent by him in the
115	115	86service of the commonwealth or of any county, city or town thereof shall count as one year of
116	116	87creditable service and each such year so credited, but in no event to exceed more than four years
117	117	88of such creditable service, shall be added to and deemed continuous with the period of his
118	118	89service in any such office or offices.
119	119	90 If a judge subject to the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of section sixty-five D dies
120	120	91before resigning or before retiring and if the eligible beneficiary is not entitled to a pension or
121	121	92retirement allowance under the provisions of this section, or if a judge subject to the provisions
122	122	93of paragraphs (a) and (b) of said section sixty-five D dies before resigning or before retiring and
123	123	94if there is no eligible beneficiary who is eligible to receive a pension or retirement allowance
124	124	95under the provisions of this section, all funds previously withheld and deducted under the
125	125	96provisions of paragraph (b) of said section sixty-five D plus interest shall be returned to the
126	126	97estate of the deceased.
127	127	98 SECTION 2. Paragraph (h) of section 65D of chapter 32 of the General Laws, as so
128	128	99appearing, is hereby amended by inserting, after the first sentence, the following sentence: - 6 of 6
129	129	100“Payments of such retirement allowances and pensions shall be made as provided in sections
130	130	101twelve and thirteen.”