EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*hb1058*
HOUSE BILL 1058
P6 4lr3264
CF 4lr3054
By: Delegate Young
Introduced and read first time: February 7, 2024
Assigned to: Appropriations
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning 1
Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System – Participating Governmental Units 2
– Baltimore City School Police Force 3
FOR the purpose of authorizing membership in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension 4
System for certain employees of the Baltimore City School Police Force under certain 5
circumstances; and generally relating to membership in the Law Enforcement 6
Officers’ Pension System. 7
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 8
Article – Education 9
Section 4–303(a) and (d)(4) and 4–318(a), (b), and (c) 10
Annotated Code of Maryland 11
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 12
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 13
Article – Public Safety 14
Section 1–101(a) and (c)(1)(i) and (ii)3. 15
Annotated Code of Maryland 16
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 17
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 18
Article – State Personnel and Pensions 19
Section 26–201(a)(22) and (23) and 31–2A–02 20
Annotated Code of Maryland 21
(2015 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 22
BY adding to 23
Article – State Personnel and Pensions 24
Section 26–201(a)(24) 25
Annotated Code of Maryland 26
(2015 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 27 2 HOUSE BILL 1058
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 1
Article – State Personnel and Pensions 2
Section 31–2A–01, 31–2A–03, 31–2A–03.1, 31–2A–04, and 31–2A–05 3
Annotated Code of Maryland 4
(2015 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 5
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 6
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 7
Article – Education 8
4–303. 9
(a) In order to establish a new partnership between the City of Baltimore and the 10
State to improve the quality of public education in Baltimore City and to encourage more 11
efficient use of the resources of the State and Baltimore City, the Baltimore City Board of 12
School Commissioners is established in accordance with the provisions of this subtitle. 13
(d) (4) The board may not be deemed an agency of the State. 14
4–318. 15
(a) In this section, “Baltimore City school police officer” means any person who, 16
when acting in an official capacity, is authorized by law to make arrests and who is a 17
member of the Baltimore City School Police Force. 18
(b) There is a Baltimore City School Police Force. 19
(c) The members of the Baltimore City School Police Force shall be employees of 20
and be appointed by the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. 21
Article – Public Safety 22
1–101. 23
(a) In this article the following words have the meanings indicated. 24
(c) (1) “Law enforcement officer” means an individual who: 25
(i) in an official capacity is authorized by law to make arrests; and 26
(ii) is a member of one of the following law enforcement agencies: 27
3. the Baltimore City School Police Force; 28
Article – State Personnel and Pensions 29 HOUSE BILL 1058 3
26–201. 1
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, this subtitle applies only 2
to: 3
(22) the Executive Director of the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cannabis 4
Commission, only if the Executive Director is a sworn police officer with the powers granted 5
to an officer or employee of the Field Enforcement Division under § 1–313 of the Alcoholic 6
Beverages and Cannabis Article; [and] 7
(23) an emergency medical technician employed by a participating 8
governmental unit who is eligible to be a member as provided in Title 31, Subtitle 2A of 9
this article; AND 10
(24) A BALTIMORE CITY SCHOOL POLICE OF FICER OF THE BALTIMORE 11
CITY SCHOOL POLICE FORCE WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO BE A MEMBER AS PR OVIDED IN 12
TITLE 31, SUBTITLE 2A OF THIS ARTICLE . 13
31–2A–01. 14
(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. 15
(b) “Effective date” means the date that an eligible governmental unit commenced 16
or commences participation in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System. 17
(c) “Eligible governmental unit” means a governmental unit that is eligible to 18
participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System under § 31–2A–02 of this 19
subtitle. 20
(d) (1) “Emergency medical technician” means a paid emergency medical 21
technician, as determined by the eligible governmental unit. 22
(2) “Emergency medical technician” does not include a volunteer 23
emergency medical technician. 24
(e) (1) “Firefighter” means: 25
(i) a paid firefighter, as determined by the eligible governmental 26
unit; or 27
(ii) a paid paramedic, as determined by the eligible governmental 28
unit. 29
(2) “Firefighter” does not include: 30
4 HOUSE BILL 1058
(i) a volunteer firefighter; or 1
(ii) a volunteer paramedic. 2
(f) “Law enforcement officer” means an individual certified by the Maryland 3
Police Training and Standards Commission as a law enforcement officer. 4
(g) (1) “Local plan” means a plan or any other arrangement of an eligible 5
governmental unit that is described in § 219(g)(5) of the Internal Revenue Code. 6
(2) “Local plan” does not include a plan established under § 457 of the 7
Internal Revenue Code. 8
(h) “State system” has the meaning stated in § 20–101(pp) of this article. 9
31–2A–02. 10
Subject to § 31–2A–03 of this subtitle, the governmental units that are eligible to 11
participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System are: 12
(1) counties; [and] 13
(2) municipal corporations; AND 14
(3) THE BALTIMORE CITY SCHOOL POLICE FORCE. 15
31–2A–03. 16
(a) Subject to subsection (b) of this section, the legislative body of an eligible 17
governmental unit may approve participation by its law enforcement officers, firefighters, 18
or emergency medical technicians in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System if: 19
(1) the legislative body adopts a resolution in the form prescribed by the 20
Board of Trustees; and 21
(2) the eligible governmental unit participates in a State system or 22
operates a local plan, only if: 23
(i) at least 60% of the law enforcement officers, firefighters, or 24
emergency medical technicians of the eligible governmental unit petition to become 25
members of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System; 26
(ii) the eligible governmental unit satisfies the requirements in 27
subsection (b) of this section; and 28
HOUSE BILL 1058 5
(iii) the legislative body approves participation of its law enforcement 1
officers, firefighters, or emergency medical technicians in lieu of participation in the State 2
system or local plan. 3
(b) An eligible governmental unit that operates a local plan or participates in a 4
State system may approve participation of its law enforcement officers, firefighters, or 5
emergency medical technicians in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System only if: 6
(1) the State system or local plan of the eligible governmental unit requires 7
member contributions at the same rate as the member contribution rate that would be 8
applicable to the law enforcement officers, firefighters, or emergency medical technicians 9
of the eligible governmental unit in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System; or 10
(2) the eligible governmental unit: 11
(i) does not provide for the employer pickup of member 12
contributions to the State system or local plan within the meaning of § 414(h)(2) of the 13
Internal Revenue Code; and 14
(ii) certifies that it will not become an approved employer under § 15
21–313 of this article on or after the effective date of participation. 16
(c) (1) If an eligible governmental unit does not satisfy the requirements 17
under subsection (b) of this section, the eligible governmental unit may submit a request to 18
the Board of Trustees to participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System. 19
(2) The Board of Trustees shall consider a request made under paragraph 20
(1) of this subsection and determine whether any legislation is necessary to allow the 21
eligible governmental unit to participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System. 22
(3) The Board of Trustees shall make recommendations to the Joint 23
Committee on Pensions regarding any legislation that it determines is necessary to allow 24
the eligible governmental unit to participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension 25
System. 26
31–2A–03.1. 27
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the effective date of 28
participation for an eligible governmental unit is July 1 of the year following the fiscal year 29
in which the eligible governmental unit elects to participate in the Law Enforcement 30
Officers’ Pension System. 31
(b) If an eligible governmental unit does not provide the Board of Trustees with 32
the necessary documentation to join the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System on or 33
before the effective date for the eligible governmental unit, the effective date shall be 34
postponed until July 1 of the second year following the fiscal year in which the eligible 35
governmental unit elects to participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System. 36 6 HOUSE BILL 1058
31–2A–04. 1
If a law enforcement officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, or paramedic 2
joins the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System on the effective date, the member is 3
entitled to credit for employment with the participating governmental unit before the 4
effective date. 5
31–2A–05. 6
(a) This section applies only to a local plan that is a qualified plan under § 401(a) 7
of the Internal Revenue Code and provides a defined benefit to its participants. 8
(b) If an eligible governmental unit approves participation in the Law 9
Enforcement Officers’ Pension System, the operation of the local plan or State system with 10
respect to the law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, or 11
paramedics terminates on the effective date. 12
(c) (1) On the effective date: 13
(i) the assets to the credit of the local plan or State system that 14
relate to the law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, or 15
paramedics who elect to become members shall be transferred to the Law Enforcement 16
Officers’ Pension System; and 17
(ii) the trustee or other administrative head of the local plan or State 18
system shall certify the proportion of the funds of the local plan or State system that 19
represents the accumulated contributions of the members as of that date. 20
(2) The accumulated contributions shall be credited to the respective 21
annuity savings accounts of the members in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension 22
System. 23
(3) The balance of the funds transferred to the Law Enforcement Officers’ 24
Pension System shall be offset against the special accrued liability to be funded by the 25
participating governmental unit as provided by § 21–306.1(d) of this article. 26
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 27
1, 2024. 28