RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 STATE OF OKLAHOMA 2nd Session of the 58th Legislature (2022) COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR ENGROSSED SENATE BILL NO. 1188 By: Taylor, Jett, Coleman, Kidd, and Bergstrom of the Senate and Newton and Roberts (Dustin) of the House COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE An Act relating to state pensions; amending 11 O.S. 2021, Sections 50-111.3 and 50-112, which relate to the Oklahoma Police Pen sion and Retirement System ; modifying provision related to assumed rate of return; allowing municipalities u nder certain population to hire certain retired police officers without reentering system; allowing for retired persons to be hired as police officers under certain circumstances without entrance into s ystem; providing for codification; and providing an ef fective date. BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 11 O.S. 2021, Section 50 -111.3, is amended to read as follows: Section 50-111.3 A. In lieu of terminating employment and accepting a service retirement pension pursuant to Section 50 -114 of this title, any member of the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 System who has not less than twenty ( 20) years of creditable service and who is eligible to receive a service retirement pension ma y make an irrevocable election to participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan and defer the receipts of benefits in accordance with the provisions of this section. B. For purposes of this section, creditable service shall include service credi t reciprocally recognized pursuant to Section 50-101 et seq. of this tit le but for eligibility purposes only. C. The duration of participation in the Oklahoma Po lice Deferred Option Plan for a member shall not exceed five (5) years . Participation in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan must begin the first day of a month and end on the last day of a month. At the conclusion of a member's participation in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan, the member shall terminate employment with all participating municipalities as an officer, and shall start receiving the member 's accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System. Such a member may receive in -service distributions of such member's accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System if such member is reemployed by a participating municipality only if such reemployment is as a police chief or in a position not covered under the System. D. When a member begins participation in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan, the contribution of the em ployee shall cease. The employer contributions shall continue to be pai d in accordance RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 with Section 50-109 of this title. Municipal contributions for employees who elect the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan shall be credited equally to the Oklahoma P olice Pension and Retirement System and to the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan. The monthly retirement benefits that would have been payable had the member elected to cease employment and receive a service retirement shall be paid into the Oklahoma P olice Deferred Option Plan account. E. 1. A member who participates in this plan shall be eligible to receive cost of living increases. 2. A member who partici pates in this plan shall earn interest at a rate of two percentage points below the rate of re turn of the investment portfolio of the System, but no less than the actuarial assumed interest rate as certified by the actuary in the yearly evaluation report of the actuary seven and one-half percent (7.5%) interest effective July 1, 2022 . The interest shall be credited to the individual account balance of the member on an annual basis. F. A participant in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan shall receive, at the option of the participant: 1. A lump sum payment from th e account equal to the optio n account balance of the participant, payable to the participant; 2. A lump sum payment from th e account equal to the option account balance of the participant, payable to the annuity provider which shall be selected by the par ticipant as a result of the research and investigation of the participant; or RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 3. Any other method of payment if approved by the State Board. Notwithstanding any other provis ion contained herein to the contrary, commencement of distributions under the Okla homa Police Deferred Option Plan shall be no later than the time as set forth in subsection C of Section 50-114 of this title. G. If the participant dies during the period of participation in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan, a lump sum payment equal to the account balance o f the participant shall be paid to the recipients, which may include a t rust, properly designated in writing by the participant or, if none, to t he surviving spouse who was married to the participant for the thirty (30) continuo us months immediately preceding the death of the participant; provided, a surviving spouse of a part icipant who died in, and as a consequence of, the performance of the part icipant's duty for a participating municipality shall not be subject to the thirty -month marriage requirement for survivor benefits or, if no surviving spouse, to the estate of the participant. H. In lieu of participating in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, E , and F of this section, a member ma y make an irrevocable elect ion to participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan pursuant t o this subsection as follows: 1. For purposes of this subsection, the following definitions shall apply: RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 a. "back drop date" means the date selected by the member, which is up to fiv e (5) years before the member elects to participate in the Oklahoma Polic e Deferred Option Plan, but not before the date at which the member completes twenty (20) years of credited service, b. "termination date" means the date th e member elects to participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsecti on, and the date the member terminates employment with all participat ing municipalities as an active police officer, such termination has at all times inclu ded reemployment of a member by a participating municipality only if such reemployment is as a polic e chief or in a positio n not covered under the System, c. "earlier attained credited service" means the credited service earned by a member as of the back d rop date, and earlier attained credited service cannot be reduced to less than twenty (20) years of credited service, and d. "deferred benefit balance" means all month ly retirement benefits that would have been payable had the member elected to cease emplo yment on the back drop date and receive a service retirement from the RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 back drop date to the terminat ion date, all of the member's contributions and one -half (1/2) of the employer contributions from the back drop date to the termination date, with interest based on how the benefit would have accumulated as if the member had participated in the Oklahoma Po lice Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D and E of this section from the back drop date to the termination date; 2. At the termination d ate, the monthly pension be nefit shall be determined based on earlier attained credited service and on the final average salary as of the back drop date . The member's individual deferred option account shall be credited with an amount equal to the deferre d benefit balance; the memb er shall terminate employment with all participating municipalities as a police officer and shall start receiving the member's accrued mont hly retirement benefit from the System . The provisions of subsections B, C, E, F , and G of this section shall apply to this subsection. A member shall not participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection if the member ha s elected to participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsectio ns A, B, C, D, E, and F of this section; and 3. If a member who has not less than twenty (20) years of creditable service and who is eligible to receive a service RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 retirement pension dies prior to terminating employment, the surviving spouse shall be eligib le to elect to receive a benefit determined as if the member had elected to participate in the Oklahoma Police Deferred O ption Plan in accordance with this subsection on the day immediately preceding the death . The surviving spouse must have been married to the member for the thi rty (30) continuous months preceding the member's death; provided, the surviving spouse of a mem ber who died while in, and as a consequence of, the performance of the member's duty for a participating municipality shall not be subj ect to the thirty-month marriage requirement for this election. SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 11 O.S. 2 021, Section 50-112, is amended to read as follows: Section 50-112. A. All persons employed as full-time duly appointed or elected officers who are paid for w orking more than twenty-five (25) hours per week or any person hired by a participating municipa lity who is undergoing police training to become a permanent police officer of the municipality shall participate in the System upon initial employment with a p olice department of a participating municipality. All such persons shall submit to a physical -medical examination pertaining to sight, hearing, agility and other conditions the requirements of which shall be established by the State Board. The person sha ll be required to complete this physical -medical examination prior to the RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 beginning of actual em ployment. This examination shall identify any preexisting conditions. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a police officer shall be not less than tw enty-one (21) nor more than forty-five (45) years of age when accepted for membership in the System. However, if a municipality should be found to be in noncompliance with the provisions of Article 50 of this title, as determined by the State Board, then any current full-time active police officer employed by a municipality as of July 1, 2001, shall not be denied eligibility to participate in the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System solely due to age. The State Board shall have authority to deny or revoke membership of any person submitting false information in such person ’s membership application. The State Board shall have final authority in determining eligibility for membership in the System , pursuant to the provisions of this article. B. The police chief of any participating municipality may be exempt from membership in the System or may become a member provided the member is not a retired member and the requirements of this section are met at the time of employment. C. A member of the Syst em who has attained his or her normal retirement date may, if the member so elects, agree to ter minate employment and retire as a member of the System and make an election to receive distributions from th e System. If a retired member is reemployed by a participating municipality in the position of police RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 chief or in a position which is not covered b y the System, retirement shall include receipt by such retired member of in- service distributions from the S ystem. D. A former member of the System who termina tes from covered employment and who has neither retired from the System nor entered the Oklahoma Police Deferred Option Plan and is later employed in a covered position with a participating municipality s hall not be denied eligibility to become a member of the System because he or she is forty-five (45) years of age or older. If such member has withdrawn his or her contributions prior to re-entering the System and the member desires to receive credit for such prior service, then the member shall pay back s uch contributions and interest pursuant to Section 50 -111.1 of this title. E. Notwithstanding a ny other provision of law to the contrary, a municipality that employs two (2) or fewer full-time police officers with a population of four thousand five hundre d (4,500) or less, according to the latest Federal Decennial Cens us, may employ a police officer retired police officers who is are more than forty- five (45) years of age and who has never have participated in the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retiremen t System, but such police officer and are receiving retirement benefits. Such officers shall not be eligible to reenter and participate in the System. Such police officer shall be counted in the limitation im posed by this subsection. Notwithstanding any othe r provisions of law, the State RBH No. 11250 Req. No. 11250 Page 10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Board shall be granted access to information concerning a list of actively working police o fficers within the municipalities and agencies under the purview provided by the Co uncil on Law Enforcement Education and Training. SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 50-112.1 of Title 11, unless there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: Notwithstanding any other provis ion of law, any person who is receiving retirement benefits from a st ate pension system may be hired by a municipality with a population of four thousand five hundred (4,500) or less, according to the latest Federal Decennia l Census, to fulfill the duties and obligations of a police officer. Such persons shall not be subject to the requirements and obligations of the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System and shall not be eligible to enter into the System. SECTION 4. This act shall become effective No vember 1, 2022. 58-2-11250 MJ 04/05/22