Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB476 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R1750 KFF-D
2	2	By: Allen H.B. No. 476
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to benefits paid by the Teacher Retirement System of
8	8	Texas.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 824, Government Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Sections 824.007 and 824.008 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 824.007. ADJUSTMENT TO BENEFITS. (a) The amount of a
13	13	monthly service retirement benefit, disability retirement benefit,
14	14	or death benefit paid under this chapter is increased to include a
15	15	10 percent adjustment in accordance with this section.
16	16	(b) The board of trustees shall recompute the amount of a
17	17	benefit paid monthly under this chapter by applying the 10 percent
18	18	adjustment to the monthly amount otherwise required to be paid as
19	19	determined in accordance with the other applicable provisions of
20	20	this chapter and other law.
21	21	Sec. 824.008. ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT FOR COST OF LIVING. (a)
22	22	The amount of a monthly service retirement benefit, disability
23	23	retirement benefit, or death benefit paid under this chapter is
24	24	increased to include a four percent annual cost-of-living
25	25	adjustment in accordance with this section.
26	26	(b) The board of trustees shall recompute the amount of a
27	27	benefit paid monthly under this chapter by applying the four
28	28	percent adjustment to the monthly amount otherwise required to be
29	29	paid as determined in accordance with the other applicable
30	30	provisions of this chapter.
31	31	SECTION 2. (a) The Teacher Retirement System of Texas
32	32	shall make a one-time supplemental payment of a retirement or death
33	33	benefit, as provided by this section.
34	34	(b) The supplemental payment is payable in January of 2010
35	35	and, to the extent practicable, on a date or dates that coincide
36	36	with the regular annuity payment payable to each eligible
37	37	annuitant.
38	38	(c) The amount of the supplemental payment is equal to the
39	39	greater of:
40	40	(1) $2,000; or
41	41	(2) the gross amount of the regular annuity payment to
42	42	which the eligible annuitant is otherwise entitled for the month of
43	43	December 2009.
44	44	(d) The supplemental payment is payable without regard to
45	45	any forfeiture of benefits under Section 824.601, Government Code.
46	46	The Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall make applicable tax
47	47	withholding and other legally required deductions before
48	48	disbursing the supplemental payment. A supplemental payment under
49	49	this section is in addition to and not in lieu of the regular
50	50	monthly annuity payment to which the eligible annuitant is
51	51	otherwise entitled.
52	52	(e) Subject to Subsection (f) of this section, to be
53	53	eligible for the supplemental payment, a person must be, for the
54	54	month of December 2009, and disregarding any forfeiture of benefits
55	55	under Section 824.601, Government Code, an annuitant eligible to
56	56	receive:
57	57	(1) a standard retirement annuity payment;
58	58	(2) an optional retirement annuity payment as either a
59	59	retiree or beneficiary;
60	60	(3) a life annuity payment under Section
61	61	824.402(a)(4), Government Code;
62	62	(4) an annuity for a guaranteed period of 60 months
63	63	under Section 824.402(a)(3), Government Code; or
64	64	(5) an alternate payee annuity payment under Section
65	65	804.005, Government Code.
66	66	(f) If the annuitant is a retiree or a beneficiary under an
67	67	optional retirement payment plan, to be eligible for the
68	68	supplemental payment, the effective date of the retirement of the
69	69	member of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas must have been
70	70	before September 1, 2008. If the annuitant is a beneficiary under
71	71	Section 824.402(a)(3) or (4), Government Code, to be eligible for
72	72	the supplemental payment, the date of death of the member of the
73	73	retirement system must have been before September 1, 2008. The
74	74	supplemental payment shall be made to an alternate payee who is an
75	75	annuitant under Section 804.005, Government Code, only if the
76	76	annuity payment to the alternate payee commenced before September
77	77	1, 2008. The supplemental payment is in addition to the guaranteed
78	78	number of payments under Section 824.402(a)(3) or 824.204(c)(3) or
79	79	(4), Government Code, and may not be counted as one of the
80	80	guaranteed monthly payments.
81	81	(g) The supplemental payment does not apply to payments
82	82	under:
83	83	(1) Section 824.304(a), Government Code, relating to
84	84	disability retirees with less than 10 years of service credit;
85	85	(2) Section 824.804(b), Government Code, relating to
86	86	participants in the deferred retirement option plan with regard to
87	87	payments from their deferred retirement option plan accounts;
88	88	(3) Section 824.501(a), Government Code, relating to
89	89	retiree survivor beneficiaries who receive a survivor annuity in an
90	90	amount fixed by statute; or
91	91	(4) Section 824.404(a), Government Code, relating to
92	92	active member survivor beneficiaries who receive a survivor annuity
93	93	in an amount fixed by statute.
94	94	(h) Except as provided by this section, the board of
95	95	trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall determine
96	96	the eligibility for and the amount and timing of a supplemental
97	97	payment and the manner in which the payment is made.
98	98	(i) The Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall pay the
99	99	supplemental payment made under this section from the retired
100	100	reserve account and may transfer to that account from the state
101	101	contribution account any portion of the amount that exceeds the
102	102	amount in the retired reserve account available to finance the
103	103	supplemental payment and that is actuarially determined to be
104	104	necessary to finance the supplemental payment. The supplemental
105	105	payment under this section must comply with Section 821.006,
106	106	Government Code.
107	107	SECTION 3. Sections 824.007 and 824.008, Government Code,
108	108	as added by this Act, apply only to a monthly benefit payment made
109	109	by the Teacher Retirement System of Texas on or after September 1,
110	110	2009.
111	111	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.