Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB863 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R5556 SGA-D
2	2	By: Lozano H.B. No. 863
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to a supplemental payment for retirees of the Teacher
8	8	Retirement System of Texas and the unfunded actuarial liabilities
9	9	allowed under that system.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 821.006, Government Code, is amended by
12	12	adding Subsections (c), (d), and (e) to read as follows:
13	13	(c) Notwithstanding Subsections (a) and (b), the retirement
14	14	system may provide a one-time supplemental payment to an annuitant
15	15	eligible to receive:
16	16	(1) a standard retirement annuity payment;
17	17	(2) an optional retirement annuity payment as either a
18	18	retiree or beneficiary;
19	19	(3) a life annuity payment under Section
20	20	824.402(a)(4);
21	21	(4) an annuity for a guaranteed period of 60 months
22	22	under Section 824.402(a)(3); or
23	23	(5) an alternate payee annuity payment under Section
24	24	804.005.
25	25	(d) A one-time supplemental payment under Subsection (c) is
26	26	authorized, even if the amortization period for the unfunded
27	27	actuarial liabilities of the retirement system exceeds 30 years by
28	28	one or more years, only if the board of trustees determines that at
29	29	the time of the supplemental payment the payment can be made while
30	30	preserving the ability of the retirement system to meet at least 80
31	31	percent of the system's pension obligations.
32	32	(e) The funding for a supplemental payment under Subsection
33	33	(c) must come from the earnings the retirement system makes on its
34	34	investments as provided by this subsection. A supplemental payment
35	35	may be made at any time during the period beginning on September 1
36	36	and ending on December 31 only if, during the preceding fiscal year,
37	37	the return on investments, as provided by the actuarial valuation
38	38	on August 31 of that year, exceeds eight percent by an amount
39	39	sufficient to pay for the supplemental payment. Subsections (c)
40	40	and (d) and this subsection expire January 1, 2018.
41	41	SECTION 2. (a) The Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall
42	42	make a one-time supplemental payment of a retirement or death
43	43	benefit, as provided by Section 821.006, Government Code, as
44	44	amended by this Act, and this section.
45	45	(b) The supplemental payment is payable not later than
46	46	December 31, 2017, and, to the extent practicable, on a date or
47	47	dates that coincide with the regular annuity payment payable to
48	48	each eligible annuitant.
49	49	(c) The amount of the supplemental payment is equal to the
50	50	lesser of:
51	51	(1) the gross amount of the regular annuity payment to
52	52	which the eligible annuitant is otherwise entitled for the month of
53	53	August 2015; or
54	54	(2) $2,400.
55	55	(d) The supplemental payment is payable without regard to
56	56	any forfeiture of benefits under Section 824.601, Government Code.
57	57	The Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall make applicable tax
58	58	withholding and other legally required deductions before
59	59	disbursing the supplemental payment. A supplemental payment under
60	60	this section is in addition to and not in lieu of the regular
61	61	monthly annuity payment to which the eligible annuitant is
62	62	otherwise entitled.
63	63	(e) Subject to Subsection (f) of this section, to be
64	64	eligible for the supplemental payment, a person must be, for the
65	65	month of August 2015, and disregarding any forfeiture of benefits
66	66	under Section 824.601, Government Code, an annuitant eligible to
67	67	receive:
68	68	(1) a standard retirement annuity payment;
69	69	(2) an optional retirement annuity payment as either a
70	70	retiree or beneficiary;
71	71	(3) a life annuity payment under Section
72	72	824.402(a)(4), Government Code;
73	73	(4) an annuity for a guaranteed period of 60 months
74	74	under Section 824.402(a)(3), Government Code; or
75	75	(5) an alternate payee annuity payment under Section
76	76	804.005, Government Code.
77	77	(f) If the annuitant is a retiree or a beneficiary under an
78	78	optional retirement payment plan, to be eligible for the
79	79	supplemental payment, the effective date of the retirement of the
80	80	member of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas must have been on
81	81	or before December 31, 2012. If the annuitant is a beneficiary
82	82	under Section 824.402(a)(3) or (4), Government Code, to be eligible
83	83	for the supplemental payment, the date of death of the member of the
84	84	retirement system must have been on or before December 31, 2012.
85	85	The supplemental payment shall be made to an alternate payee who is
86	86	an annuitant under Section 804.005, Government Code, only if the
87	87	annuity payment to the alternate payee commenced on or before
88	88	December 31, 2012. The supplemental payment is in addition to the
89	89	guaranteed number of payments under Section 824.402(a)(3),
90	90	824.204(c)(3) or (4), or 824.308(c)(3) or (4), Government Code, and
91	91	may not be counted as one of the guaranteed monthly payments.
92	92	(g) The supplemental payment does not apply to payments
93	93	under:
94	94	(1) Section 824.304(a), Government Code, relating to
95	95	disability retirees with less than 10 years of service credit;
96	96	(2) Section 824.804(b), Government Code, relating to
97	97	participants in the deferred retirement option plan with regard to
98	98	payments from their deferred retirement option plan accounts;
99	99	(3) Section 824.501(a), Government Code, relating to
100	100	retiree survivor beneficiaries who receive a survivor annuity in an
101	101	amount fixed by statute; or
102	102	(4) Section 824.404(a), Government Code, relating to
103	103	active member survivor beneficiaries who receive a survivor annuity
104	104	in an amount fixed by statute.
105	105	(h) Except as provided by this section, the board of
106	106	trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas shall determine
107	107	the eligibility for and the amount and timing of a supplemental
108	108	payment and the manner in which the payment is made.
109	109	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.