86R6248 KFF-D
By: Gutierrez H.B. No. 2469
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to retirement benefits for certain peace officers who are
members of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 821.001, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subdivision (11-a) to read as follows:
(11-a) "Peace officer" means a member of the
retirement system who is elected, employed, or appointed as a peace
officer under Article 2.12, Code of Criminal Procedure, Section
37.081 or 51.203, Education Code, or other law.
SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 824, Government Code, is
amended by adding Sections 824.2025 and 824.2035 to read as
follows:
Sec. 824.2025. ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICE RETIREMENT FOR PEACE
OFFICERS. (a) This section applies notwithstanding any other law,
including Section 824.202.
(b) A member who is at least 55 years old and who has at
least 10 years of service credit as a peace officer engaged in law
enforcement activities by a school district or institution of
higher education is eligible to retire and receive a service
retirement annuity.
(c) A member who has at least 20 years of service credit as a
peace officer is eligible to retire regardless of age and receive a
standard service retirement annuity in an amount provided by
Section 824.203 or 824.2035, as applicable.
(d) The standard combined service retirement annuity that
is payable under Section 824.203 or 824.2035, as applicable, is
based on retirement on or after the attainment of the normal
retirement age, which for purposes of this section is the earlier of
either the age of 57 or the age at which the sum of the member's age
and amount of service credit equals the number 80. The annuity of a
peace officer who retires before reaching the age of 57 under any
eligibility criteria is actuarially reduced by five percent for
each year of difference between the member's age at retirement and
57. The actuarial reduction described by this section is in
addition to any other actuarial reduction required by law.
(e) A peace officer who retires before attaining the age of
50 is entitled only to an annuity that is actuarially reduced from
the annuity available at the age of 50 to the peace officer whose
service credit annuity amount is based on the sum of the member's
age and amount of peace officer service credit and other service
credit, and is not entitled to have the annuity recalculated at
normal retirement age. The standard or reduced annuity under this
section is payable from appropriate accounts described by Section
825.306.
Sec. 824.2035. SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN
PEACE OFFICERS. (a) This section applies to a member subject to
Section 824.2025(c) who renders service as a peace officer after
September 1, 2020.
(b) The standard service retirement annuity payable for a
peace officer subject to this section is an amount computed on the
basis of the member's average annual compensation for the five
years of service, whether or not consecutive, in which the member
received the highest annual compensation, times the sum of the
percentage factor used in the computation of a standard service
retirement annuity under Section 824.203 plus 0.5 percent.
(c) Optional retirement annuities provided by Section
824.204 are available to a member eligible to receive a service
retirement annuity under this section.
(d) The total combined amount of an annuity under this
section may not be less than the authorized benefit under
Subsection (b) subtracted by any amount necessary because of
selection of an optional annuity, because of retirement before the
normal retirement age, or as provided by Subsection (e).
(e) The standard combined service retirement annuity
payable for at least 20 years of service credit as a peace officer
may not exceed 100 percent of the average compensation computed
under Subsection (b).
(f) For purposes of this section, service as a peace officer
is creditable as provided by rule of the board of trustees or on a
month-to-month basis, whichever is greater.
SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 824, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 824.3045 to read as follows:
Sec. 824.3045. DISABILITY RETIREMENT BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN
PEACE OFFICERS. (a) An annuity payable for a disability resulting
from a risk to which peace officers are exposed because of the
nature of the officers' duties is payable under the same terms and
conditions that apply to other disability retirement annuities
under this subtitle.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a disability
retirement annuity under this section is an amount, but not more
than 100 percent, computed on the basis of the officer's average
annual compensation, times a percentage derived by application of
Section 824.2035(b).
(c) A disability retirement annuity under this section is
not reducible because of age and may not be less than 50 percent of
the officer's average annual compensation regardless of the amount
of service credited to the officer.
(d) If a retiring member or retiree under this section
presents evidence satisfactory to the retirement system that the
person's disability makes the person incapable of substantial
gainful activity solely because of the disability and is considered
a total disability under federal social security law, the
retirement system shall increase the person's disability
retirement annuity to 100 percent of the officer's average annual
compensation.
(e) An annuity increase under Subsection (d) is not payable
before the first month following the month in which the
satisfactory evidence is received by the retirement system under
Subsection (d).
SECTION 4. Subchapter E, Chapter 824, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 824.4025 to read as follows:
Sec. 824.4025. ANNUITY FOR SURVIVOR OF PEACE OFFICER. If a
member who has at least 20 years of service credit as a peace
officer dies, the amount of the death benefit annuity payable for
the member's service as a peace officer is an amount computed under
Section 824.2035, including any applicable reduction factors.
SECTION 5. Section 825.402, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 825.402. RATE OF MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS. (a) Except as
provided by Subsection (b), the [The] rate of contributions for
each member of the retirement system is:
(1) five percent of the member's annual compensation
or $180, whichever is less, for service rendered after August 31,
1937, and before September 1, 1957;
(2) six percent of the first $8,400 of the member's
annual compensation for service rendered after August 31, 1957, and
before September 1, 1969;
(3) six percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after August 31, 1969, and before the first day
of the 1977-78 school year;
(4) 6.65 percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after the last day of the period described by
Subdivision (3) and before September 1, 1985;
(5) 6.4 percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after August 31, 1985, and before September 1,
2014;
(6) 6.7 percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after August 31, 2014, and before September 1,
2015;
(7) 7.2 percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after August 31, 2015, and before September 1,
2016;
(8) 7.7 percent of the member's annual compensation
for service rendered after August 31, 2016, and before September 1,
2017; and
(9) for service rendered on or after September 1,
2017, the lesser of:
(A) 7.7 percent of the member's annual
compensation; or
(B) a percentage of the member's annual
compensation equal to 7.7 percent reduced by one-tenth of one
percent for each one-tenth of one percent that the state
contribution rate for the fiscal year to which the service relates
is less than the state contribution rate established for the 2015
fiscal year.
(b) For service rendered after September 1, 2020, the rate
of contributions for each member of the retirement system who is a
peace officer is 9.5 percent of the member's annual compensation.
SECTION 6. Subchapter E, Chapter 825, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 825.4093 to read as follows:
Sec. 825.4093. EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS FOR PEACE OFFICERS.
(a) This section applies to an employer who reports to the
retirement system the employment of a peace officer for service
rendered as a peace officer after September 1, 2020.
(b) In addition to employer contributions otherwise
required under this subchapter, for each peace officer the employer
reports to the retirement system, the employer shall contribute
monthly to the retirement system one percent of the member's
compensation.
(c) Contributions under this section are subject to the
requirements of Section 825.408.
SECTION 7. Subchapter F, Chapter 825, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 825.5155 to read as follows:
Sec. 825.5155. CERTIFICATION OF NAMES OF PEACE OFFICERS.
Not later than the 12th day of the month following the month in
which a person begins or ceases employment as a peace officer, the
employer shall certify to the retirement system, in the manner
prescribed by the system, the name of the employee and such other
information as the system determines is necessary for the crediting
of service and financing of benefits under this subtitle.
SECTION 8. Section 824.3045, Government Code, as added by
this Act, applies only to the disability retirement annuity of a
peace officer who applies for the annuity on or after the effective
date of this Act. The disability retirement annuity of a person who
applies for the annuity before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law as it existed immediately before the effective
date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
SECTION 9. Section 824.4025, Government Code, as added by
this Act, applies only to a death benefit annuity that is applied
for on or after the effective date of this Act. A death benefit
annuity applied for before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law as it existed immediately before the effective
date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
SECTION 10. The board of trustees of the Teacher Retirement
System of Texas shall adopt rules as soon as possible after the
effective date of this Act to implement the changes in law made by
this Act, including rules that ensure that any benefit paid to the
member under Section 824.2035, Government Code, as added by this
Act, is reasonably proportionate to the member's contribution under
Section 825.402, Government Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.