ORDINANCE NO. 960204
Repealing Sections 2-1332, 2-1334 and 2-1339 of Article
IX, Division VI of the Administrative Code entitled "Retirement System For
Elected Officials" and enacting, in lieu thereof, new sections of like
number and subject matter.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:
Section A. Sections 2-1332, 2-1334 and 2-1339 are
hereby repealed by enacting, in lieu thereof, new sections of like number and
subject matter, to read as follows:
Sec. 2-1332. Eligibility; retirement benefits.
(a) Generally. Each elected official who serves one
or more elective terms as those terms are now constituted shall receive an
annuity beginning the first day of the month following attainment of age 60 or
the expiration of his last term of office, whichever occurs later, and payable
until the first day of the month following death.
(b) Application for retirement. Written
application to the board of trustees shall be made at least 30 days prior to
retirement date.
(c) Amount of annuity. The annuity shall be two
percent of the average monthly compensation received by then serving elected
officials of the same office during the 24 months next preceding the beginning
of the annuity, multiplied by the number of years' and months' creditable
service, limited to 60 percent of the existing salary for then serving elected
officials of the same office.
(d) Cost-of-living adjustment. An annual
cost-of-living adjustment in annuities shall be payable under these conditions,
only to members who retire after January 1, 1988:
(1) The adjustment shall be made on the annuity
checks dated May 1, and the adjusted amount shall remain unchanged
until the next May 1.
(2) As of year-end, the change in the Kansas City
Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers Index, or its recognized
successor, shall be determined from the previous
year-end.
(3) If the change is an increase, the annuity as
calculated upon retirement date shall be increased one percent and is
not to be compounded.
(4) The cost-of-living adjustment shall be payable
only to members or beneficiaries who have received an annuity for at
least one year prior to the adjustment date.
(e) Early retirement; rule of 80.
(1) Elected officials may elect early retirement
beginning at the later of age 55 or completion of ten years'
creditable service. The benefit as computed in this
subsection shall be reduced by 0.5 percent for
each month the effective date is prior
to the first day of the month following
attainment of age 60.
(2) A member may elect to retire when the total of
his age and years of creditable service equal or exceed 80, without
reduction of benefits as calculated in this subsection.
(f) Membership. Elected officials shall become
members upon assuming office. A municipal judge who is not receiving retirement
payments under article XIII, section 395.9, of the city Charter may elect not
later than April 15, 1985, and subsequently appointed judges within 60 days
after taking office, to either become a member of this retirement system, or
not so doing will accept retirement benefits under section 395.9 of the
Charter. Such election, once made, is irrevocable.
(g) Required distributions. Distribution of a
member's interest in the retirement system shall commence not later than April
1 of the calendar year following the later of the calendar year in which the
member attains age 70 or the calendar year in which the member retires under
the plan.
(h) Creditable service. The term ``creditable
service,'' as used in this section, shall mean service as a city employee and
elected official continuously. If a member of the employees' retirement system
becomes a member of this elected officials' retirement system maintaining a
continuous service, his employees' retirement system member contributions and
interest shall not be refunded, but shall be transferred to his account in the
elected officials' retirement system.
(i) Withdrawal of contributions. A member retiring
under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, except disability retirements,
may elect, with signed consent of his spouse, to withdraw all or a portion of
his accumulated contributions and interest, and receive a reduced annuity. The
annuity calculated in this subsection (i) shall be reduced an actuarially equal
amount by applying factors adapted by the board of trustees upon recommendation
of the retirement system's consulting actuary.
(1) Rollovers. The provision applies to
distributions made on or after January 1, 1993. Notwithstanding any
provision of the retirement system plan to the contrary that
would otherwise limit a distributee's election
under this provision, a distributee may
elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed
by the board of trustees, to have any
portion of an eligible rollover distribution
paid directly to an eligible retirement plan
specified by the distributee in a direct
rollover.
a. Eligible rollover distributions. An
eligible rollover distribution is any
distribution of all or any portion of the
balance to the credit of the distributee,
except that an eligible rollover
distribution does not include: any distribution
that is one of a series of substantially
equal periodic payments (not less
frequently than annually) made for the
life (or life expectancy) of the
distributee or the joint lives (or joint
life expectancies) of the distributee and
the distributee's designated beneficiary,
or for a specified period of ten years
or more; any distribution to the extent
such distribution is required under
section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue
Code; and the portion of any
distribution that is not includable in
gross income (determined without regard
to the exclusion for net realized
appreciation with respect to employer
securities).
b. Eligible retirement plan. An eligible
retirement plan is an individual
retirement account described in section
408(a) of the Internal Revenue Code,
an individual retirement annuity described
in section 408(b) of the Internal
Revenue Code, an annuity plan described in
section 403(b) of the Internal
Revenue Code, or a qualified trust
described in section 401(a) of the Internal
Revenue Code, that accepts the
distributee's eligible rollover distribution.
However, in the case of an eligible
rollover to the surviving spouse, an
eligible retirement plan is an individual
retirement account or individual
retirement annuity.
c. Distributee. A distributee includes a
member or former member. In addition,
the member's or former member's surviving
spouse and the member's former
spouse who is the alternative payee under
a state domestic relations order
determined by the board of trustees, based
on written procedures, to be a
qualified domestic relations order, are
distributees with regard to the interest
of the spouse or former spouse.
d. Direct rollover. A direct rollover is a
payment by the fund to the eligible
retirement plan specified by the
distributee.
(j) Health insurance subsidy. A $50.00 monthly
retiree health insurance subsidy shall be payable to eligible members who
retire on or after June 1, 1991, under the following conditions, until they
reach age 65. The annuitant must:
(1) Be enrolled in the current retiree health
insurance program sponsored by the city; and
(2) Meet the rule of 80 requirements or have at
least 25 years of creditable service; or
(3) Meet eligibility requirements for a duty
disability retirement prior to May 1, 1996, as defined in section
2-1339.
(k) Health insurance subsidy adjustment. Effective
May 1, 1993, an annual adjustment of the health insurance subsidy shall be paid
to eligible members under the following conditions:
(1) As of fiscal year-end the percentage change in
average health care premiums for the City shall be determined from
the previous fiscal year-end.
(2) If the change in average health care premiums
is an increase, the health insurance subsidy shall be increased to
the nearest full percent and be limited to five percent.
(3) The percentage increase shall be added on the
previous year's health insurance subsidy. The percentage change will
be calculated on the base subsidy as described
in subsection (j) of this section.
(4) The adjustment shall be paid on annuity checks
dated August 1, and the adjusted amount shall remain unchanged until
the next August 1.
(l) Limitations. Benefits with respect to a member
may not exceed the maximum benefits specified under section 415 of the Federal
Internal Revenue Code for governmental plans.
Sec. 2-1334. Termination benefits.
(a) Generally. Upon termination of office for any
lawful reason other than death, a member of the retirement system established
by this division shall be paid all his accumulated contributions with interest,
and upon such payment all benefits and rights of the member and his
beneficiaries shall terminate.
(b) Deferred annuity. Upon termination of office
for any lawful reason other than death, a member who has completed one or more
elective terms as now constituted who does not withdraw the member's
contributions may elect to receive a deferred annuity as provided in section
2-1332. Should the member later choose to withdraw the member's contributions
and interest before annuity payments begin, the member shall forfeit all rights
to any and all benefits. The member may elect to withdraw the member's
contributions within the thirty (30) day period prior to the deferred annuity
effective date, as outlined in Section 2-1332(i).
Sec. 2-1339. Disability retirement Prior to May 1,
1996.
A member who, prior to May 1, 1996, became totally
and permanently disabled, as defined in this section, shall be entitled to
retire on the first day of the month following determination by the board of such
disability, provided that, within at least six (6) months prior to May 1, 1996,
the member receives medical treatment which is, or becomes, supporting evidence
that the member is entitled to disability pension payments.
(1) Amount. Elected officials who are eligible and
totally and permanently disabled, as defined in this section, shall
receive a disability annuity computed as follows:
a. Duty disability: 50 percent of final
average compensation, but in no event
less than the amount the elected official
would be entitled to as an annuity if
he retired on the same date with
equivalent age and creditable service.
b. Nonduty disability: 30 percent of final
average compensation, but in no event
less than the amount the elected official
would be entitled to as an annuity if
the member retired on the same date with
equivalent age and creditable
service.
The annuity shall cease upon the first day of
the month following death, except that
a surviving spouse or heir shall be entitled to
death benefits as computed under
section 2-1333.
(2) Eligibility.
a. Duty disability shall mean total and
permanent disability directly due to and
caused by actual performance of employment
with the city. Elected officials
eligible for retirement as provided in
section 2-1332(a) shall be ineligible for
duty disability retirement.
b. Nonduty disability shall mean total and
permanent disability arising from any
other cause than duty disability. At least
ten years' creditable service is
required. Elected officials eligible for
retirement as provided in section 2-1332(a) shall be ineligible for nonduty
disability retirement.
(3) Definition and determination of disability.
a. Total and permanent disability shall mean
a state or condition which
presumably prevents for the rest of a
member's life his engaging in any
occupation or performing any work for
remuneration or profit.
b. Such disability, whether duty or nonduty,
must not have been contracted,
suffered or incurred while the employee
was engaged in or result from having
been engaged in a criminal act or
enterprise, or result from habitual
drunkenness or addiction to narcotics or
from self-inflicted injury, or from
disability incurred while in the service
of the armed forces of the United
States or any foreign country.
c. No benefit shall be payable if the
disability results from or is incurred while
the member is engaged in self-employment
or in any occupation or
performing any work for remuneration or
profit not in the service of an
employer, as defined in this division.
d. The board of trustees shall make the
determination as to disability, basing its
findings on the evidence presented,
including at least two written opinions by
qualified physicians. The board shall
appoint the physicians and the
examination expenses shall be paid from
this retirement system fund.
e. From time to time, the board of trustees
shall have the right to require proof
of continuing disability, which may
include further examination.
(4) Recovery from disability.
a. Should the board of trustees determine
that disability no longer exists, it shall
terminate the disability annuity.
b. If the member immediately returns to work
with the city, he shall again earn
creditable service beginning on the first
day of the month following such
return. Creditable service prior to
disability retirement shall be reinstated. No
creditable service shall accrue while
receiving a disability annuity and all
such annuity payments made shall be
charged to the extent possible against
the member's accumulated contributions and
interest at date of return to
work.
c. Should the member not return to work with
the city, he shall be treated as a
terminated employee. All annuity received
shall be charged against the
member's accumulated contributions and
interest.
Section B. It is hereby declared to be the
intention of the council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and
phrases of this Code are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence,
paragraph or section of this Code shall be declared unconstitutional by the
valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such
unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses,
sentences, paragraphs and sections of this Code, since the same would have been
enacted by the council without incorporation in this Code of any
unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
_________________________________________
Approved as to form and
legality:
Assistant City Attorney