ORDINANCE NO. 051548

Amending Article IX, Pensions and Other Benefits, of Chapter 2, Administration, of the Code of Ordinances by repealing Section 2-1332, Eligibility; retirement benefits, and enacting in lieu thereof a new section of like number and subject matter.

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:

Section 1. That Article IX, Pensions and Other Benefits of Chapter 2, Administration, Code of Ordinances of the City of Kansas City, Missouri is hereby amended by repealing Section 2-1332, Eligibility; retirement benefits, and enacting in lieu thereof a new section 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 either the expiration of his last term of office or the date of attaining mandatory retirement age if that date occurs during a term of office, whichever occurs later, and payable until the first day of the month following death. Nothing herein shall be construed as preventing or limiting an elected officials ability after serving one elective term to retire prior to the completion of a term of office and receive an annuity computed in accordance with the retirement date selected by the elected official.

(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. For those elected officials whose service terminates on or after November 1, 2000, the annuity shall be 2.22 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 70 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:

(1) Effective date of adjustment and applicability. An annual cost-of-living adjustment shall be payable on pension checks to be dated May 1 of the current year and shall remain unchanged until the next effective date of adjustment. This adjustment shall apply to all beneficiaries receiving benefits, except no pension of any member or beneficiary retiring after January 1 of any year shall be adjusted until May 1 of the succeeding year.

(2) Amount of Adjustment. The adjustment shall be three (3%) percent, each year, non compounded.

(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 1/2 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 to either his retirement date or his attaining mandatory retirement age, whichever occurs first. 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 $200.00 monthly retiree health insurance subsidy shall be payable to all retired members effective November 1, 2000.

(k) 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.

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Approved as to form and legality:

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Galen Beaufort

City Attorney