0001| HOUSE BILL 341 | 0002| 43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998 | 0003| INTRODUCED BY | 0004| BOBBIE K. MALLORY | 0005| | 0006| | 0007| | 0008| | 0009| | 0010| AN ACT | 0011| RELATING TO VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS RETIREMENT; PROVIDING THAT | 0012| RETIREES FROM ANOTHER STATE PROGRAM MAY ALSO BE MEMBERS UNDER | 0013| THE VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS RETIREMENT ACT; PROVIDING THAT | 0014| MEMBERS UNDER THE EDUCATIONAL RETIREMENT ACT MAY ALSO BE | 0015| MEMBERS UNDER THE VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS RETIREMENT ACT; | 0016| MAKING AN APPROPRIATION. | 0017| | 0018| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0019| Section 1. Section 10-11A-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1983, | 0020| Chapter 263, Section 2) is amended to read: | 0021| "10-11A-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Volunteer | 0022| Firefighters Retirement Act: | 0023| A. "association" means the public employees | 0024| retirement association; | 0025| B. "board" means the retirement board of the | - 1 - 0001| public employees retirement association; | 0002| C. "fire department" means any volunteer fire | 0003| department certified by the state fire marshal's office; | 0004| D. "fund" means the volunteer firefighters | 0005| retirement fund; and | 0006| E. "member" means any volunteer nonsalaried | 0007| firefighter who is listed as an active member on the rolls of | 0008| a fire department and whose first year of service credit was | 0009| accumulated during or after the year he attained the age of | 0010| sixteen and no later than during the year in which he attained | 0011| the age of forty-five. ~[Excluded from membership is any | 0012| volunteer nonsalaried firefighter who has been retired by or | 0013| is receiving an annuity from any other retirement, pension or | 0014| annuity plan created and established by the state or any of | 0015| its political subdivisions, except the state police pension | 0016| fund established under the provisions of Sections 29-4-1 | 0017| through 29-4-11 NMSA 1978.]~" | 0018| Section 2. Section 10-11A-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1983, | 0019| Chapter 263, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read: | 0020| "10-11A-3. VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS RETIREMENT FUND-- | 0021| CREATION--TRANSFER OF FUNDS FROM THE FIRE PROTECTION FUND.-- | 0022| A. There is created the "volunteer firefighters | 0023| retirement fund" in the state treasury. All annuities and | 0024| benefits in lieu of annuities shall be paid from the fund as | 0025| provided in the Volunteer Firefighters Retirement Act. | - 2 - 0001| B. ~[Beginning]~ In fiscal year 1998, the state | 0002| treasurer shall transfer ~[annually]~ on or before the last | 0003| day of July seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000) | 0004| plus an additional two hundred fifty thousand dollars | 0005| ($250,000) for fiscal year 1998 plus an additional two hundred | 0006| fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) for fiscal year 1999 ~[plus | 0007| an additional five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for | 0008| fiscal year 2000]~ from the fire protection fund to the credit | 0009| of the volunteer firefighters retirement fund. | 0010| |C. In July of fiscal year 2000 and in July of | 0011| each year thereafter, the executive director of the | 0012| association shall calculate the amount necessary to amortize | 0013| the unfunded actuarial accrued liability of the firefighters | 0014| retirement fund. Upon certification by the executive director | 0015| to the state treasurer, the state treasurer shall transfer the | 0016| amount from the fire protection fund to the firefighter | 0017| retirement fund. Amounts to be transferred pursuant to this | 0018| subsection are appropriated.|" | 0019| Section 3. Section 10-13A-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1992, | 0020| Chapter 116, Section 16, as amended) is amended to read: | 0021| "10-13A-4. NORMAL RETIREMENT--PENSION BENEFIT.--If a | 0022| member has one month or more of eligible reciprocal service | 0023| credit under each of two or more state systems, the following | 0024| provisions shall apply, together with the applicable | 0025| provisions of the Public Employees Retirement Reciprocity Act, | - 3 - 0001| the Educational Retirement Act, the Public Employees | 0002| Retirement Act, the Judicial Retirement Act, the Magistrate | 0003| Retirement Act and the rules and regulations for those acts | 0004| promulgated by the board: | 0005| A. a member's total eligible reciprocal service | 0006| credit under all state systems shall be used in satisfying the | 0007| service credit requirements for normal retirement under the | 0008| state system from which the member retires; | 0009| B. when a member with eligible reciprocal service | 0010| credit retires, the member shall receive a pension that is | 0011| equal to the sum of the pensions attributable to the service | 0012| credit the member has accrued under each state system, subject | 0013| to the following restrictions: | 0014| (1) the salary used in calculating each | 0015| component of the pension shall be the salary, average annual | 0016| salary or final average salary, as those terms are defined | 0017| under the applicable act, earned while the member was covered | 0018| under the state system calculating that component as follows: | 0019| (a) the member's entire salary history | 0020| under the public employees retirement system and the | 0021| educational retirement system shall be used to determine the | 0022| final average salary and annual average salary under each | 0023| state system if the member has eligible reciprocal service | 0024| credit under both state systems; | 0025| (b) the member's entire salary history | - 4 - 0001| under the educational retirement system and the judicial | 0002| retirement system or the magistrate retirement system, or | 0003| both, shall be used to determine the average annual salary | 0004| under the Educational Retirement Act if the member has | 0005| eligible reciprocal service credit under those state systems, | 0006| but has less than five years of service credit under the | 0007| educational retirement system; | 0008| (c) the member's salary history under | 0009| the educational retirement system shall be used to determine | 0010| the average annual salary under that system if the member has | 0011| eligible reciprocal service credit under the Educational | 0012| Retirement Act and the Judicial Retirement Act or the | 0013| Magistrate Retirement Act, or both, and has five or more years | 0014| of service credit under the educational retirement system; or | 0015| (d) if a member has less than twelve | 0016| months of credited service under the judicial retirement | 0017| system or the magistrate retirement system, the final year's | 0018| salary shall be the aggregate amount of salary paid to the | 0019| member for the period of credited service divided by the | 0020| member's credited service times twelve; | 0021| (2) the member shall meet the age and service | 0022| credit requirements for retirement under each applicable state | 0023| system before the component of the pension attributable to | 0024| service credit accrued under that state system may be paid; | 0025| provided the member's total eligible reciprocal service credit | - 5 - 0001| under all state systems shall be used in satisfying the | 0002| service credit requirement for normal retirement under each | 0003| state system; | 0004| (3) the member shall terminate employment | 0005| under all state systems before the member may receive a | 0006| pension from any state system; and | 0007| (4) the member shall file an application for | 0008| retirement under the state system under which the member was | 0009| last employed, in accordance with the requirements of that | 0010| state system; | 0011| C. subject to the restrictions contained in this | 0012| section, the component of the pension attributable to each | 0013| state system shall be calculated based upon: | 0014| (1) the member's eligible reciprocal service | 0015| credit acquired as a member of that state system; and | 0016| (2) the pension calculation formula | 0017| applicable to the member under that state system; | 0018| D. the following limitations shall apply to | 0019| pensions calculated under the Public Employees Retirement | 0020| Reciprocity Act: | 0021| (1) in no case shall the total amount of the | 0022| pension, calculated under the Public Employees Retirement | 0023| Reciprocity Act and received by a member attributable to all | 0024| state systems exceed the amount allowable under Section 415 of | 0025| the Internal Revenue Code; and | - 6 - 0001| (2) where the member has less than five years | 0002| of service credit in one state system, the pension from that | 0003| state system shall not exceed six hundred twenty-five one | 0004| thousandths percent per month of service under that state | 0005| system multiplied by the following amount applicable under | 0006| that state system: | 0007| (a) one-twelfth of the member's | 0008| magistrate salary received during the last year in office; | 0009| (b) one-twelfth of the member's | 0010| judicial salary received during the last year in office; or | 0011| (c) the member's final average salary | 0012| as defined pursuant to the Public Employees Retirement Act; | 0013| E. the state system from which a member with | 0014| eligible reciprocal service credit retires shall be the payor | 0015| fund for the pension; provided that: | 0016| (1) each state system shall reimburse the | 0017| payor fund the amount of the component of the pension | 0018| attributable to service credit accrued under that state | 0019| system; and | 0020| (2) reimbursements shall be made in the | 0021| manner and frequency determined by the boards; | 0022| F. in no case shall any member retire from more | 0023| than one state system; |provided that, for purposes of this | 0024| subsection, "state system" does not include the system | 0025| established for volunteer firefighters pursuant to the | - 7 - 0001| Volunteer Firefighters Retirement Act|; and | 0002| G. if a member retires from any state system with | 0003| eligible reciprocal service credit and is subsequently | 0004| employed by any employer covered by a state system, the | 0005| retired member's eligibility to continue to receive pension | 0006| payments shall be governed by the retirement act governing the | 0007| state system from which the member retired. Subsequent | 0008| membership in the retirement program under which the | 0009| subsequent employee is covered shall be governed by that | 0010| retirement act." | 0011| Section 4. Section 22-11-16 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, | 0012| Chapter 16, Section 140) is amended to read: | 0013| "22-11-16. REGULAR MEMBERSHIP.--Except as otherwise | 0014| provided in the Educational Retirement Act, being a regular | 0015| member shall be a condition of employment and shall exclude | 0016| membership and participation in any other state retirement | 0017| program |except the program established for volunteer | 0018| firefighters pursuant to the Volunteer Firefighters Retirement | 0019| Act|." | 0020|  |