Passed by the House April 20, 2009 Yeas 63   ________________________________________ Speaker of the House of Representatives Passed by the Senate April 8, 2009 Yeas 29   ________________________________________ President of the Senate | I, Barbara Baker, Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives of the State of Washington, do hereby certify that the attached is ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1445 as passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate on the dates hereon set forth. ________________________________________ Chief Clerk | |
Approved ________________________________________ Governor of the State of Washington | Secretary of State State of Washington |
State of Washington | 61st Legislature | 2009 Regular Session |
READ FIRST TIME 03/02/09.
AN ACT Relating to domestic partners under the Washington state patrol retirement system; amending RCW 43.43.120, 43.43.260, 43.43.270, 43.43.271, 43.43.278, 43.43.280, 43.43.295, and 41.05.080; and reenacting and amending RCW 43.43.285.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 43.43.120 and 2001 c 329 s 3 are each amended to read
as follows:
As used in ((the following sections)) RCW 43.43.120 through
43.43.320, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the
context:
(1) "Retirement system" means the Washington state patrol
retirement system.
(2) "Retirement fund" means the Washington state patrol retirement
fund.
(3) "State treasurer" means the treasurer of the state of
Washington.
(4) "Member" means any person included in the membership of the
retirement fund.
(5) "Employee" means any commissioned employee of the Washington
state patrol.
(6)(a) "Cadet," for a person who became a member of the retirement
system after June 12, 1980, is a person who has passed the Washington
state patrol's entry-level oral, written, physical performance, and
background examinations and is, thereby, appointed by the chief as a
candidate to be a commissioned officer of the Washington state patrol.
(b) "Cadet," for a person who became a member of the retirement
system before June 12, 1980, is a trooper cadet, patrol cadet, or
employee of like classification, employed for the express purpose of
receiving the on-the-job training required for attendance at the state
patrol academy and for becoming a commissioned trooper. "Like
classification" includes: Radio operators or dispatchers; persons
providing security for the governor or legislature; patrolmen; drivers'
license examiners; weighmasters; vehicle safety inspectors; central
wireless operators; and warehousemen.
(7) "Beneficiary" means any person in receipt of retirement
allowance or any other benefit allowed by this chapter.
(8) "Regular interest" means interest compounded annually at such
rates as may be determined by the director.
(9) "Retirement board" means the board provided for in this
chapter.
(10) "Insurance commissioner" means the insurance commissioner of
the state of Washington.
(11) "Lieutenant governor" means the lieutenant governor of the
state of Washington.
(12) "Service" shall mean services rendered to the state of
Washington or any political subdivisions thereof for which compensation
has been paid. Full time employment for seventy or more hours in any
given calendar month shall constitute one month of service. An
employee who is reinstated in accordance with RCW 43.43.110 shall
suffer no loss of service for the period reinstated subject to the
contribution requirements of this chapter. Only months of service
shall be counted in the computation of any retirement allowance or
other benefit provided for herein. Years of service shall be
determined by dividing the total number of months of service by twelve.
Any fraction of a year of service as so determined shall be taken into
account in the computation of such retirement allowance or benefit.
(13) "Prior service" shall mean all services rendered by a member
to the state of Washington, or any of its political subdivisions prior
to August 1, 1947, unless such service has been credited in another
public retirement or pension system operating in the state of
Washington.
(14) "Current service" shall mean all service as a member rendered
on or after August 1, 1947.
(15)(a) "Average final salary," for members commissioned prior to
January 1, 2003, shall mean the average monthly salary received by a
member during the member's last two years of service or any consecutive
two-year period of service, whichever is the greater, as an employee of
the Washington state patrol; or if the member has less than two years
of service, then the average monthly salary received by the member
during the member's total years of service.
(b) "Average final salary," for members commissioned on or after
January 1, 2003, shall mean the average monthly salary received by a
member for the highest consecutive sixty service credit months; or if
the member has less than sixty months of service, then the average
monthly salary received by the member during the member's total months
of service.
(16) "Actuarial equivalent" shall mean a benefit of equal value
when computed upon the basis of such mortality table as may be adopted
and such interest rate as may be determined by the director.
(17) Unless the context expressly indicates otherwise, words
importing the masculine gender shall be extended to include the
feminine gender and words importing the feminine gender shall be
extended to include the masculine gender.
(18) "Director" means the director of the department of retirement
systems.
(19) "Department" means the department of retirement systems
created in chapter 41.50 RCW.
(20) "State actuary" or "actuary" means the person appointed
pursuant to RCW 44.44.010(2).
(21) "Contributions" means the deduction from the compensation of
each member in accordance with the contribution rates established under
chapter 41.45 RCW.
(22) "Annual increase" means as of July 1, 1999, seventy-seven
cents per month per year of service which amount shall be increased
each subsequent July 1st by three percent, rounded to the nearest cent.
(23)(a) "Salary," for members commissioned prior to July 1, 2001,
shall exclude any overtime earnings related to RCW 47.46.040, or any
voluntary overtime, earned on or after July 1, 2001.
(b) "Salary," for members commissioned on or after July 1, 2001,
shall exclude any overtime earnings related to RCW 47.46.040 or any
voluntary overtime, lump sum payments for deferred annual sick leave,
unused accumulated vacation, unused accumulated annual leave, holiday
pay, or any form of severance pay.
(24) "Plan 2" means the Washington state patrol retirement system
plan 2, providing the benefits and funding provisions covering
commissioned employees who first become members of the system on or
after January 1, 2003.
(25) "Domestic partners" means two adults who have registered as
domestic partners under RCW 26.60.020.
Sec. 2 RCW 43.43.260 and 2005 c 64 s 10 are each amended to read
as follows:
Upon retirement from service as provided in RCW 43.43.250, a member
shall be granted a retirement allowance which shall consist of:
(1) A prior service allowance which shall be equal to two percent
of the member's average final salary multiplied by the number of years
of prior service rendered by the member.
(2) A current service allowance which shall be equal to two percent
of the member's average final salary multiplied by the number of years
of service rendered while a member of the retirement system.
(3)(a) Any member commissioned prior to January 1, 2003, with
twenty-five years service in the Washington state patrol may have the
member's service in the uniformed services credited as a member whether
or not the individual left the employ of the Washington state patrol to
enter such uniformed services: PROVIDED, That in no instance shall
military service in excess of five years be credited: AND PROVIDED
FURTHER, That in each instance, a member must restore all withdrawn
accumulated contributions, which restoration must be completed on the
date of the member's retirement, or as provided under RCW 43.43.130,
whichever occurs first: AND PROVIDED FURTHER, That this section shall
not apply to any individual, not a veteran within the meaning of RCW
41.06.150.
(b) A member who leaves the Washington state patrol to enter the
uniformed services of the United States shall be entitled to retirement
system service credit for up to five years of military service. This
subsection shall be administered in a manner consistent with the
requirements of the federal uniformed services employment and
reemployment rights act.
(i) The member qualifies for service credit under this subsection
if:
(A) Within ninety days of the member's honorable discharge from the
uniformed services of the United States, the member applies for
reemployment with the employer who employed the member immediately
prior to the member entering the uniformed services; and
(B) The member makes the employee contributions required under RCW
41.45.0631 and 41.45.067 within five years of resumption of service or
prior to retirement, whichever comes sooner; or
(C) Prior to retirement and not within ninety days of the member's
honorable discharge or five years of resumption of service the member
pays the amount required under RCW 41.50.165(2).
(ii) Upon receipt of member contributions under (b)(i)(B),
(b)(iv)(C), and (b)(v)(C) of this subsection, the department shall
establish the member's service credit and shall bill the employer for
its contribution required under RCW 41.45.060 for the period of
military service, plus interest as determined by the department.
(iii) The contributions required under (b)(i)(B), (b)(iv)(C), and
(b)(v)(C) of this subsection shall be based on the compensation the
member would have earned if not on leave, or if that cannot be
estimated with reasonable certainty, the compensation reported for the
member in the year prior to when the member went on military leave.
(iv) The surviving spouse or lawful domestic partner or eligible
child or children of a member who left the employ of an employer to
enter the uniformed services of the United States and died while
serving in the uniformed services may, on behalf of the deceased
member, apply for retirement system service credit under this
subsection up to the date of the member's death in the uniformed
services. The department shall establish the deceased member's service
credit if the surviving spouse or lawful domestic partner or eligible
child or children:
(A) Provides to the director proof of the member's death while
serving in the uniformed services;
(B) Provides to the director proof of the member's honorable
service in the uniformed services prior to the date of death; and
(C) If the member was commissioned on or after January 1, 2003,
pays the employee contributions required under chapter 41.45 RCW within
five years of the date of death or prior to the distribution of any
benefit, whichever comes first.
(v) A member who leaves the employ of an employer to enter the
uniformed services of the United States and becomes totally
incapacitated for continued employment by an employer while serving in
the uniformed services is entitled to retirement system service credit
under this subsection up to the date of discharge from the uniformed
services if:
(A) The member obtains a determination from the director that he or
she is totally incapacitated for continued employment due to conditions
or events that occurred while serving in the uniformed services;
(B) The member provides to the director proof of honorable
discharge from the uniformed services; and
(C) If the member was commissioned on or after January 1, 2003, the
member pays the employee contributions required under chapter 41.45 RCW
within five years of the director's determination of total disability
or prior to the distribution of any benefit, whichever comes first.
(4) In no event shall the total retirement benefits from
subsections (1), (2), and (3) of this section, of any member exceed
seventy-five percent of the member's average final salary.
(5) Beginning July 1, 2001, and every year thereafter, the
department shall determine the following information for each retired
member or beneficiary whose retirement allowance has been in effect for
at least one year:
(a) The original dollar amount of the retirement allowance;
(b) The index for the calendar year prior to the effective date of
the retirement allowance, to be known as "index A";
(c) The index for the calendar year prior to the date of
determination, to be known as "index B"; and
(d) The ratio obtained when index B is divided by index A.
The value of the ratio obtained shall be the annual adjustment to
the original retirement allowance and shall be applied beginning with
the July payment. In no event, however, shall the annual adjustment:
(i) Produce a retirement allowance which is lower than the original
retirement allowance;
(ii) Exceed three percent in the initial annual adjustment; or
(iii) Differ from the previous year's annual adjustment by more
than three percent.
For the purposes of this section, "index" means, for any calendar
year, that year's average consumer price index for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton Washington area for urban wage earners and clerical workers,
all items, compiled by the bureau of labor statistics, United States
department of labor.
The provisions of this section shall apply to all members presently
retired and to all members who shall retire in the future.
Sec. 3 RCW 43.43.270 and 2006 c 94 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
For members commissioned prior to January 1, 2003:
(1) The normal form of retirement allowance shall be an allowance
which shall continue as long as the member lives.
(2) If a member should die while in service the member's lawful
spouse or lawful domestic partner shall be paid an allowance which
shall be equal to fifty percent of the average final salary of the
member. If the member should die after retirement the member's lawful
spouse or lawful domestic partner shall be paid an allowance which
shall be equal to the retirement allowance then payable to the member
or fifty percent of the final average salary used in computing the
member's retirement allowance, whichever is less. The allowance paid
to the lawful spouse or lawful domestic partner shall continue as long
as the spouse or domestic partner lives: PROVIDED, That if a surviving
spouse or domestic partner who is receiving benefits under this
subsection marries, or enters into a domestic partnership with, another
member of this retirement system who subsequently predeceases such
spouse or domestic partner, the spouse or domestic partner shall then
be entitled to receive the higher of the two survivors' allowances for
which eligibility requirements were met, but a surviving spouse or
domestic partner shall not receive more than one survivor's allowance
from this system at the same time under this subsection. To be
eligible for an allowance the lawful surviving spouse or lawful
domestic partner of a retired member shall have been married to, or in
a domestic partnership with, the member prior to the member's
retirement and continuously thereafter until the date of the member's
death or shall have been married to, or in a domestic partnership with,
the retired member at least two years prior to the member's death. The
allowance paid to the lawful spouse or lawful domestic partner may be
divided with an ex spouse or ex domestic partner of the member by a
dissolution order as defined in RCW 41.50.500(3) incident to a
((divorce)) dissolution occurring after July 1, 2002. The dissolution
order must specifically divide both the member's benefit and any
spousal or domestic partner survivor benefit, and must fully comply
with RCW 41.50.670 and 41.50.700.
(3) If a member should die, either while in service or after
retirement, the member's surviving unmarried children under the age of
eighteen years shall be provided for in the following manner:
(a) If there is a surviving spouse or domestic partner, each child
shall be entitled to a benefit equal to five percent of the final
average salary of the member or retired member. The combined benefits
to the surviving spouse or domestic partner and all children shall not
exceed sixty percent of the final average salary of the member or
retired member; and
(b) If there is no surviving spouse or domestic partner or the
spouse or domestic partner should die, the child or children shall be
entitled to a benefit equal to thirty percent of the final average
salary of the member or retired member for one child and an additional
ten percent for each additional child. The combined benefits to the
children under this subsection shall not exceed sixty percent of the
final average salary of the member or retired member. Payments under
this subsection shall be prorated equally among the children, if more
than one.
(4) If a member should die in the line of duty while employed by
the Washington state patrol, the member's surviving children under the
age of twenty years and eleven months if attending any high school,
college, university, or vocational or other educational institution
accredited or approved by the state of Washington shall be provided for
in the following manner:
(a) If there is a surviving spouse or domestic partner, each child
shall be entitled to a benefit equal to five percent of the final
average salary of the member. The combined benefits to the surviving
spouse or domestic partner and all children shall not exceed sixty
percent of the final average salary of the member;
(b) If there is no surviving spouse or domestic partner or the
spouse or domestic partner should die, the unmarried child or children
shall be entitled to receive a benefit equal to thirty percent of the
final average salary of the member or retired member for one child and
an additional ten percent for each additional child. The combined
benefits to the children under this subsection shall not exceed sixty
percent of the final average salary. Payments under this subsection
shall be prorated equally among the children, if more than one; and
(c) If a beneficiary under this subsection reaches the age of
twenty-one years during the middle of a term of enrollment the benefit
shall continue until the end of that term.
(5)(a) The provisions of this section shall apply to members who
have been retired on disability as provided in RCW 43.43.040 if the
officer was a member of the Washington state patrol retirement system
at the time of such disability retirement.
(b) For the purposes of this subsection, average final salary as
used in subsection (2) of this section means:
(i) For members commissioned prior to January 1, 2003, the average
monthly salary received by active members of the patrol of the rank at
which the member became disabled, during the two years prior to the
death of the disabled member; and
(ii) For members commissioned on or after January 1, 2003, the
average monthly salary received by active members of the patrol of the
rank at which the member became disabled, during the five years prior
to the death of the disabled member.
(c) The changes to the definitions of average final salary for the
survivors of disabled members in this subsection shall apply
retroactively. The department shall correct future payments to
eligible survivors of members disabled prior to June 7, 2006, and, as
soon as administratively practicable, pay each survivor a lump sum
payment reflecting the difference, as determined by the director,
between the survivor benefits previously received by the member, and
those the member would have received under the definitions of average
final salary created in chapter 94, Laws of 2006.
Sec. 4 RCW 43.43.271 and 2003 c 294 s 14 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) A member commissioned on or after January 1, 2003, upon
retirement for service as prescribed in RCW 43.43.250 shall elect to
have the retirement allowance paid pursuant to the following options,
calculated so as to be actuarially equivalent to each other.
(a) Standard allowance. A member electing this option shall
receive a retirement allowance payable throughout the member's life.
However, if the retiree dies before the total of the retirement
allowance paid to the retiree equals the amount of the retiree's
accumulated contributions at the time of retirement, then the balance
shall be paid to the member's estate, or such person or persons, trust,
or organization as the retiree shall have nominated by written
designation duly executed and filed with the department; or if there be
no such designated person or persons still living at the time of the
retiree's death, then to the surviving spouse or domestic partner; or
if there be neither such designated person or persons still living at
the time of death nor a surviving spouse or domestic partner, then to
the retiree's legal representative.
(b) The department shall adopt rules that allow a member to select
a retirement option that pays the member a reduced retirement allowance
and upon death, such portion of the member's reduced retirement
allowance as the department by rule designates shall be continued
throughout the life of and paid to a designated person. Such person
shall be nominated by the member by written designation duly executed
and filed with the department at the time of retirement. The options
adopted by the department shall include, but are not limited to, a
joint and one hundred percent survivor option and a joint and fifty
percent survivor option.
(2)(a) A member, if married or in a domestic partnership, must
provide the written consent of his or her spouse or domestic partner to
the option selected under this section, except as provided in (b) of
this subsection. If a member is married or in a domestic partnership
and both the member and member's spouse or domestic partner do not give
written consent to an option under this section, the department will
pay the member a joint and fifty percent survivor benefit and record
the member's spouse or domestic partner as the beneficiary. This
benefit shall be calculated to be actuarially equivalent to the benefit
options available under subsection (1) of this section unless
((spousal)) consent by the spouse or domestic partner is not required
as provided in (b) of this subsection.
(b) If a copy of a dissolution order designating a survivor
beneficiary under RCW 41.50.790 has been filed with the department at
least thirty days prior to a member's retirement:
(i) The department shall honor the designation as if made by the
member under subsection (1) of this section; and
(ii) The ((spousal)) spouse or domestic partner consent provisions
of (a) of this subsection do not apply.
(3) No later than January 1, 2003, the department shall adopt rules
that allow a member additional actuarially equivalent survivor benefit
options, and shall include, but are not limited to:
(a)(i) A retired member who retired without designating a survivor
beneficiary shall have the opportunity to designate their spouse or
domestic partner from a postretirement marriage or domestic partnership
as a survivor during a one-year period beginning one year after the
date of the postretirement marriage or domestic partnership provided
the retirement allowance payable to the retiree is not subject to
periodic payments pursuant to a property division obligation as
provided for in RCW 41.50.670.
(ii) A member who entered into a postretirement marriage or
domestic partnership prior to the effective date of the rules adopted
pursuant to this subsection and satisfies the conditions of (a)(i) of
this subsection shall have one year to designate their spouse or
domestic partner as a survivor beneficiary following the adoption of
the rules.
(b) A retired member who elected to receive a reduced retirement
allowance under this section and designated a nonspouse or a
nondomestic partner as survivor beneficiary shall have the opportunity
to remove the survivor designation and have their future benefit
adjusted.
(c) The department may make an additional charge, if necessary, to
ensure that the benefits provided under this subsection remain
actuarially equivalent.
(4) No later than July 1, 2003, the department shall adopt rules to
permit:
(a) A court-approved property settlement incident to a court decree
of dissolution made before retirement to provide that benefits payable
to a member who has completed at least five years of service and the
member's divorcing spouse or former domestic partner be divided into
two separate benefits payable over the life of each spouse or domestic
partner.
The member shall have available the benefit options of subsection
(1) of this section upon retirement, and if remarried or in a domestic
partnership at the time of retirement remains subject to the
((spousal)) spouse or domestic partner consent requirements of
subsection (2) of this section. Any reductions of the member's benefit
subsequent to the division into two separate benefits shall be made
solely to the separate benefit of the member.
The nonmember ex spouse or former domestic partner shall be
eligible to commence receiving their separate benefit upon reaching the
ages provided in RCW 43.43.250(2) and after filing a written
application with the department.
(b) A court-approved property settlement incident to a court decree
of dissolution made after retirement may only divide the benefit into
two separate benefits payable over the life of each spouse or domestic
partner if the nonmember ex spouse or former domestic partner was
selected as a survivor beneficiary at retirement.
The retired member may later choose the survivor benefit options
available in subsection (3) of this section. Any actuarial reductions
subsequent to the division into two separate benefits shall be made
solely to the separate benefit of the member.
Both the retired member and the nonmember divorced spouse or former
domestic partner shall be eligible to commence receiving their separate
benefits upon filing a copy of the dissolution order with the
department in accordance with RCW 41.50.670.
(c) The department may make an additional charge or adjustment if
necessary to ensure that the separate benefits provided under this
subsection are actuarially equivalent to the benefits payable prior to
the decree of dissolution.
Sec. 5 RCW 43.43.278 and 2001 c 329 s 9 are each amended to read
as follows:
By July 1, 2000, the department of retirement systems shall adopt
rules that allow a member to select an actuarially equivalent
retirement option that pays the member a reduced retirement allowance
and upon death shall be continued throughout the life of a lawful
surviving spouse or lawful domestic partner. The continuing allowance
to the lawful surviving spouse or lawful domestic partner shall be
subject to the yearly increase provided by RCW 43.43.260(5). The
allowance to the lawful surviving spouse or lawful domestic partner
under this section, and the allowance for an eligible child or children
under RCW 43.43.270, shall not be subject to the limit for combined
benefits under RCW 43.43.270.
Sec. 6 RCW 43.43.280 and 1994 c 197 s 35 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) If a member dies before retirement, and has no surviving spouse
or domestic partner or children under the age of eighteen years, all
contributions made by the member, including any amount paid under RCW
41.50.165(2), with interest as determined by the director, less any
amount identified as owing to an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated
contributions pursuant to a court order filed under RCW 41.50.670,
shall be paid to such person or persons as the member shall have
nominated by written designation duly executed and filed with the
department, or if there be no such designated person or persons, then
to the member's legal representative.
(2) If a member should cease to be an employee before attaining age
sixty for reasons other than the member's death, or retirement, the
individual shall thereupon cease to be a member except as provided
under RCW 43.43.130 (2) ((and)), (3), and (4) and, the individual may
withdraw the member's contributions to the retirement fund, including
any amount paid under RCW 41.50.165(2), with interest as determined by
the director, by making application therefor to the department, except
that: A member who ceases to be an employee after having completed at
least five years of service shall remain a member during the period of
the member's absence from employment for the exclusive purpose only of
receiving a retirement allowance to begin at attainment of age sixty,
however such a member may upon written notice to the department elect
to receive a reduced retirement allowance on or after age fifty-five
which allowance shall be the actuarial equivalent of the sum necessary
to pay regular retirement benefits as of age sixty: PROVIDED, That if
such member should withdraw all or part of the member's accumulated
contributions, the individual shall thereupon cease to be a member and
this subsection shall not apply.
Sec. 7 RCW 43.43.285 and 2007 c 488 s 1 and 2007 c 487 s 9 are
each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
(1) A one hundred fifty thousand dollar death benefit shall be paid
to the member's estate, or such person or persons, trust or
organization as the member shall have nominated by written designation
duly executed and filed with the department. If there be no such
designated person or persons still living at the time of the member's
death, such member's death benefit shall be paid to the member's
surviving spouse or domestic partner as if in fact such spouse or
domestic partner had been nominated by written designation, or if there
be no such surviving spouse or domestic partner, then to such member's
legal representatives.
(2)(a) The benefit under this section shall be paid only where
death occurs as a result of (i) injuries sustained in the course of
employment; or (ii) an occupational disease or infection that arises
naturally and proximately out of employment covered under this chapter.
The determination of eligibility for the benefit shall be made
consistent with Title 51 RCW by the department of labor and industries.
The department of labor and industries shall notify the department of
retirement systems by order under RCW 51.52.050.
(b) The retirement allowance paid to the spouse or domestic partner
and dependent children of a member who is killed in the course of
employment, as set forth in RCW 41.05.011(14), shall include
reimbursement for any payments of premium rates to the Washington state
health care authority under RCW 41.05.080.
Sec. 8 RCW 43.43.295 and 2004 c 171 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) For members commissioned on or after January 1, 2003, except as
provided in RCW 11.07.010, if a member or a vested member who has not
completed at least ten years of service dies, the amount of the
accumulated contributions standing to such member's credit in the
retirement system at the time of such member's death, less any amount
identified as owing to an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated
contributions pursuant to a court order filed under RCW 41.50.670,
shall be paid to the member's estate, or such person or persons, trust,
or organization as the member shall have nominated by written
designation duly executed and filed with the department. If there be
no such designated person or persons still living at the time of the
member's death, such member's accumulated contributions standing to
such member's credit in the retirement system, less any amount
identified as owing to an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated
contributions pursuant to a court order filed under RCW 41.50.670,
shall be paid to the member's surviving spouse or domestic partner as
if in fact such spouse or domestic partner had been nominated by
written designation, or if there be no such surviving spouse or
domestic partner, then to such member's legal representatives.
(2) If a member who is eligible for retirement or a member who has
completed at least ten years of service dies, the surviving spouse or
domestic partner or eligible child or children shall elect to receive
either:
(a) A retirement allowance computed as provided for in RCW
43.43.260, actuarially reduced, except under subsection (4) of this
section, by the amount of any lump sum benefit identified as owing to
an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated contributions pursuant to a
court order filed under RCW 41.50.670 and actuarially adjusted to
reflect a joint and one hundred percent survivor option under RCW
43.43.278 and if the member was not eligible for normal retirement at
the date of death a further reduction from age fifty-five or when the
member could have attained twenty-five years of service, whichever is
less; if a surviving spouse or domestic partner who is receiving a
retirement allowance dies leaving a child or children of the member
under the age of majority, then such child or children shall continue
to receive an allowance in an amount equal to that which was being
received by the surviving spouse or domestic partner, share and share
alike, until such child or children reach the age of majority; if there
is no surviving spouse or domestic partner eligible to receive an
allowance at the time of the member's death, such member's child or
children under the age of majority shall receive an allowance share and
share alike calculated under this section making the assumption that
the ages of the spouse or domestic partner and member were equal at the
time of the member's death; or
(b)(i) The member's accumulated contributions, less any amount
identified as owing to an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated
contributions pursuant to a court order filed under RCW 41.50.670; or
(ii) If the member dies, one hundred fifty percent of the member's
accumulated contributions, less any amount identified as owing to an
obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated contributions pursuant to a
court order filed under RCW 41.50.670. Any accumulated contributions
attributable to restorations made under RCW 41.50.165(2) shall be
refunded at one hundred percent.
(3) If a member who is eligible for retirement or a member who has
completed at least ten years of service dies, and is not survived by a
spouse or domestic partner or an eligible child, then the accumulated
contributions standing to the member's credit, less any amount
identified as owing to an obligee upon withdrawal of accumulated
contributions pursuant to a court order filed under RCW 41.50.670,
shall be paid:
(a) To an estate, a person or persons, trust, or organization as
the member shall have nominated by written designation duly executed
and filed with the department; or
(b) If there is no such designated person or persons still living
at the time of the member's death, then to the member's legal
representatives.
(4) The retirement allowance of a member who is killed in the
course of employment, as determined by the director of the department
of labor and industries, is not subject to an actuarial reduction.
Sec. 9 RCW 41.05.080 and 2007 c 114 s 6 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) Under the qualifications, terms, conditions, and benefits set
by the board:
(a) Retired or disabled state employees, retired or disabled school
employees, retired or disabled employees of county, municipal, or other
political subdivisions, or retired or disabled employees of tribal
governments covered by this chapter may continue their participation in
insurance plans and contracts after retirement or disablement;
(b) Separated employees may continue their participation in
insurance plans and contracts if participation is selected immediately
upon separation from employment;
(c) Surviving spouses, surviving spouses or surviving domestic
partners in the case of members of the Washington state patrol
retirement system, and dependent children of emergency service
personnel killed in the line of duty may participate in insurance plans
and contracts.
(2) Rates charged surviving spouses, or surviving spouses or
surviving domestic partners in the case of members of the Washington
state patrol retirement system, of emergency service personnel killed
in the line of duty, retired or disabled employees, separated
employees, spouses, or dependent children who are not eligible for
parts A and B of medicare shall be based on the experience of the
community rated risk pool established under RCW 41.05.022.
(3) Rates charged to surviving spouses, or surviving spouses or
surviving domestic partners in the case of members of the Washington
state patrol retirement system, of emergency service personnel killed
in the line of duty, retired or disabled employees, separated
employees, spouses, or children who are eligible for parts A and B of
medicare shall be calculated from a separate experience risk pool
comprised only of individuals eligible for parts A and B of medicare;
however, the premiums charged to medicare-eligible retirees and
disabled employees shall be reduced by the amount of the subsidy
provided under RCW 41.05.085.
(4) Surviving spouses, surviving spouses or surviving domestic
partners in the case of members of the Washington state patrol
retirement system, and dependent children of emergency service
personnel killed in the line of duty and retired or disabled and
separated employees shall be responsible for payment of premium rates
developed by the authority which shall include the cost to the
authority of providing insurance coverage including any amounts
necessary for reserves and administration in accordance with this
chapter. These self pay rates will be established based on a separate
rate for the employee, the spouse, the spouse or domestic partner in
the case of members of the Washington state patrol retirement system,
and the children.
(5) The term "retired state employees" for the purpose of this
section shall include but not be limited to members of the legislature
whether voluntarily or involuntarily leaving state office.