BILL REQ. #:  S-1404.2 

READ FIRST TIME 02/11/09.   

     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) "State registered domestic partners" means two adults who meet the requirements for a valid state registered domestic partnership as established by RCW 26.60.030 and who have been issued a certificate of state registered domestic partnership by the secretary of state.

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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner shall continue as long as the spouse or state registered domestic partner lives: PROVIDED, That if a surviving spouse or state registered domestic partner who is receiving benefits under this subsection marries, or enters into a state registered domestic partnership with, another member of this retirement system who subsequently predeceases such spouse or state registered domestic partner, the spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner of a retired member shall have been married to, or in a state registered 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 state registered domestic partnership with, the retired member at least two years prior to the member's death. The allowance paid to the lawful spouse or state registered domestic partner may be divided with an ex spouse or former state registered domestic partner of the member by a dissolution order as defined in RCW 41.50.500(3) incident to a divorce occurring after July 1, 2002, or the termination of a state registered domestic partnership under RCW 26.60.055 occurring after the effective date of this section. The dissolution order or termination order must specifically divide both the member's benefit and any spousal or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner or the spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner or the spouse or state registered 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 state registered domestic partner; or if there be neither such designated person or persons still living at the time of death nor a surviving spouse or state registered 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 state registered domestic partnership, must provide the written consent of his or her spouse or state registered 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 state registered domestic partnership and both the member and member's spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner from a postretirement marriage or state registered domestic partnership as a survivor during a one-year period beginning one year after the date of the postretirement marriage or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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)) an individual other than a spouse or state registered domestic 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 state registered domestic partner be divided into two separate benefits payable over the life of each spouse or state registered domestic partner.
     The member shall have available the benefit options of subsection (1) of this section upon retirement, and if remarried or in a state registered domestic partnership at the time of retirement remains subject to the ((spousal)) spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner if the nonmember ex spouse or former state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner. The continuing allowance to the lawful surviving spouse or state registered domestic partner shall be subject to the yearly increase provided by RCW 43.43.260(5). The allowance to the lawful surviving spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner as if in fact such spouse or state registered domestic partner had been nominated by written designation, or if there be no such surviving spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner as if in fact such spouse or state registered domestic partner had been nominated by written designation, or if there be no such surviving spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered domestic partner, share and share alike, until such child or children reach the age of majority; if there is no surviving spouse or state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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 state registered 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.