Title: An act relating to retirement benefits for judges.

Brief Description: Revising retirement benefits for judges.

Sponsors: Senators Fraser and Pridemore; by request of Board For Judicial Administration.

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Judiciary: 1/26/06, 1/31/06 [DP].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Majority Report: Do pass.Signed by Senators Kline, Chair; Weinstein, Vice Chair; Johnson, Ranking Minority Member; Carrell, Esser, Hargrove, McCaslin, Rasmussen and Thibaudeau.

Staff: Aldo Melchiori (786-7439)

Background: Currently, there is a supplemental retirement benefit (SRB) for elected or appointed Supreme Court justices, Court of Appeals judges, and Superior Court judges who are members of the public employees retirement system. This benefit is not available for judges who are members of the teachers' retirement system. Presently, monies in the judicial retirement principal account are exempt from any state, county, municipal, or other local tax and are not subject to execution, garnishment, or any other process of law.

Summary of Bill: The SRB is available to all judges who are not members of the judicial retirement system, without regard to which other retirement system they may belong. The administrator for the courts is specifically authorized to disburse funds from the judicial retirement account pursuant to a domestic relations order for child support, spousal maintenance, or marital property rights. A member's accumulated contributions may also be disbursed if the administrator for the courts finds that they are lawfully demanded under a levy issued by the Internal Revenue Service for an unpaid tax assessment.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: This clarifies that judges who belong to other retirement systems, other than the judicial retirement system, are all eligible for the supplemental retirement benefit. It also allows the administrator to disburse funds pursuant to valid court orders.

Testimony Against: None

Who Testified: PRO: Jeff Hall, Board of Judicial Administration.