BILL REQ. #:  Z-0835.7 

Read first time 01/12/2006.   Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

     AN ACT Relating to general provisions in the public safety employees' retirement system; amending RCW 41.37.005, 41.37.010, 41.04.270, 41.04.278, and 41.04.393; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 41.37.005 and 2004 c 242 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     It is the intent of the legislature to establish a separate public safety employees' retirement system for ((those)) certain public employees whose jobs contain a high degree of physical risk to their own personal safety and who ((engage in duties contained in this section. The duties involved in these jobs include providing)) provide public protection of lives and property, ((the authority and power to arrest, conducting criminal investigations, enforcing the criminal laws of the state of Washington, and the authority to carry a firearm as part of the job. Qualifications and training for these jobs include passage of a civil service examination and completion of the Washington criminal justice training commission basic training course or equivalent. Only those job classes specifically included in RCW 41.37.010(5) by the legislature are public safety employees, and only for service earned after the effective date of the inclusion of that job class in RCW 41.37.010(5))) but who are not eligible for membership in the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system.

Sec. 2   RCW 41.37.010 and 2005 c 327 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Retirement system" means the Washington public safety employees' retirement system provided for in this chapter.
     (2) "Department" means the department of retirement systems created in chapter 41.50 RCW.
     (3) "State treasurer" means the treasurer of the state of Washington.
     (4) "Employer" means the Washington state department of natural resources, the Washington state department of social and health services, the Washington state department of corrections, the Washington state parks and recreation commission, the Washington state gambling commission, the Washington state patrol, and the Washington state liquor control board((,)); any county corrections department((s,)); any city corrections department((s)) not covered under chapter 41.28 RCW((,)); or other employers employing statewide elective officials.
     (5) "Member" means any employee employed by an employer on a full-time((, fully compensated)) basis ((within the following job classes in effect as of January 1, 2004: City corrections officers, jailers, police support officers, custody officers, and bailiffs; county corrections officers, jailers, custody officers, and sheriffs corrections officers; county probation officers and probation counselors; state correctional officers, correctional sergeants, and community corrections officers; liquor enforcement officers; park rangers; commercial vehicle enforcement officers; and gambling special agents)):
     (a) Who is in a position that requires completion of a certified criminal justice training course and is authorized by their employer to arrest, conduct criminal investigations, enforce the criminal laws of the state of Washington, and carry a firearm as part of the job;
     (b) Whose primary responsibility is to ensure the custody and security of incarcerated individuals as a corrections officer or jailer;
     (c) Who is a limited authority Washington peace officer, as defined in RCW 10.93.020, for an employer; or
     (d) Whose primary responsibility is to supervise members eligible under this subsection.
     (6)(a) "Compensation earnable" for members, means salaries or wages earned by a member during a payroll period for personal services, including overtime payments, and shall include wages and salaries deferred under provisions established pursuant to sections 403(b), 414(h), and 457 of the United States internal revenue code, but shall exclude nonmoney maintenance compensation and lump sum or other payments for deferred annual sick leave, unused accumulated vacation, unused accumulated annual leave, or any form of severance pay.
     (b) "Compensation earnable" for members also includes the following actual or imputed payments, which are not paid for personal services:
     (i) Retroactive payments to an individual by an employer on reinstatement of the employee in a position, or payments by an employer to an individual in lieu of reinstatement, which are awarded or granted as the equivalent of the salary or wage which the individual would have earned during a payroll period shall be considered compensation earnable to the extent provided in this subsection, and the individual shall receive the equivalent service credit;
     (ii) In any year in which a member serves in the legislature, the member shall have the option of having such member's compensation earnable be the greater of:
     (A) The compensation earnable the member would have received had such member not served in the legislature; or
     (B) Such member's actual compensation earnable received for nonlegislative public employment and legislative service combined. Any additional contributions to the retirement system required because compensation earnable under (b)(ii)(A) of this subsection is greater than compensation earnable under (b)(ii)(B) of this subsection shall be paid by the member for both member and employer contributions;
     (iii) Assault pay only as authorized by RCW 27.04.100, 72.01.045, and 72.09.240;
     (iv) Compensation that a member would have received but for a disability occurring in the line of duty only as authorized by RCW 41.37.070;
     (v) Compensation that a member receives due to participation in the leave sharing program only as authorized by RCW 41.04.650 through 41.04.670; and
     (vi) Compensation that a member receives for being in standby status. For the purposes of this section, a member is in standby status when not being paid for time actually worked and the employer requires the member to be prepared to report immediately for work, if the need arises, although the need may not arise.
     (7) "Service" means periods of employment by a member on or after July 1, 2006, for one or more employers for which compensation earnable is paid. Compensation earnable earned for ninety or more hours in any calendar month shall constitute one service credit month. Compensation earnable earned for at least seventy hours but less than ninety hours in any calendar month shall constitute one-half service credit month of service. Compensation earnable earned for less than seventy hours in any calendar month shall constitute one-quarter service credit month of service. Time spent in standby status, whether compensated or not, is not service.
     Any fraction of a year of service shall be taken into account in the computation of such retirement allowance or benefits.
     (a) Service in any state elective position shall be deemed to be full-time service.
     (b) A member shall receive a total of not more than twelve service credit months of service for such calendar year. If an individual is employed in an eligible position by one or more employers the individual shall receive no more than one service credit month during any calendar month in which multiple service for ninety or more hours is rendered.
     (8) "Service credit year" means an accumulation of months of service credit which is equal to one when divided by twelve.
     (9) "Service credit month" means a month or an accumulation of months of service credit which is equal to one.
     (10) "Membership service" means all service rendered as a member.
     (11) "Beneficiary" means any person in receipt of a retirement allowance or other benefit provided by this chapter resulting from service rendered to an employer by another person.
     (12) "Regular interest" means such rate as the director may determine.
     (13) "Accumulated contributions" means the sum of all contributions standing to the credit of a member in the member's individual account, including any amount paid under RCW 41.50.165(2), together with the regular interest thereon.
     (14) "Average final compensation" means the member's average compensation earnable of the highest consecutive sixty months of service credit months prior to such member's retirement, termination, or death. Periods constituting authorized leaves of absence may not be used in the calculation of average final compensation except under RCW 41.37.290.
     (15) "Final compensation" means the annual rate of compensation earnable by a member at the time of termination of employment.
     (16) "Annuity" means payments for life derived from accumulated contributions of a member. All annuities shall be paid in monthly installments.
     (17) "Pension" means payments for life derived from contributions made by the employer. All pensions shall be paid in monthly installments.
     (18) "Retirement allowance" means monthly payments to a retiree or beneficiary as provided in this chapter.
     (19) "Employee" or "employed" means a person who is providing services for compensation to an employer, unless the person is free from the employer's direction and control over the performance of work. The department shall adopt rules and interpret this subsection consistent with common law.
     (20) "Actuarial equivalent" means a benefit of equal value when computed upon the basis of such mortality and other tables as may be adopted by the director.
     (21) "Retirement" means withdrawal from active service with a retirement allowance as provided by this chapter.
     (22) "Eligible position" means any permanent, full-time, fully compensated position included in subsection (5) of this section.
     (23) "Ineligible position" means any position which does not conform with the requirements set forth in subsection (22) of this section.
     (24) "Leave of absence" means the period of time a member is authorized by the employer to be absent from service without being separated from membership.
     (25) "Retiree" means any person who has begun accruing a retirement allowance or other benefit provided by this chapter resulting from service rendered to an employer while a member.
     (26) "Director" means the director of the department.
     (27) "State elective position" means any position held by any person elected or appointed to statewide office or elected or appointed as a member of the legislature.
     (28) "State actuary" or "actuary" means the person appointed pursuant to RCW 44.44.010(2).
     (29) "Plan" means the Washington public safety employees' retirement system plan 2.
     (30) "Index" means, for any calendar year, that year's annual average consumer price index, Seattle, Washington area, for urban wage earners and clerical workers, all items, compiled by the bureau of labor statistics, United States department of labor.
     (31) "Index A" means the index for the year prior to the determination of a postretirement adjustment.
     (32) "Index B" means the index for the year prior to index A.
     (33) "Adjustment ratio" means the value of index A divided by index B.
     (34) "Separation from service" occurs when a person has terminated all employment with an employer.

Sec. 3   RCW 41.04.270 and 2005 c 327 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in chapter 2.10, 2.12, 41.26, 41.28, 41.32, 41.35, 41.37, 41.40, or 43.43 RCW, on and after March 19, 1976, any member or former member who (a) receives a retirement allowance earned by ((said)) the former member as deferred compensation from any public retirement system authorized by the general laws of this state, or (b) is eligible to receive a retirement allowance from any public retirement system listed in RCW 41.50.030, but chooses not to apply, or (c) is the beneficiary of a disability allowance from any public retirement system listed in RCW 41.50.030 shall be estopped from becoming a member of or accruing any contractual rights whatsoever in any other public retirement system listed in RCW 41.50.030: PROVIDED, That (a) and (b) of this subsection shall not apply to persons who have accumulated less than fifteen years service credit in any such system.
     (2) Nothing in this section is intended to apply to any retirement system except those listed in RCW 41.50.030 and the city employee retirement systems for Seattle, Tacoma, and Spokane. Subsection (1)(b) of this section does not apply to a dual member as defined in RCW 41.54.010.

Sec. 4   RCW 41.04.278 and 2003 c 295 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The select committee on pension policy may form three function-specific subcommittees, as set forth under subsection (2) of this section, from the members under RCW 41.04.276(1) (a) through (e), as follows:
     (a) A public safety subcommittee with one member from each group under RCW 41.04.276(1) (a) through (e);
     (b) An education subcommittee with one member from each group under RCW 41.04.276(1) (a) through (e); and
     (c) A state and local government subcommittee, with one retiree member under RCW 41.04.276(1)(d) and two members from each group under RCW 41.04.276(1) (a) through (c) and (e).
     The retiree members may serve on more than one subcommittee to ensure representation on each subcommittee.
     (2)(a) The public safety subcommittee shall focus on pension issues affecting public safety employees who are members of the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters', public safety employees', and Washington state patrol retirement systems.
     (b) The education subcommittee shall focus on pension issues affecting educational employees who are members of the public employees', teachers', and school employees' retirement systems.
     (c) The state and local government subcommittee shall focus on pension issues affecting state and local government employees who are members of the public employees' retirement system.

Sec. 5   RCW 41.04.393 and 2003 c 32 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     Retirement benefits paid under chapter 41.26, 41.37, 41.40, or 43.43 RCW to beneficiaries of public safety officers who die in the line of duty shall be paid in accordance with Title 26 U.S.C. Sec. 101(h) as amended by the Fallen Hero Survivor Benefit Fairness Act of 2001.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately.