78.530 Participation by political subdivisions -- Payment -- Closing of participation
2,189 words·~10 min read·
/ky/78-530A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
in local government systems -- Hazardous duty coverage option.
(a)Each county and school board, as defined in KRS 78.510, will participate in
the system by appropriate order authorizing such participation which has been
entered and duly recorded in the records of the governing body of the county
or school board. In cases where general purpose county government does not
participate, but the sheriff and his or her employees or the county clerk and
his or her employees do, the sheriff or the clerk shall retain the order in his or
her office. The authority to issue and properly record such order of
participation being hereby granted, permits such county to participate in the
system. The effective date of such participation shall be fixed in the order.
(b)Notwithstanding any statute to the contrary, after April 9, 2002, the systems
shall deny the request for participation of any agency which does not have an
irrevocable contract with the state Personnel Cabinet for health insurance
coverage under KRS 18A.225 to 18A.229 for its active employees, except
that:
1. County governments entering the system between April 9, 2002, and
July 1, 2003, under this section shall be excluded from this requirement;
2. Agencies entering the system on or after April 9, 2002, which were
established by a merger or an interlocal agreement to provide public
services shall be excluded from this requirement if any agencies entering
into the merger or interlocal agreement had an initial participation date
with the system prior to April 9, 2002; and
3. Any consolidated emergency services district.
(2)Once a county or school board participates, it shall thereafter continue to
participate, except as provided in KRS 78.535.
(a)Concurrent with the adoption of the appropriate resolution to participate in the
system, a county may elect the alternate participation plan which will require
the county to purchase on behalf of each employee electing coverage, at the
time the county elected to participate in the system as provided under KRS
78.540(1)(b), current service credit for employment in regular full-time
positions between July 1, 1958, and the participation date of the county. Cities
which participate in the system pursuant to subsection
(6)of this section, KRS
79.080, 90.400, 90.410, 95.520, 95.621, 95.761, 95.768, 95.852, or 96.180
shall be required to purchase on behalf of each employee electing coverage
only as much service credit as the employee has accumulated in the city-
administered plan, up to the participation date of the city. Accumulated
service shall include service for which an employee received a refund
pursuant to KRS 95.620 or 95.866, if such refund has been repaid. If the
employee has not yet repaid the refund, he or she may make payment to the
system by any method acceptable to the system, and the requirement of five
(5)years of continuous reemployment prior to repayment of refunds shall not
apply. Upon the employee's repayment, the city shall purchase the associated
service credit for the employee. Cost of such service credit over and above
that which would be funded within the existing employer contribution rate
shall be determined by the board's consulting actuary. The expense of such
actuarial service shall be paid by the county.
(b)The county shall establish a payment schedule subject to approval by the
board for payment of the cost of such service over and above that which
would be funded within the existing employer contribution rate. The
maximum period allowed in a payment schedule shall be thirty
(30)years,
with interest at the rate actuarially assumed by the board. A shorter period is
desirable and the board may approve any payment schedule provided it is not
longer than a thirty
(30)year period, except that cities which participate in the
system pursuant to subsection
(6)of this section, KRS 79.080, 90.400,
90.410, 95.520, 95.621, 95.761, 95.768, 95.852, or 96.180 may, at their
option, extend the payment schedule to a maximum of thirty
(30)years, may
choose to make level payments at the interest rate actuarially assumed by the
board over the life of the payment schedule chosen, and may retain employer
contributions and the earnings thereon attributable to employees electing
coverage.
(c)A city entering the system under the alternate participation plan, may, by
ordinance, levy a special property tax to pay for current service credit
purchased for the period between July 1, 1958, and the participation date of
the city. The special tax shall be to pay, within a period of no more than
fifteen
(15)years, for the cost of such service credit over that which would be
funded within the existing employer contribution rate, as determined by the
board's consulting actuary. The reason for levying the special tax and the
disposition of the proceeds shall be part of the ordinance levying the tax. The
special tax shall be rescinded when the unfunded prior service liability has
been amortized, and shall not be subject to the provisions of KRS 132.017 or
132.027. In addition, the city may maintain any tax, the proceeds of which
had been devoted to funding pension obligations under the locally
administered plan prior to participation in the system, for the purpose of
funding current service costs incurred after the date of participation. The city
may increase the tax to pay current service costs which exceed the local
pension system costs to which the tax had been devoted, but the city shall not
collect from the tax more revenues than are necessary to pay current service
costs incurred after the date of participation. The city may continue the tax so
long as it participates in the system, and the tax shall not be subject to the
provisions of KRS 132.017 or 132.027. The city shall not collect either tax
authorized by this paragraph if its participation has been terminated pursuant
to KRS 78.535.
(d)The county may at a later date purchase current service credit from July 1,
1958, to the participation date of the county by alternate participation plan for
those employees who rejected membership in the system at the time the
county first participated. In addition, the employer shall pay the employer
contributions on the creditable compensation of the employees who later elect
membership from the participation date of the county to the date the member
elects participation. The employee shall pay the employee contributions on his
or her creditable compensation from the participation date of the county to the
date he or she elects membership plus interest at the current actuarial rate
compounded annually on the employee and employer contributions. Cost of
the service credit over and above that which would be funded within the
existing employer contribution rate shall be determined by the board's
consulting actuary. The expense of the actuarial service shall be paid by the
county. The county shall pay the cost of the service by lump sum or by adding
it to the existing payment schedule established under paragraph
(b)of this
subsection.
(e)A county which did not participate by alternate participation may, until July 1,
1991, purchase current service credit for those employees who rejected
membership in the system at the time the county first participated. The
employer shall pay the employer contributions on the creditable compensation
of the employees who later elect membership from the participation date of
the county to the date the member elects participation. The employee shall
pay the employee contributions on his or her creditable compensation from
the participation date of the county to the date he or she elects membership
plus interest at the current actuarial rate compounded annually on the
employee and employer contributions. The county shall pay the cost of the
service credit by lump sum or by establishing a payment schedule under
paragraph
(b)of this subsection.
(f)A county which participated in the system but did not elect the alternate
participation plan may at a later date elect the alternate participation plan. In
this case, the county shall purchase on behalf of each employee participating
in the system current service credit for employment in regular full-time
positions between July 1, 1958, or a later date selected by the county
government, and the participation date of the county. The county shall also
purchase, for employees who decide to participate when the county elects the
alternate participation plan, current service credit for employment in regular
full-time positions between July 1, 1958, or the later date selected by the
county government, and the participation date of the county. In addition, the
county shall pay the employer contributions on the creditable compensation of
the employees who later elect membership from the participation date of the
county to the date the member elects participation. The employee shall pay
the employee contributions on his or her creditable compensation from the
participation date of the county to the date he or she elects membership plus
interest at the current actuarial rate compounded annually on the employee
and employer contributions. Cost of the service credit over that which would
be funded within the existing employer contribution rate shall be determined
by the board's consulting actuary. The expense of the actuarial service shall be
paid by the county. The county shall pay the cost of the service by lump sum
or by a payment schedule established under paragraph
(b)of this subsection.
(g)Notwithstanding any other provision of the Kentucky Revised Statutes to the
contrary, this subsection shall not apply to members who begin participating
in the system on or after January 1, 2014, and no county that elects to
participate in the system on or after January 1, 2014, shall be eligible to
participate under the alternate participation plan.
(4)Every school board not participating on June 21, 1974, shall enact a resolution of
participation no later than July 1, 1976.
(5)The order of the governing body of a county, as provided for in subsection
(1)of
this section, may exclude from participation in the system hospitals and any other
semi-independent agency. Each such excluded agency shall be identified in the
order authorizing participation and such excluded agency may participate in the
system as a separate agency.
(a)After August 1, 1988, except as permitted by KRS 65.156, no local
government retirement system shall be created pursuant to KRS 70.580 to
70.598 and any local government retirement systems created pursuant to KRS
79.080, 90.400, 90.410, 95.768, and KRS Chapter 96 shall be closed to new
members. New employees who would have been granted membership in such
retirement systems shall instead be granted membership in the County
Employees Retirement System. Employees who would have been granted
membership in retirement systems created pursuant to KRS 95.768, or any
other policemen or firefighters who would have been granted membership in
retirement systems created pursuant to KRS 79.080, 90.400, or 90.410, or any
such policemen or firefighter members employed on or prior to August 1,
1988, who transfer to the County Employees Retirement System, shall be
certified by their employers as working in hazardous positions. Each city
participating in the County Employees Retirement System pursuant to this
subsection shall execute the appropriate order authorizing such participation,
shall select the alternate participation plan as described in subsection
(3)of
this section, and shall pay for the actuarial services necessary to determine the
additional costs of alternate participation. Cities which closed their local
pension systems to new members and participated in the system prior to July
15, 1988, whose employees at the time of transition were given the option to
join the system shall not be required to offer said employees a second option
to join the system.
(b)Notwithstanding any statute to the contrary, after April 9, 2002, the system
shall deny the request for participation of any agency which does not have an
irrevocable contract with the state Personnel Cabinet for health insurance
coverage under KRS 18A.225 to 18A.229 for its active employees, except that
agencies entering the system on or after April 9, 2002, which were established
by a merger or an interlocal agreement to provide public services shall be
excluded from this requirement if all agencies entering into the merger or
interlocal agreement had an initial participation date with the system prior to
April 9, 2002.
(7)Any city which closed a police and firefighter pension plan to new members
between January 1, 1988, and July 15, 1988, and participated in the system under
the alternate participation plan shall, if its police and firefighters were not covered
by Social Security, or any city which operates a pension under KRS 90.400 or
90.410, shall be required to certify that its police and firefighters are working in
hazardous positions, and shall offer its police and firefighters in service at the time
of entry a second option to participate under hazardous duty coverage if they were
not offered hazardous duty coverage at the time of their first option. The provisions of subsection (3)(b) of this section notwithstanding, a city affected by this subsection may, at its option, extend its payment schedule to the County Employees Retirement System for alternate participation to thirty
(30)years at the rate actuarially assumed by the board.