Bill Text: IL SB2775 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. In a provision concerning suspensions of retirement annuities during employment with a participating employer, provides that until June 3, 2026, an annuitant shall not be considered a participating employee if the annuitant is employed as a school bus driver by a participating school district and works fewer than 750 hours annually. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-17 - Referred to Assignments [SB2775 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB2775-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB2775 Introduced 1/17/2024, by Sen. Steve Stadelman SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
40 ILCS 5/7-144 from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-144
Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. In a provision concerning suspensions of retirement annuities during employment with a participating employer, provides that until June 3, 2026, an annuitant shall not be considered a participating employee if the annuitant is employed as a school bus driver by a participating school district and works fewer than 750 hours annually. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by
changing Section 7-144 as follows:
(40 ILCS 5/7-144) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-144)
Sec. 7-144. Retirement annuities; suspended during
employment.
(a) If any person receiving any annuity again becomes an
employee and receives earnings from employment in a position
requiring him, or entitling him to elect, to become a
participating employee, then the annuity payable to such
employee shall be suspended as of the first day of the month
coincidental with or next following the date upon which such
person becomes such an employee, unless the person is
authorized under subsection (b) of Section 7-137.1 of this
Code to continue receiving a retirement annuity during that
period. Upon proper qualification of the participating
employee payment of such annuity may be resumed on the first
day of the month following such qualification and upon proper
application therefor. The participating employee in such case
shall be entitled to a supplemental annuity arising from
service and credits earned subsequent to such re-entry as a

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participating employee.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, an
annuitant shall be considered a participating employee if he
or she returns to work as an employee with a participating
employer and works more than 599 hours annually (or 999 hours
annually with a participating employer that has adopted a
resolution pursuant to subsection (e) of Section 7-137 of this
Code). Each of these annual periods shall commence on the
month and day upon which the annuitant is first employed with
the participating employer following the effective date of the
annuity.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, until
June 3, 2026, an annuitant shall not be considered a
participating employee if the annuitant is employed as a
school bus driver by a participating school district and works
fewer than 750 hours annually.
(a-5) If any annuitant under this Article must be
considered a participating employee per the provisions of
subsection (a) of this Section, and the participating
municipality or participating instrumentality that employs or
re-employs that annuitant knowingly fails to notify the Board
to suspend the annuity, the participating municipality or
participating instrumentality may be required to reimburse the
Fund for an amount up to one-half of the total of any annuity
payments made to the annuitant after the date the annuity
should have been suspended, as determined by the Board. In no

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case shall the total amount repaid by the annuitant plus any
amount reimbursed by the employer to the Fund be more than the
total of all annuity payments made to the annuitant after the
date the annuity should have been suspended. This subsection
shall not apply if the annuitant returned to work for the
employer for less than 12 months.
The Fund shall notify all annuitants that they must notify
the Fund immediately if they return to work for any
participating employer. The notification by the Fund shall
occur upon retirement and no less than annually thereafter in
a format determined by the Fund. The Fund shall also develop
and maintain a system to track annuitants who have returned to
work and notify the participating employer and annuitant at
least annually of the limitations on returning to work under
this Section.
(b) Supplemental annuities to persons who return to
service for less than 48 months shall be computed under the
provisions of Sections 7-141, 7-142, and 7-143. In determining
whether an employee is eligible for an annuity which requires
a minimum period of service, his entire period of service
shall be taken into consideration but the supplemental annuity
shall be based on earnings and service in the supplemental
period only. The effective date of the suspended and
supplemental annuity for the purpose of increases after
retirement shall be considered to be the effective date of the
suspended annuity.

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(c) Supplemental annuities to persons who return to
service for 48 months or more shall be a monthly amount
determined as follows:
(1) An amount shall be computed under subparagraph b
of paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of Section 7-142,
considering all of the service credits of the employee.
(2) The actuarial value in monthly payments for life
of the annuity payments made before suspension shall be
determined and subtracted from the amount determined in
paragraph (1) above.
(3) The monthly amount of the suspended annuity, with
any applicable increases after retirement computed from
the effective date to the date of reinstatement, shall be
subtracted from the amount determined in paragraph (2)
above and the remainder shall be the amount of the
supplemental annuity provided that this amount shall not
be less than the amount computed under subsection (b) of
this Section.
(4) The suspended annuity shall be reinstated at an
amount including any increases after retirement from the
effective date to date of reinstatement.
(5) The effective date of the combined suspended and
supplemental annuities for the purposes of increases after
retirement shall be considered to be the effective date of
the supplemental annuity.
(d) If a Tier 2 regular employee becomes a member or

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participant under any other system or fund created by this
Code and is employed on a full-time basis, except for those
members or participants exempted from the provisions of
subsection (a) of Section 1-160 of this Code (other than a
participating employee under this Article), then the person's
retirement annuity shall be suspended during that employment.
Upon termination of that employment, the person's retirement
annuity shall resume and be recalculated as required by this
Section.
(e) If a Tier 2 regular employee first began participation
on or after January 1, 2012 and is receiving a retirement
annuity and accepts on a contractual basis a position to
provide services to a governmental entity from which he or she
has retired, then that person's annuity or retirement pension
shall be suspended during that contractual service,
notwithstanding the provisions of any other Section in this
Article. Such annuitant shall notify the Fund, as well as his
or her contractual employer, of his or her retirement status
before accepting contractual employment. A person who fails to
submit such notification shall be guilty of a Class A
misdemeanor and required to pay a fine of $1,000. Upon
termination of that contractual employment, the person's
retirement annuity shall resume and be recalculated as
required by this Section.
(Source: P.A. 102-210, eff. 1-1-22; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

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