Bill Text: MI HB5671 | 2013-2014 | 97th Legislature | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Retirement; defined benefit; county board of commissioners; prohibit the purchase of service credit or the addition of a new benefit unless certain criteria are met. Amends sec. 12a of 1851 PA 156 (MCL 46.12a).

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-07-16 - Printed Bill Filed 06/13/2014 [HB5671 Detail]

Download: Michigan-2013-HB5671-Introduced.html

---

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE BILL No. 5671

 

June 12, 2014, Introduced by Rep. Cavanagh and referred to the Committee on Financial Liability Reform.

 

     A bill to amend 1851 PA 156, entitled

 

"An act to define the powers and duties of the county boards of

commissioners of the several counties, and to confer upon them

certain local, administrative and legislative powers; and to

prescribe penalties for the violation of the provisions of this

act,"

 

by amending section 12a (MCL 46.12a), as amended by 2003 PA 219.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 12a. (1) A county board of commissioners at a lawfully

 

held meeting may do 1 or more of the following:

 

     (a) Provide group life, health, accident and hospitalization,

 

and disability coverage for a county employee, retired employee, or

 

an employee of an office, board, or department of the county,

 

including the board of county road commissioners, and a dependent

 

of an employee, either with or without cost participation by the

 

employee, and appropriate the necessary funds for the insurance.

 

For a county with 100 employees or more, self-insure for health,

 

accident and hospitalization, and group disability coverage for a

 

county employee, retired employee, or an employee of an office,

 

board, or department of the county, including the board of county

 

road commissioners, and a dependent of an employee, either with or

 

without cost participation by the employee, and appropriate the

 

necessary funds.

 

     (b) Adopt and establish a plan by which the county purchases

 

or participates in the cost of an endowment policy or retirement

 

annuity for a county employee or an employee of an office, board,

 

or department of the county, including the board of county road

 

commissioners, to provide monthly pension or retirement benefits

 

for each employee 60 years of age or older in an amount not to

 

exceed $150.00 per month or 2% of the average monthly earnings of

 

the employee for 5 years immediately before retirement times the

 

years of service of the employee, whichever is the lesser sum. As

 

an option, a county board of commissioners may adopt and establish

 

a plan by which the county pays pension or retirement benefits to a

 

county employee or an employee of an office, board, or department

 

of the county, including the board of county road commissioners,

 

who has been employed for not less than 25 years, or who is 60

 

years of age or older and has been employed for not less than 5

 

years, in monthly payments not to exceed 2.5% of the employee's

 

highest average monthly compensation or earnings received from the

 

county or county road fund for 5 years of service times the total

 

number of years of service of the employee, including a fraction of

 

a year, not to exceed 3/4 of the average final compensation of the

 

employee. A plan may also pay early retirement benefits at 55 years

 

of age or older to the extent of actuarially equivalent benefits

 

not increasing the costs of the plan. Except as provided in

 

subsection (27), endowment policies, retirement benefits, pensions,

 

or annuity retirement benefits in excess of the amounts stipulated

 

in this subdivision may be provided for by a plan of employee

 

participation to cover the cost of the excess. If the employment or

 

the pension or retirement benefits of an employee who participated

 

in the cost of pension or retirement benefits are terminated before

 

the employee receives pension or retirement benefits equal to the

 

total amount of the employee's participation, the balance of the

 

total participation shall be refunded to the employee at the time

 

of termination, if living, or if deceased, to the employee's heir,

 

estate, legal representative, or designated beneficiary as provided

 

in the plan adopted and established by the county board of

 

commissioners. If a terminated employee is subsequently rehired by

 

the county, the employee may repay the amount of participation

 

refunded to the employee upon the employee's termination, together

 

with compound interest from the date of refund to the dates of

 

repayment at the rates provided in the plan. As conditions for

 

repayment, the plan may require return to employment for a period

 

not to exceed 3 years and may require that repayment be completed

 

within a period of not less than 1 year following return to

 

employment. A plan adopted for the payment of retirement benefits

 

or a pension shall grant benefits to an employee eligible for

 

pension or retirement benefits according to a uniform scale for all

 

persons in the same general class or classification. An employee

 

shall not be denied benefits by termination of his or her

 

employment after the employee becomes eligible for benefits under

 

the plan and this section. An endowment policy or annuity purchased

 

pursuant to under this section shall be purchased from an insurer

 

authorized to write endowment policies or annuities in this state.

 

     (2) In a plan adopted under this section, at least 60% of the

 

total pension or retirement benefit granted to an employee from

 

county funds shall consist of a percentage not to exceed 2.5% of

 

the employee's average final compensation times the employee's

 

years of service and shall be granted to each employee eligible for

 

retirement under the plan uniformly and without restriction or

 

limitation other than those prescribed in this section. As used in

 

this section:

 

     (a) "Average final compensation" means the annual average of

 

the highest actual compensation received by a county employee,

 

other than a county employee who is a judge of a municipal court of

 

record subject to subsection (20) or a judge subject to subsection

 

(23), during a period of 5 consecutive years of service contained

 

within the employee's 10 years of service immediately before the

 

employee's retirement or a period of 5 years of service as

 

specified in the plan. In a county that adopts a plan for granting

 

longevity pay, the county board of commissioners may exclude this

 

longevity pay from average final compensation for the purpose of

 

computing the rate of employee contribution and the amount of

 

benefits payable to an employee upon retirement.

 

     (b) "Longevity pay" means increments of compensation payable

 

at annual or semiannual intervals and based upon years of service

 

to the county, exclusive of compensation provided for a given class

 

of positions.

 

     (3) A circuit court stenographer is eligible for membership

 

in, and the benefits of, a pension or retirement benefit under a

 

plan established pursuant to under this section, or a social

 

security plan established by the county or 1 of the counties that

 

pays a portion of the compensation of a circuit court stenographer.

 

     (4) If the employment of a county employee eligible to receive

 

a pension or retirement benefit under a plan established pursuant

 

to under this section is terminated after the employee has

 

completed 8 or more years of service in county employment, the

 

employee shall receive the amount of pension or retirement benefit

 

to which the employee's service would have entitled the employee

 

under the plan established, if the employee waives the employee's

 

right to a refund of the employee's total participation upon the

 

termination of employment. The payment of pension or retirement

 

benefits shall begin, as provided in the plan, after the employee

 

would have become eligible for retirement under the plan had the

 

employee's employment not been terminated, but not later than 90

 

days after the employee becomes 65 years of age. The payment of

 

pension or retirement benefits shall not begin until the employee

 

has applied for pension or retirement benefits in the manner

 

prescribed in the plan established.

 

     (5) A plan established under this section may provide for

 

pension or retirement benefits for a county employee who becomes

 

totally disabled for work in the county service from any cause,

 

after not less than 10 years of county employment, to the extent of

 

the limitations provided in this section. A plan may also provide

 

for pension or retirement benefits to the extent of the limitations

 

provided in this section or $400.00 per month, whichever is the

 

greater sum, for an employee who becomes totally disabled for work

 

in the county service from causes that are the direct and proximate

 

result of county employment, to continue for the duration of the

 

disability or until the employee becomes eligible for retirement

 

pursuant to under other provisions of the plan authorized by this

 

section. A plan may also provide for pension or retirement

 

benefits, to the extent of the limitations provided in this

 

section, for the actual dependents of a county employee who dies

 

while still employed by the county after not less than 10 years of

 

county employment, or who dies after leaving county employment with

 

not less than the number of years of service required to vest in

 

the plan but before becoming eligible to receive a pension or

 

retirement benefit. A plan may also provide for pension or

 

retirement benefits to the extent of the limitations provided in

 

this section or $400.00 per month, whichever is greater, for the

 

actual dependents of a deceased county employee whose death is the

 

direct and proximate result of county employment. The plan may

 

provide that the period from the end of the deceased or disabled

 

employee's period of service to the date that employee would have

 

become eligible for retirement be used as service for the sole

 

purpose of computing the amount of disability or death pension.

 

     (6) As used in this section, "county employee" includes a

 

bailiff of the district court in the thirty-sixth district who

 

serves pursuant to under section 8322 of the revised judicature act

 

of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.8322, and a person who receives more

 

than 50% of all compensation for personal services, rendered to

 

governmental units, from a county fund or county road fund, except

 

a person, other than a bailiff of the district court in the thirty-

 

sixth district, engaged for special services on a contract or fee

 

basis. Until December 31, 1979, a plan adopted under this section

 

may include as a county employee a person on leave of absence from

 

county employment who is not a member of another retirement system

 

except as a retirant and who pays or arranges payment of

 

contributions equal to the contributions that would have been

 

required to be paid under the plan by both the county and the

 

employee, based upon the compensation the employee would have

 

received from the county, if the employee had not taken a leave of

 

absence or a person who complies with the requirements of such a

 

provision approved for inclusion in a plan by the county board of

 

commissioners before January 1, 1976, who shall be considered to be

 

a county employee during the period of compliance. A plan adopted

 

under this section may exclude a person who is employed on a

 

temporary basis and a person employed in a position normally

 

requiring less than 1,000 hours, or some lesser specified number of

 

hours, work per year. A bailiff serving in the district court in

 

the thirty-sixth district is eligible to receive benefits under

 

this section if a plan has been established by law by which the

 

cost of benefits is payable from sources including charges on all

 

legal instruments in which the service of process by a bailiff is

 

required and earmarked by law for benefits, and contributions made

 

by the city of Detroit and each bailiff pursuant to under section

 

8322(6) of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL

 

600.8322. The plan shall include provisions by which a bailiff or

 

former bailiff who served as bailiff as of January 1, 1967, may

 

retire after 25 years of service regardless of age, with maximum

 

benefits to be computed as follows: starting as of January 1, 1969,

 

the average of any 5 years of earnings of the previous 10 years

 

served in succession before retirement multiplied by 1.9% times the

 

years of service; starting as of June 1, 1975, the average of any 5

 

years of earnings multiplied by 2% times the years of service. As

 

used in this subsection, "earnings" means the salary and fees,

 

other than mileage, received by a bailiff pursuant to under section

 

8322(5) of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL

 

600.8322. The plan shall include provisions by which health,

 

accident, and hospitalization insurance premiums may be paid out of

 

the earnings of this fund. These payments shall be made at the

 

discretion of the pension board of trustees. A county that has a

 

retirement fund for bailiffs under this section shall annually

 

review the retirement fund and shall ensure that the fund is

 

maintained in an actuarially sound condition. Copies of the

 

actuarial reports shall be provided to the employer designated

 

under section 8274(2) or (3) of the revised judicature act of 1961,

 

1961 PA 236, MCL 600.8274, and to the state court administrator.

 

     (7) An employee while receiving a pension or retirement

 

benefit because of disability, pursuant to under this section, may

 

be considered as employed in the county service for the purpose of

 

retirement under this section.

 

     (8) A Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a

 

county employee who is included by law in another pension or

 

retirement system by reason of the compensation the employee

 

receives from the county may be excluded from a plan established

 

under this section or included only to the extent of the difference

 

between benefits granted under this section and the other pension

 

or retirement system. A county board of commissioners shall not

 

credit a county employee for service during a period in which the

 

county employee earns service credit in the other pension or

 

retirement system.

 

     (9) The county board of commissioners, upon the request of a

 

county employee, by not less than a 3/5 vote may credit that county

 

employee with the amount of government service resulting from

 

employment with the United States government, except military

 

service, employment with a state, or employment with any of their

 

political subdivisions under the following conditions:

 

     (a) Employment by the county occurred within 15 years

 

following the county employee's separation from service of the last

 

unit of government by which the county employee was employed.

 

     (b) Service rendered before the last break in service of more

 

than 15 years shall not be credited.

 

     (c) Service that is recognized for the purpose of a deferred

 

retirement allowance under a retirement system or other employer-

 

funded retirement benefit plan, except for a retirement benefit

 

plan under the social security act, chapter 531, 49 Stat. 620, of

 

the United States government, a state, or a political subdivision

 

of a state shall not be credited if the county employee retired

 

under a retirement system of the United States government, a state,

 

or any of their political subdivisions or until the county employee

 

irrevocably forfeits the right to the deferred retirement

 

allowance.

 

     (d) The county employee deposits in the plan established under

 

this section an amount equal to the aggregate amount of

 

contributions the county employee would have made had the service

 

been acquired in the employ of the county, plus interest from the

 

dates the contributions would have been made to the date of

 

deposit, at rates determined by the county board of commissioners.

 

If records are insufficient or unavailable to compute the exact

 

amount of required deposit, the county board of commissioners may

 

estimate the amount.

 

     (e) The county employee has 8 or more years of credited

 

service in county employment, has legal vesting in the county plan,

 

and deposits in the county employees' retirement system an amount

 

equal to the aggregate amount of contributions the employer would

 

have made had the government service being credited under this

 

section been acquired in the employ of the county.

 

     (10) A plan adopted under this section may provide for annual

 

or less frequent postretirement redetermination of a pension. The

 

redetermined amount of pension shall be not greater than the amount

 

of pension otherwise payable multiplied by the sum of 100% and the

 

percentage the county board of commissioners determines appropriate

 

for each full year, excluding a fraction of a year, in the period

 

from the effective date of payments of the pension and the date as

 

of which the redetermination is being made. The redetermined amount

 

shall not be less than the amount of pension otherwise payable. A

 

provision of this section that limits the amount of a pension shall

 

not apply to the operation of this subsection redetermining the

 

amount of a pension. As used in this subsection, "the amount of

 

pension otherwise payable" means the amount of pension that would

 

be payable without regard to this subsection. The application of a

 

provision redetermining pension amounts may be restricted to

 

pensions that have an effective date of payment either before or

 

after a specified date.

 

     (11) The cost of pension or retirement benefits for a county

 

employee under this section may be paid from the same fund from

 

which the employee receives compensation, and the county board of

 

commissioners may appropriate the necessary funds to carry out the

 

purposes of this section. If a county establishes a plan by which

 

the county pays pension or retirement benefits to an employee

 

pursuant to under this section, the county, pursuant to under the

 

provisions for pension or retirement benefits that are incorporated

 

in the plan, shall establish and maintain reserves on an actuarial

 

basis in the manner provided in this subsection sufficient to

 

finance the pension and retirement and death benefit liabilities

 

under the plan and sufficient to pay the pension and retirement and

 

death benefits as they become due. A county that adopts a

 

retirement plan under this section and establishes reserves on an

 

actuarial basis shall maintain the reserves as provided in this

 

subsection. The reserves shall be determined by an actuarial

 

valuation and established and maintained by yearly appropriations

 

by the county and contributions by employees. The reserves shall be

 

established, maintained, and funded to cover the pension and other

 

benefits provided for in the plan in the same manner and within the

 

same limits as to time as is provided for Benefit Program B in the

 

municipal employees retirement system described in former section

 

14 of the municipal employees retirement act of 1984, 1984 PA 427.

 

These reserves are trust funds and shall not be used for any other

 

purpose than the payment of pension, retirement, and other benefits

 

and refunds of employee contributions pursuant to under the plan

 

established in a county. An employee's contributions shall be kept

 

and accumulated in a separate fund and used only for the payment of

 

annuities and refunds to employees. This subsection does not apply

 

to a county that adopted a retirement plan under this section and

 

did not establish reserves on an actuarial basis before October 11,

 

1947.

 

     (12) If a county establishes a plan for the payment of pension

 

and retirement benefits to its employees pursuant to under this

 

section, the county board of commissioners may shall provide for a

 

board of trustees to administer the plan and for the manner of

 

election or appointment of the members of the board of trustees.

 

The county board of commissioners may grant authority to the board

 

of trustees to fully administer and operate the plan and to

 

deposit, invest, and reinvest the funds and reserves of the plan

 

within the limitations prescribed by the county board of

 

commissioners in the plan. The county board of commissioners may

 

authorize the investment of funds of a county retirement plan

 

established under this section in anything in which the funds of

 

the state employees' retirement system or the funds of the

 

municipal employees retirement system may be invested, pursuant to

 

under the state employees' retirement act, 1943 PA 240, MCL 38.1 to

 

38.69, and the municipal employees retirement act of 1984, 1984 PA

 

427, MCL 38.1501 to 38.1555. A county retirement plan established

 

under this section may provide for financing, funding, and the

 

payment of benefits in the same manner and to the same extent as is

 

provided for in the state employees' retirement act, 1943 PA 240,

 

MCL 38.1 to 38.69, and the municipal employees retirement act of

 

1984, 1984 PA 427, MCL 38.1501 to 38.1555, may provide for and

 

require contributions by county employees, and may permit

 

additional employee contributions on a voluntary basis.

 

     (13) Upon the approval of the county board of commissioners, a

 

member who entered the armed service of the United States before

 

June 1, 1980 or who entered the armed service of the United States

 

on or after June 1, 1980 during a time of war or emergency

 

condition as described in section 1 of 1965 PA 190, MCL 35.61, may

 

elect to receive credited service for not more than 5 years of

 

active military service. Credit for military service shall be given

 

upon request and payment to the retirement system of an amount

 

equal to 5% of the member's full-time or equated full-time annual

 

compensation for the year in which payment is made multiplied by

 

the number of years, and fraction of a year, of credited service

 

that the member elects to purchase up to the maximum. Service shall

 

not be credited if the service is or would be credited under any

 

other federal, state, or local publicly supported retirement

 

system, except for service that is or would be credited under the

 

federal government for services in the reserve. Service shall not

 

be credited under this subsection until the member has the number

 

of years of credited service needed to vest under the plan. Only

 

completed years and months of armed service shall be credited under

 

this subsection.

 

     (14) A Subject to section 33, a member who enters or entered

 

any armed service of the United States may purchase credited

 

service for periods of continuous active duty lasting 30 days or

 

more, subject to the following conditions:

 

     (a) The county board of commissioners authorizes the purchase

 

of credited service under this subsection by an affirmative vote of

 

a majority of the members of the county board of commissioners. The

 

county board of commissioners shall establish a written policy to

 

implement the provisions of this subsection in order to provide

 

uniform application of this subsection to all members of the plan.

 

     (b) The member has at least the number of years of credited

 

service needed to vest under the plan, not including any credited

 

service purchased under this subsection and subsection (13).

 

     (c) The member pays the plan 5% of the member's annual

 

compensation multiplied by the period of credited service being

 

purchased. As used in this subdivision, "annual compensation" means

 

the aggregate amount of compensation paid the member during the 4

 

most recent calendar quarters for each of which the member was

 

credited 3/12 of a year of credited service.

 

     (d) Fractional months of armed service shall not be recognized

 

for the purposes of this subsection.

 

     (e) Armed service credited a member under subsection (13)

 

shall not be the basis of credited service under this section.

 

     (f) Armed service credited a member under this subsection

 

shall not exceed either 5 years or the difference between 5 years

 

and the armed service credited the member under subsection (13).

 

     (g) Credited service shall not be granted for periods of armed

 

service that are or could be used for obtaining or increasing a

 

benefit from another retirement system, except for service that is

 

or would be credited under the federal government for services in

 

the reserve.

 

     (15) As used in this subsection, "transitional public

 

employment program" means a public service employment program in

 

the area of environmental quality, health care, education, public

 

safety, crime prevention and control, prison rehabilitation,

 

transportation, recreation, maintenance of parks, streets, and

 

other public facilities, solid waste removal, pollution control,

 

housing and neighborhood improvements, rural development,

 

conservation, beautification, veterans' outreach, or any other area

 

of human betterment and community improvement as part of a program

 

of comprehensive manpower services authorized, undertaken, and

 

financed pursuant to under the former comprehensive employment and

 

training act of 1973, Public Law 93-203. A person participating in

 

a transitional public employment program shall not be eligible for

 

membership in a retirement system or pension plan established under

 

this section. If the person later becomes a member of a retirement

 

system or pension plan established under this section within 12

 

months after the date of termination as a participant in a

 

transitional public employment program, service credit shall be

 

given for employment in the transitional public employment program

 

for purposes of determining a retirement allowance upon the payment

 

by the person and the person's employer under the transitional

 

public employment program from funds provided under the former

 

comprehensive employment and training act of 1973, Public Law 93-

 

203, as funds permit, to the retirement system of the

 

contributions, plus regular interest, the person and the employer

 

would have paid had the employment been rendered in a position

 

covered by this section. During the person's employment in the

 

transitional public employment program, the person's employer shall

 

provide an opportunity by payroll deduction for the person to make

 

his or her employee contribution to the applicable pension system.

 

To provide for the eventual payment of the employer's contribution,

 

the person's employer shall during this same period place in

 

reserve a reasonable but not necessarily an actuarially determined

 

amount equal to the contributions that the employer would have paid

 

to the retirement system for those employees in the transitional

 

public employment program as if they were members under this

 

section, but only for that number of employees that the employer

 

determined would transfer from the transitional public employment

 

program into positions covered by this section. If the funds

 

provided under the former comprehensive employment and training act

 

of 1973, Public Law 93-203, are insufficient, the remainder of the

 

employer contributions shall be paid by the person's current

 

employer.

 

     (16) Subsection (15) does not exclude the participant in a

 

transitional public employment program from the accident,

 

disability, or other benefits available to members of the

 

retirement system covered by this section.

 

     (17) If a probate judge who is a member of a plan established

 

under this section contributes for 20 years or more, the county

 

board of commissioners may allow the probate judge to cease further

 

contributions.

 

     (18) An employee of the circuit court in the third judicial

 

circuit, the common pleas court of the city of Detroit, or the

 

recorder's court of the city of Detroit who became an employee of

 

the state judicial council on September 1, 1981, and who was 44

 

years of age or older as of that date, and who will have

 

accumulated 25 or more years of service credit by September 1,

 

1987, shall continue to be eligible for membership in, and the

 

benefits of, a pension or retirement benefit plan established

 

pursuant to under this section in the same manner as the employee

 

was eligible before September 1, 1981. A person who was an employee

 

of the circuit court in the third judicial circuit, the common

 

pleas court of the city of Detroit, or the recorder's court of the

 

city of Detroit on August 31, 1981, who last entered county

 

employment before November 2, 1956, who became an employee of the

 

state judicial council on September 1, 1981, and who accumulated

 

not less than 24 years of service credit by August 31, 1981, shall

 

continue to be eligible for membership in, and the benefits of, a

 

pension or retirement benefit plan established pursuant to under

 

this section in the same manner as the employee was eligible before

 

September 1, 1981. An election to continue to be a member of a

 

pension or retirement benefit plan established pursuant to under

 

this section as authorized by section 594(2) of the revised

 

judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.594, as that section

 

read on February 8, 1985, or former section 36(2) of 1919 PA 369,

 

is not effective unless the employee has made the election in the

 

manner prescribed by those sections and has made the payments

 

required by those sections.

 

     (19) A plan adopted under this section may provide that an

 

employee of the circuit court in the third judicial circuit, the

 

common pleas court of the city of Detroit, or the recorder's court

 

of the city of Detroit who is a member of the Wayne county

 

employees' retirement system on August 31, 1981, who becomes an

 

employee of the state judicial council and a member of the state

 

employees' retirement system on September 1, 1981, receive a

 

benefit based on the annual average of the highest actual

 

compensation received by the employee during a period of 5 years of

 

county or state service.

 

     (20) Beginning September 1, 1981, for determining the

 

retirement benefit for a county employee who is a judge of a

 

municipal court of record pursuant to under subsection (2),

 

"average final compensation" means the annual average of the

 

highest actual compensation received by the judge as additional

 

salary pursuant to former section 13(2) of 1919 PA 369, or section

 

9932(3) of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL

 

600.9932, during a period of 5 years of service as specified in the

 

plan. This subsection shall not be construed to diminish or impair

 

an accrued financial benefit.

 

     (21) Beginning September 1, 1981, for each county employee who

 

is a judge of a municipal court of record, or of the circuit or

 

district court, the sum of the average final compensation

 

determined for that county employee pursuant to under this section

 

and the final salary determined for that county employee as a

 

member of the state of Michigan judges' retirement system created

 

by former 1951 PA 198, or as a member of the Michigan judges

 

retirement system created by the judges retirement act of 1992,

 

1992 PA 234, MCL 38.2101 to 38.2670, shall not exceed the

 

employee's total annual judicial salary payable from all sources at

 

the time of his or her retirement. This subsection shall not be

 

construed to diminish or impair an accrued financial benefit.

 

     (22) Beginning September 1, 1981, for each county employee who

 

is a judge of the probate court, the sum of the average final

 

compensation calculated for that employee pursuant to under this

 

section and the final salary calculated for that employee as a

 

member of the state of Michigan probate judges retirement system

 

created by former 1954 PA 165 or as a member of the Michigan judges

 

retirement system created by the judges retirement act of 1992,

 

1992 PA 234, MCL 38.2101 to 38.2670, shall not exceed the

 

employee's total annual judicial salary payable from all sources at

 

the time of his or her retirement. This subsection shall not be

 

construed to diminish or impair an accrued financial benefit.

 

     (23) Beginning September 1, 1981, for determining a retirement

 

benefit pursuant to under subsection (2) for a county employee who

 

is a judge who receives an annuity pursuant to under section 14(5)

 

of former 1951 PA 198 or pursuant to under section 503(2)(c) of the

 

judges retirement act of 1992, 1992 PA 234, MCL 38.2503, "average

 

final compensation" means the difference between the judge's total

 

annual salary payable from all sources on August 31, 1981, and the

 

judge's state base salary payable on August 31, 1981. This

 

subsection shall not be construed to diminish or impair an accrued

 

financial benefit.

 

     (24) Beginning January 1, 1983, the sum of the final salary

 

determined for each county employee who is a judge of the probate

 

court used as the basis for determining the judge's retirement

 

allowance as a member of a retirement system established pursuant

 

to under this section and the salary or compensation figure used as

 

the basis for determining the judge's retirement allowance as a

 

member of the state of Michigan judges' retirement system created

 

by former 1951 PA 198 or as a member of the Michigan judges

 

retirement system created by the judges retirement act of 1992,

 

1992 PA 234, MCL 38.2101 to 38.2670, shall not exceed the judge's

 

total annual salary payable from all sources at the time of his or

 

her retirement. This subsection shall not be construed to diminish

 

or impair an accrued financial benefit.

 

     (25) The county board of commissioners, upon the request of a

 

county employee, by not less than a 3/5 vote may credit that county

 

employee with the amount of membership service that the county

 

employee was previously credited with by the retirement system

 

established under this section under the following conditions:

 

     (a) The membership service previously credited to the county

 

employee was service rendered for the same county.

 

     (b) Service that is recognized for the purpose of a deferred

 

retirement allowance under a retirement system or other employer-

 

funded retirement benefit plan, except for a retirement benefit

 

plan under the social security act, chapter 531, 49 Stat. 620, of

 

the United States government, a state, or a political subdivision

 

of a state shall not be credited if the county employee retired

 

under a retirement system of the United States government, a state,

 

or any of their political subdivisions or until the county employee

 

irrevocably forfeits the right to the deferred retirement

 

allowance.

 

     (c) The county employee deposits in the plan established under

 

this section an amount equal to the aggregate amount of

 

contributions the county employee made at the time of the previous

 

membership service plus interest from the date of withdrawal of the

 

accumulated contributions to the date of deposit, at rates

 

determined by the county board of commissioners. If records are

 

insufficient or unavailable to compute the exact amount of required

 

deposit, the county board of commissioners may estimate the amount.

 

     (d) The county employee deposits in the county employees'

 

retirement system an amount equal to the aggregate amount of

 

contributions the employer made at the time of the previous

 

membership service plus interest from the date of separation to the

 

date of deposit, at rates determined by the county board of

 

commissioners.

 

     (26) A person participating in a program described in this

 

subsection is not eligible for membership in a retirement system or

 

pension plan established under this section. In addition, that

 

person shall not receive service credit for the employment

 

described in this subsection even though the person subsequently

 

becomes or has been a member of the retirement system. This

 

subsection applies to all of the following:

 

     (a) A person, not regularly employed by the county, who is

 

employed by the county through participation in a program

 

established pursuant to under the job training partnership act,

 

Public Law 97-300, 96 Stat. 1322.

 

     (b) A person, not regularly employed by the county, who is

 

employed by the county through participation in a program

 

established pursuant to under the Michigan opportunity and skills

 

training program, first established under sections 12 to 23 of 1983

 

PA 259.

 

     (c) A person, not regularly employed by the county, who is

 

employed by the county through participation in a program

 

established pursuant to under the Michigan community service corps

 

program, first established under sections 25 to 35 of 1983 PA 259

 

and sections 148 to 160 of 1984 PA 246.

 

     (d) A person, not regularly employed by the county, who is

 

hired by the county to administer a program described in

 

subdivision (a), (b), or (c).

 

     (27) If a county enters into a collective bargaining agreement

 

pursuant to under 1947 PA 336, MCL 423.201 to 423.217, that

 

provides for retirement benefits that are in excess of the

 

retirement benefits otherwise authorized to be provided under this

 

section for employees of the county who are covered by a plan under

 

this section, then the county board of commissioners may amend or

 

adopt a plan under this section to provide those benefits to

 

employees who are members of the bargaining unit covered by the

 

agreement, and may, after December 31, 1987, amend or adopt a plan

 

under this section to provide those benefits to other employees of

 

the county.

 

     (28) One of the following conditions applies to a retirant who

 

is receiving a pension or retirement benefit from a plan under this

 

section if the retirant becomes employed by a county that has

 

established a plan under this section:

 

     (a) Payment of the pension or retirement benefit to the

 

retirant shall be suspended if the retirant is employed by the

 

county from which the retirant retired and the retirant does not

 

meet the requirements of subdivision (b) or (d). Suspension of the

 

payment of the pension or retirement benefit shall become effective

 

the first day of the calendar month that follows the sixtieth day

 

after the retirant is employed by the county. Payment of the

 

pension or retirement benefit shall resume on the first day of the

 

calendar month that follows termination of the employment. Payment

 

of the pension or retirement benefit shall be resumed without

 

change in amount or conditions by reason of the employment. The

 

retirant shall not be a member of the plan during the period of

 

employment.

 

     (b) Payment of the pension or retirement benefit to the

 

retirant shall continue without change in amount or conditions by

 

reason of employment by the county from which the retirant retired

 

if all of the following requirements are met:

 

     (i) The retirant meets 1 of the following requirements:

 

     (A) For any retirant, is employed by the county for not more

 

than 1,000 hours in any 12-month period.

 

     (B) For a retirant who was not an elected or appointed county

 

official at retirement, is elected or appointed as a county

 

official for a term of office that begins after the retirant's

 

retirement allowance effective date.

 

     (C) For a retirant who was an elected or appointed county

 

official at retirement, is elected or appointed as a county

 

official to a different office from which the retirant retired for

 

a term of office that begins after the retirant's retirement

 

allowance effective date.

 

     (D) For a retirant who was an elected or appointed county

 

official at retirement, is elected or appointed as a county

 

official to the same office from which the retirant retired for a

 

term of office that begins 2 years or more after the retirant's

 

retirement allowance effective date.

 

     (ii) The retirant is not eligible for any benefits from the

 

county other than those required by law or otherwise provided to

 

the retirant by virtue of his or her being a retirant.

 

     (iii) The retirant is not a member of the plan during the period

 

of reemployment, does not receive additional retirement credits

 

during the period of reemployment, and does not receive any

 

increase in pension or retirement benefits because of the

 

employment under this subdivision.

 

     (c) Payment of the pension or retirement benefit to the

 

retirant shall continue without change in amount or conditions by

 

reason of the employment if the retirant becomes employed by a

 

county other than the county from which the retirant retired. For

 

the purposes of membership and potential benefit entitlement under

 

the plan of the other county, the retirant shall be considered in

 

the same manner as an individual with no previous record of

 

employment by that county.

 

     (d) Payment of the pension or retirement benefit to the

 

retirant shall continue without change in amount or conditions by

 

reason of employment by the county from which the retirant retired

 

if the retirant was an employee of the state judicial council on

 

September 30, 1996, and becomes a county-paid employee of the

 

recorder's court of the city of Detroit or the third judicial

 

circuit of the circuit court on October 1, 1996.

 

     (29) A county may increase the percentage of the highest

 

average monthly compensation or earnings that was used to calculate

 

the pension or retirement benefit under subsection (1)(b) of a

 

person receiving a pension or retirement benefit under this section

 

on the date the county increases the percentage of compensation or

 

earnings. The county shall recalculate the pension or retirement

 

benefit using the increased percentage of compensation or earnings.

 

The person receiving the pension or retirement benefit is eligible

 

to receive an adjusted pension or retirement benefit based upon the

 

recalculation effective the first day of the month following the

 

date the county increases the percentage of compensation or

 

earnings under this subsection.

 

     (30) The payment of pension or retirement benefits under a

 

plan established pursuant to under this section is subject to an

 

eligible domestic relations order under the eligible domestic

 

relations order act, 1991 PA 46, MCL 38.1701 to 38.1711.

 

     (31) If a county retirement plan established under this

 

section provides an optional form of payment of a retirement

 

allowance and if a retirant receiving a reduced retirement

 

allowance under that plan is divorced from the spouse who had been

 

named the retirant's survivor beneficiary, the election of a

 

reduced retirement allowance form of payment shall be considered

 

void by the retirement system if the judgment of divorce or award

 

or order of the court, or an amended judgment of divorce or award

 

or order of the court dated after July 18, 1991 provides that the

 

election of a reduced retirement allowance form of payment is to be

 

considered void by the retirement system and the retirant provides

 

a certified copy of the judgment of divorce or award or order of

 

the court, or an amended judgment of divorce or award or order of

 

the court, to the retirement system. If the election of a reduced

 

retirement allowance form of payment is considered void by the

 

retirement system under this subsection, the retirant's retirement

 

allowance shall revert to a straight life retirement allowance,

 

including postretirement adjustments, if any, subject to an award

 

or order of the court. The retirement allowance shall revert to a

 

straight life retirement allowance under this subsection effective

 

the first of the month after the date the retirement system

 

receives a certified copy of the judgment of divorce or award or

 

order of the court. This subsection does not supersede a judgment

 

of divorce or award or order of the court in effect on July 18,

 

1991. This subsection does not require the retirement system to

 

distribute or pay retirement assets on behalf of a retirant in an

 

amount that exceeds the actuarially determined amount that would

 

otherwise become payable if a judgment of divorce had not been

 

rendered.

 

     (32) If a county board of commissioners of a county that has a

 

population of more than 400,000 but less than 800,000 has an

 

employee credit union organized under the credit union act or

 

former 1925 PA 285, the county board of commissioners may include

 

as a member of a plan under this section a past or present employee

 

of the credit union, if that past or present employee has 5 or more

 

years of service credit with that credit union on or before June

 

30, 1990.

 

     (33) The county board of commissioners shall not credit a

 

county employee for service purchased under a plan adopted under

 

this section unless the service being purchased is followed by 5

 

years of service for that county.

 

     (34) A county board of commissioners that has established a

 

plan under this section shall not add a new benefit to the plan

 

unless all of the following are met:

 

     (a) The board of trustees that administers the plan approves

 

the proposed new benefit.

 

     (b) The county is current in the payment of all employer and

 

member contributions.

 

     (c) The plan is 100% funded according to the most recent

 

actuarial valuation under subsection (11).

 

     (35) (33) The county board of commissioners shall establish a

 

written policy to implement the provisions of this section in order

 

to provide uniform application of this section to all members of

 

the plan.