SB0153eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB0153 Engrossed LRB095 04631 AMC 24689 b

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 Sections 16-127 and 16-128 and by adding Section 16-203.1 as follows:

(40 ILCS 5/16-127) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 16-127)

Sec. 16-127. Computation of creditable service.

(a) Each member shall receive regular credit for all service as a teacher from the date membership begins, for which satisfactory evidence is supplied and all contributions have been paid.

(b) The following periods of service shall earn optional credit and each member shall receive credit for all such service for which satisfactory evidence is supplied and all contributions have been paid as of the date specified:

(1) Prior service as a teacher.

(2) Service in a capacity essentially similar or equivalent to that of a teacher, in the public common schools in school districts in this State not included within the provisions of this System, or of any other State, territory, dependency or possession of the United States, or in schools operated by or under the auspices of the United States, or under the auspices of any agency or department of any other State, and service during any period of professional speech correction or special education experience for a public agency within this State or any other State, territory, dependency or possession of the United States, and service prior to February 1, 1951 as a recreation worker for the Illinois Department of Public Safety, for a period not exceeding the lesser of 2/5 of the total creditable service of the member or 10 years. The maximum service of 10 years which is allowable under this paragraph shall be reduced by the service credit which is validated by other retirement systems under paragraph (i) of Section 15-113 and paragraph 1 of Section 17-133. Credit granted under this paragraph may not be used in determination of a retirement annuity or disability benefits unless the member has at least 5 years of creditable service earned subsequent to this employment with one or more of the following systems: Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois, State Universities Retirement System, and the Public School Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund of Chicago. Whenever such service credit exceeds the maximum allowed for all purposes of this Article, the first service rendered in point of time shall be considered. The changes to this subdivision (b)(2) made by Public Act 86-272 shall apply not only to persons who on or after its effective date (August 23, 1989) are in service as a teacher under the System, but also to persons whose status as such a teacher terminated prior to such effective date, whether or not such person is an annuitant on that date.

(3) Any periods immediately following teaching service, under this System or under Article 17, (or immediately following service prior to February 1, 1951 as a recreation worker for the Illinois Department of Public Safety) spent in active service with the military forces of the United States; periods spent in educational programs that prepare for return to teaching sponsored by the federal government following such active military service; if a teacher returns to teaching service within one calendar year after discharge or after the completion of the educational program, a further period, not exceeding one calendar year, between time spent in military service or in such educational programs and the return to employment as a teacher under this System; and a period of up to 2 years of active military service not immediately following employment as a teacher.

The changes to this Section and Section 16-128 relating to military service made by P.A. 87-794 shall apply not only to persons who on or after its effective date are in service as a teacher under the System, but also to persons whose status as a teacher terminated prior to that date, whether or not the person is an annuitant on that date. In the case of an annuitant who applies for credit allowable under this Section for a period of military service that did not immediately follow employment, and who has made the required contributions for such credit, the annuity shall be recalculated to include the additional service credit, with the increase taking effect on the date the System received written notification of the annuitant's intent to purchase the credit, if payment of all the required contributions is made within 60 days of such notice, or else on the first annuity payment date following the date of payment of the required contributions. In calculating the automatic annual increase for an annuity that has been recalculated under this Section, the increase attributable to the additional service allowable under P.A. 87-794 shall be included in the calculation of automatic annual increases accruing after the effective date of the recalculation.

Credit for military service shall be determined as follows: if entry occurs during the months of July, August, or September and the member was a teacher at the end of the immediately preceding school term, credit shall be granted from July 1 of the year in which he or she entered service; if entry occurs during the school term and the teacher was in teaching service at the beginning of the school term, credit shall be granted from July 1 of such year. In all other cases where credit for military service is allowed, credit shall be granted from the date of entry into the service.

The total period of military service for which credit is granted shall not exceed 5 years for any member unless the service: (A) is validated before July 1, 1964, and (B) does not extend beyond July 1, 1963. Credit for military service shall be granted under this Section only if not more than 5 years of the military service for which credit is granted under this Section is used by the member to qualify for a military retirement allotment from any branch of the armed forces of the United States. The changes to this subdivision (b)(3) made by Public Act 86-272 shall apply not only to persons who on or after its effective date (August 23, 1989) are in service as a teacher under the System, but also to persons whose status as such a teacher terminated prior to such effective date, whether or not such person is an annuitant on that date.

(4) Any periods served as a member of the General Assembly.

(5)(i) Any periods for which a teacher, as defined in Section 16-106, is granted a leave of absence, provided he or she returns to teaching service creditable under this System or the State Universities Retirement System following the leave; (ii) periods during which a teacher is involuntarily laid off from teaching, provided he or she returns to teaching following the lay-off; (iii) periods prior to July 1, 1983 during which a teacher ceased covered employment due to pregnancy, provided that the teacher returned to teaching service creditable under this System or the State Universities Retirement System following the pregnancy and submits evidence satisfactory to the Board documenting that the employment ceased due to pregnancy; and (iv) periods prior to July 1, 1983 during which a teacher ceased covered employment for the purpose of adopting an infant under 3 years of age or caring for a newly adopted infant under 3 years of age, provided that the teacher returned to teaching service creditable under this System or the State Universities Retirement System following the adoption and submits evidence satisfactory to the Board documenting that the employment ceased for the purpose of adopting an infant under 3 years of age or caring for a newly adopted infant under 3 years of age. However, total credit under this paragraph (5) may not exceed 3 years.

Any qualified member or annuitant may apply for credit under item (iii) or (iv) of this paragraph (5) without regard to whether service was terminated before the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1997. In the case of an annuitant who establishes credit under item (iii) or (iv), the annuity shall be recalculated to include the additional service credit. The increase in annuity shall take effect on the date the System receives written notification of the annuitant's intent to purchase the credit, if the required evidence is submitted and the required contribution paid within 60 days of that notification, otherwise on the first annuity payment date following the System's receipt of the required evidence and contribution. The increase in an annuity recalculated under this provision shall be included in the calculation of automatic annual increases in the annuity accruing after the effective date of the recalculation.

Optional credit may be purchased under this subsection (b)(5) for periods during which a teacher has been granted a leave of absence pursuant to Section 24-13 of the School Code. A teacher whose service under this Article terminated prior to the effective date of P.A. 86-1488 shall be eligible to purchase such optional credit. If a teacher who purchases this optional credit is already receiving a retirement annuity under this Article, the annuity shall be recalculated as if the annuitant had applied for the leave of absence credit at the time of retirement. The difference between the entitled annuity and the actual annuity shall be credited to the purchase of the optional credit. The remainder of the purchase cost of the optional credit shall be paid on or before April 1, 1992.

The change in this paragraph made by Public Act 86-273 shall be applicable to teachers who retire after June 1, 1989, as well as to teachers who are in service on that date.

(5.1) A leave of absence during which a teacher ceases covered employment as defined in paragraph (2) of subsection (b) due to pregnancy, returns to teaching service as stated in paragraph (2) of subsection (b) following the pregnancy, and submits evidence satisfactory to the Board documenting that the leave of absence was due to pregnancy. However, total credit under paragraph (5) and this paragraph (5.1) may not exceed 3 years.

(6) Any days of unused and uncompensated accumulated sick leave earned by a teacher. The service credit granted under this paragraph shall be the ratio of the number of unused and uncompensated accumulated sick leave days to 170 days, subject to a maximum of 2 years of service credit. Prior to the member's retirement, each former employer shall certify to the System the number of unused and uncompensated accumulated sick leave days credited to the member at the time of termination of service. The period of unused sick leave shall not be considered in determining the effective date of retirement. A member is not required to make contributions in order to obtain service credit for unused sick leave.

Credit for sick leave shall, at retirement, be granted by the System for any retiring regional or assistant regional superintendent of schools at the rate of 6 days per year of creditable service or portion thereof established while serving as such superintendent or assistant superintendent.

(7) Periods prior to February 1, 1987 served as an employee of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy for which credit has not been terminated under Section 15-113.9 of this Code.

(8) Service as a substitute teacher for work performed prior to July 1, 1990.

(9) Service as a part-time teacher for work performed prior to July 1, 1990.

(10) Up to 2 years of employment with Southern Illinois University - Carbondale from September 1, 1959 to August 31, 1961, or with Governors State University from September 1, 1972 to August 31, 1974, for which the teacher has no credit under Article 15. To receive credit under this item (10), a teacher must apply in writing to the Board and pay the required contributions before May 1, 1993 and have at least 12 years of service credit under this Article.

(b-1) A member may establish optional credit for up to 2 years of service as a teacher or administrator employed by a private school recognized by the Illinois State Board of Education, provided that the teacher (i) was certified under the law governing the certification of teachers at the time the service was rendered, (ii) applies in writing on or after June 1, 2002 and on or before June 1, 2005, (iii) supplies satisfactory evidence of the employment, (iv) completes at least 10 years of contributing service as a teacher as defined in Section 16-106, and (v) pays the contribution required in subsection (d-5) of Section 16-128. The member may apply for credit under this subsection and pay the required contribution before completing the 10 years of contributing service required under item (iv), but the credit may not be used until the item (iv) contributing service requirement has been met.

(c) The service credits specified in this Section shall be granted only if: (1) such service credits are not used for credit in any other statutory tax-supported public employee retirement system other than the federal Social Security program; and (2) the member makes the required contributions as specified in Section 16-128. Except as provided in subsection (b-1) of this Section, the service credit shall be effective as of the date the required contributions are completed.

Any service credits granted under this Section shall terminate upon cessation of membership for any cause.

Credit may not be granted under this Section covering any period for which an age retirement or disability retirement allowance has been paid.

(Source: P.A. 92-867, eff. 1-3-03.)

(40 ILCS 5/16-128) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 16-128)

Sec. 16-128. Creditable service - required contributions.

(a) In order to receive the creditable service specified under subsection (b) of Section 16-127, a member is required to make the following contributions: (i) an amount equal to the contributions which would have been required had such service been rendered as a member under this System; (ii) for a leave of absence due to pregnancy during creditable service established under subdivision (b) (5.1) of Section 16-127 and (iii) for military service not immediately following employment and for service established under subdivision (b)(10) of Section 16-127, an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the employer's normal cost of the benefits accrued for such service; and (iii) interest from the date the contributions would have been due (or, in the case of a person establishing credit for military service under subdivision (b)(3) of Section 16-127, the date of first membership in the System, if that date is later) to the date of payment, at the following rate of interest, compounded annually: for periods prior to July 1, 1965, regular interest; from July 1, 1965 to June 30, 1977, 4% per year; on and after July 1, 1977, regular interest.

(b) In order to receive creditable service under paragraph (2) of subsection (b) of Section 16-127 for those who were not members on June 30, 1963, the minimum required contribution shall be $420 per year of service together with interest at 4% per year compounded annually from July 1, preceding the date of membership until June 30, 1977 and at regular interest compounded annually thereafter to the date of payment.

(c) In determining the contribution required in order to receive creditable service under paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of Section 16-127, the salary rate for the remainder of the school term in which a member enters military service shall be assumed to be equal to the member's salary rate at the time of entering military service. However, for military service not immediately following employment, the salary rate on the last date as a participating teacher prior to such military service, or on the first date as a participating teacher after such military service, whichever is greater, shall be assumed to be equal to the member's salary rate at the time of entering military service. For each school term thereafter, the member's salary rate shall be assumed to be 5% higher than the salary rate in the previous school term.

(d) In determining the contribution required in order to receive creditable service under paragraph (5) and (5.1) of subsection (b) of Section 16-127, a member's salary rate during the period for which credit is being established shall be assumed to be equal to the member's last salary rate immediately preceding that period.

(d-5) For each year of service credit to be established under subsection (b-1) of Section 16-127, a member is required to contribute to the System (i) 16.5% of the annual salary rate during the first year of full-time employment as a teacher under this Article following the private school service, plus (ii) interest thereon from the date of first full-time employment as a teacher under this Article following the private school service to the date of payment, compounded annually, at the rate of 8.5% per year for periods before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly, and for subsequent periods at a rate equal to the System's actuarially assumed rate of return on investments.

(d-10) For service credit established under paragraph (6) of subsection (b) of Section 16-127 for days granted by an employer in excess of the member's normal annual sick leave allotment, the employer is required to pay the normal cost of benefits based upon such service credit. This subsection (d-10) does not apply to sick leave granted to teachers under contracts or collective bargaining agreements entered into, amended, or renewed before June 1, 2005 (the effective date of Public Act 94-4). The employer contributions required under this subsection (d-10) shall be paid in the form of a lump sum within 30 days after receipt of the bill after the teacher begins receiving benefits under this Article.

(e) Except for contributions under subsection (d-10), the contributions required under this Section may be made from the date the statement for such creditable service is issued until retirement date. All such required contributions must be made before any retirement annuity is granted.

(Source: P.A. 94-4, eff. 6-1-05; 94-1057, eff. 7-31-06.)

(40 ILCS 5/16-203.1 new)

Sec. 16-203.1. New benefit increases. The General Assembly finds and declares that the amendment to Section 16-127 made by this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly that allows a teacher to establish credit for a leave of absence due to a pregnancy constitutes a new benefit increase within the meaning of Section 16-203. This new benefit increase will expire 5 years after the effective date of this amendatory Act. The additional funding required under Section 16-203 for this new benefit increase shall be provided by the contributions from the employee required under Section 16-128.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.