95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2007 and 2008
SB2359

 

Introduced 2/14/2008, by Sen. A. J. Wilhelmi

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
40 ILCS 5/7-132  from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-132

    Amends the IMRF Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Allows a regional council of government that has an Internal Revenue Service ruling that it is a government entity or instrument of government to participate in IMRF. Effective immediately.


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PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2359 LRB095 14733 AMC 40662 b

1     AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by
5 changing Section 7-132 as follows:
 
6     (40 ILCS 5/7-132)   (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-132)
7     Sec. 7-132. Municipalities, instrumentalities and
8 participating instrumentalities included and effective dates.
 
9 (A) Municipalities and their instrumentalities.
10     (a) The following described municipalities, but not
11 including any with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants, and the
12 instrumentalities thereof, shall be included within and be
13 subject to this Article beginning upon the effective dates
14 specified by the Board:
15         (1) Except as to the municipalities and
16     instrumentalities thereof specifically excluded under this
17     Article, every county shall be subject to this Article, and
18     all cities, villages and incorporated towns having a
19     population in excess of 5,000 inhabitants as determined by
20     the last preceding decennial or subsequent federal census,
21     shall be subject to this Article following publication of
22     the census by the Bureau of the Census. Within 90 days

 

 

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1     after publication of the census, the Board shall notify any
2     municipality that has become subject to this Article as a
3     result of that census, and shall provide information to the
4     corporate authorities of the municipality explaining the
5     duties and consequences of participation. The notification
6     shall also include a proposed date upon which participation
7     by the municipality will commence.
8         However, for any city, village or incorporated town
9     that attains a population over 5,000 inhabitants after
10     having provided social security coverage for its employees
11     under the Social Security Enabling Act, participation
12     under this Article shall not be mandatory but may be
13     elected in accordance with subparagraph (3) or (4) of this
14     paragraph (a), whichever is applicable.
15         (2) School districts, other than those specifically
16     excluded under this Article, shall be subject to this
17     Article, without election, with respect to all employees
18     thereof.
19         (3) Towns and all other bodies politic and corporate
20     which are formed by vote of, or are subject to control by,
21     the electors in towns and are located in towns which are
22     not participating municipalities on the effective date of
23     this Act, may become subject to this Article by election
24     pursuant to Section 7-132.1.
25         (4) Any other municipality (together with its
26     instrumentalities), other than those specifically excluded

 

 

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1     from participation and those described in paragraph (3)
2     above, may elect to be included either by referendum under
3     Section 7-134 or by the adoption of a resolution or
4     ordinance by its governing body. A copy of such resolution
5     or ordinance duly authenticated and certified by the clerk
6     of the municipality or other appropriate official of its
7     governing body shall constitute the required notice to the
8     board of such action.
9     (b) A municipality that is about to begin participation
10 shall submit to the Board an application to participate, in a
11 form acceptable to the Board, not later than 90 days prior to
12 the proposed effective date of participation. The Board shall
13 act upon the application within 90 days, and if it finds that
14 the application is in conformity with its requirements and the
15 requirements of this Article, participation by the applicant
16 shall commence on a date acceptable to the municipality and
17 specified by the Board, but in no event more than one year from
18 the date of application.
19     (c) A participating municipality which succeeds to the
20 functions of a participating municipality which is dissolved or
21 terminates its existence shall assume and be transferred the
22 net accumulation balance in the municipality reserve and the
23 municipality account receivable balance of the terminated
24 municipality.
25     (d) In the case of a Veterans Assistance Commission whose
26 employees were being treated by the Fund on January 1, 1990 as

 

 

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1 employees of the county served by the Commission, the Fund may
2 continue to treat the employees of the Veterans Assistance
3 Commission as county employees for the purposes of this
4 Article, unless the Commission becomes a participating
5 instrumentality in accordance with subsection (B) of this
6 Section.
 
7 (B) Participating instrumentalities.
8     (a) The participating instrumentalities designated in
9 paragraph (b) of this subsection shall be included within and
10 be subject to this Article if:
11         (1) an application to participate, in a form acceptable
12     to the Board and adopted by a two-thirds vote of the
13     governing body, is presented to the Board not later than 90
14     days prior to the proposed effective date; and
15         (2) the Board finds that the application is in
16     conformity with its requirements, that the applicant has
17     reasonable expectation to continue as a political entity
18     for a period of at least 10 years and has the prospective
19     financial capacity to meet its current and future
20     obligations to the Fund, and that the actuarial soundness
21     of the Fund may be reasonably expected to be unimpaired by
22     approval of participation by the applicant.
23     The Board shall notify the applicant of its findings within
24 90 days after receiving the application, and if the Board
25 approves the application, participation by the applicant shall

 

 

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1 commence on the effective date specified by the Board.
2     (b) The following participating instrumentalities, so long
3 as they meet the requirements of Section 7-108 and the area
4 served by them or within their jurisdiction is not located
5 entirely within a municipality having more than one million
6 inhabitants, may be included hereunder:
7         i. Township School District Trustees.
8         ii. Multiple County and Consolidated Health
9     Departments created under Division 5-25 of the Counties
10     Code or its predecessor law.
11         iii. Public Building Commissions created under the
12     Public Building Commission Act, and located in counties of
13     less than 1,000,000 inhabitants.
14         iv. A multitype, consolidated or cooperative library
15     system created under the Illinois Library System Act. Any
16     library system created under the Illinois Library System
17     Act that has one or more predecessors that participated in
18     the Fund may participate in the Fund upon application. The
19     Board shall establish procedures for implementing the
20     transfer of rights and obligations from the predecessor
21     system to the successor system.
22         v. Regional Planning Commissions created under
23     Division 5-14 of the Counties Code or its predecessor law.
24         vi. Local Public Housing Authorities created under the
25     Housing Authorities Act, located in counties of less than
26     1,000,000 inhabitants.

 

 

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1         vii. Illinois Municipal League.
2         viii. Northeastern Illinois Metropolitan Area Planning
3     Commission.
4         ix. Southwestern Illinois Metropolitan Area Planning
5     Commission.
6         x. Illinois Association of Park Districts.
7         xi. Illinois Supervisors, County Commissioners and
8     Superintendents of Highways Association.
9         xii. Tri-City Regional Port District.
10         xiii. An association, or not-for-profit corporation,
11     membership in which is authorized under Section 85-15 of
12     the Township Code.
13         xiv. Drainage Districts operating under the Illinois
14     Drainage Code.
15         xv. Local mass transit districts created under the
16     Local Mass Transit District Act.
17         xvi. Soil and water conservation districts created
18     under the Soil and Water Conservation Districts Law.
19         xvii. Commissions created to provide water supply or
20     sewer services or both under Division 135 or Division 136
21     of Article 11 of the Illinois Municipal Code.
22         xviii. Public water districts created under the Public
23     Water District Act.
24         xix. Veterans Assistance Commissions established under
25     Section 9 of the Military Veterans Assistance Act that
26     serve counties with a population of less than 1,000,000.

 

 

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1         xx. The governing body of an entity, other than a
2     vocational education cooperative, created under an
3     intergovernmental cooperative agreement established
4     between participating municipalities under the
5     Intergovernmental Cooperation Act, which by the terms of
6     the agreement is the employer of the persons performing
7     services under the agreement under the usual common law
8     rules determining the employer-employee relationship. The
9     governing body of such an intergovernmental cooperative
10     entity established prior to July 1, 1988 may make
11     participation retroactive to the effective date of the
12     agreement and, if so, the effective date of participation
13     shall be the date the required application is filed with
14     the fund. If any such entity is unable to pay the required
15     employer contributions to the fund, then the participating
16     municipalities shall make payment of the required
17     contributions and the payments shall be allocated as
18     provided in the agreement or, if not so provided, equally
19     among them.
20         xxi. The Illinois Municipal Electric Agency.
21         xxii. The Waukegan Port District.
22         xxiii. The Fox Waterway Agency created under the Fox
23     Waterway Agency Act.
24         xxiv. The Illinois Municipal Gas Agency.
25         xxv. The Kaskaskia Regional Port District.
26         xxvi. The Southwestern Illinois Development Authority.

 

 

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1         xxvii. The Cairo Public Utility Company.
2         xxviii. Except with respect to employees who elect to
3     participate in the State Employees' Retirement System of
4     Illinois under Section 14-104.13 of this Code, the Chicago
5     Metropolitan Agency for Planning created under the
6     Regional Planning Act, provided that, with respect to the
7     benefits payable pursuant to Sections 7-146, 7-150, and
8     7-164 and the requirement that eligibility for such
9     benefits is conditional upon satisfying a minimum period of
10     service or a minimum contribution, any employee of the
11     Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning that was
12     immediately prior to such employment an employee of the
13     Chicago Area Transportation Study or the Northeastern
14     Illinois Planning Commission, such employee's service at
15     the Chicago Area Transportation Study or the Northeastern
16     Illinois Planning Commission and contributions to the
17     State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois established
18     under Article 14 and the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund
19     shall count towards the satisfaction of such requirements.
20         xxix. Regional councils of government, but only if the
21     regional council of government has an Internal Revenue
22     Service ruling that it is a government entity or instrument
23     of government.
24     (c) The governing boards of special education joint
25 agreements created under Section 10-22.31 of the School Code
26 without designation of an administrative district shall be

 

 

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1 included within and be subject to this Article as participating
2 instrumentalities when the joint agreement becomes effective.
3 However, the governing board of any such special education
4 joint agreement in effect before September 5, 1975 shall not be
5 subject to this Article unless the joint agreement is modified
6 by the school districts to provide that the governing board is
7 subject to this Article, except as otherwise provided by this
8 Section.
9     The governing board of the Special Education District of
10 Lake County shall become subject to this Article as a
11 participating instrumentality on July 1, 1997. Notwithstanding
12 subdivision (a)1 of Section 7-139, on the effective date of
13 participation, employees of the governing board of the Special
14 Education District of Lake County shall receive creditable
15 service for their prior service with that employer, up to a
16 maximum of 5 years, without any employee contribution.
17 Employees may establish creditable service for the remainder of
18 their prior service with that employer, if any, by applying in
19 writing and paying an employee contribution in an amount
20 determined by the Fund, based on the employee contribution
21 rates in effect at the time of application for the creditable
22 service and the employee's salary rate on the effective date of
23 participation for that employer, plus interest at the effective
24 rate from the date of the prior service to the date of payment.
25 Application for this creditable service must be made before
26 July 1, 1998; the payment may be made at any time while the

 

 

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1 employee is still in service. The employer may elect to make
2 the required contribution on behalf of the employee.
3     The governing board of a special education joint agreement
4 created under Section 10-22.31 of the School Code for which an
5 administrative district has been designated, if there are
6 employees of the cooperative educational entity who are not
7 employees of the administrative district, may elect to
8 participate in the Fund and be included within this Article as
9 a participating instrumentality, subject to such application
10 procedures and rules as the Board may prescribe.
11     The Boards of Control of cooperative or joint educational
12 programs or projects created and administered under Section
13 3-15.14 of the School Code, whether or not the Boards act as
14 their own administrative district, shall be included within and
15 be subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities
16 when the agreement establishing the cooperative or joint
17 educational program or project becomes effective.
18     The governing board of a special education joint agreement
19 entered into after June 30, 1984 and prior to September 17,
20 1985 which provides for representation on the governing board
21 by less than all the participating districts shall be included
22 within and subject to this Article as a participating
23 instrumentality. Such participation shall be effective as of
24 the date the joint agreement becomes effective.
25     The governing boards of educational service centers
26 established under Section 2-3.62 of the School Code shall be

 

 

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1 included within and subject to this Article as participating
2 instrumentalities. The governing boards of vocational
3 education cooperative agreements created under the
4 Intergovernmental Cooperation Act and approved by the State
5 Board of Education shall be included within and be subject to
6 this Article as participating instrumentalities. If any such
7 governing boards or boards of control are unable to pay the
8 required employer contributions to the fund, then the school
9 districts served by such boards shall make payment of required
10 contributions as provided in Section 7-172. The payments shall
11 be allocated among the several school districts in proportion
12 to the number of students in average daily attendance for the
13 last full school year for each district in relation to the
14 total number of students in average attendance for such period
15 for all districts served. If such educational service centers,
16 vocational education cooperatives or cooperative or joint
17 educational programs or projects created and administered
18 under Section 3-15.14 of the School Code are dissolved, the
19 assets and obligations shall be distributed among the districts
20 in the same proportions unless otherwise provided.
21     (d) The governing boards of special recreation joint
22 agreements created under Section 8-10b of the Park District
23 Code, operating without designation of an administrative
24 district or an administrative municipality appointed to
25 administer the program operating under the authority of such
26 joint agreement shall be included within and be subject to this

 

 

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1 Article as participating instrumentalities when the joint
2 agreement becomes effective. However, the governing board of
3 any such special recreation joint agreement in effect before
4 January 1, 1980 shall not be subject to this Article unless the
5 joint agreement is modified, by the districts and
6 municipalities which are parties to the agreement, to provide
7 that the governing board is subject to this Article.
8     If the Board returns any employer and employee
9 contributions to any employer which erroneously submitted such
10 contributions on behalf of a special recreation joint
11 agreement, the Board shall include interest computed from the
12 end of each year to the date of payment, not compounded, at the
13 rate of 7% per annum.
14     (e) Each multi-township assessment district, the board of
15 trustees of which has adopted this Article by ordinance prior
16 to April 1, 1982, shall be a participating instrumentality
17 included within and subject to this Article effective December
18 1, 1981. The contributions required under Section 7-172 shall
19 be included in the budget prepared under and allocated in
20 accordance with Section 2-30 of the Property Tax Code.
21     (f) The Illinois Medical District Commission created under
22 the Illinois Medical District Act may be included within and
23 subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality,
24 notwithstanding that the location of the District is entirely
25 within the City of Chicago. To become a participating
26 instrumentality, the Commission must apply to the Board in the

 

 

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1 manner set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection (B). If
2 the Board approves the application, under the criteria and
3 procedures set forth in paragraph (a) and any other applicable
4 rules, criteria, and procedures of the Board, participation by
5 the Commission shall commence on the effective date specified
6 by the Board.
 
7 (C) Prospective participants.
8      Beginning January 1, 1992, each prospective participating
9 municipality or participating instrumentality shall pay to the
10 Fund the cost, as determined by the Board, of a study prepared
11 by the Fund or its actuary, detailing the prospective costs of
12 participation in the Fund to be expected by the municipality or
13 instrumentality.
14 (Source: P.A. 94-1046, eff. 7-24-06; 95-677, eff. 10-11-07.)
 
15     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
16 becoming law.