Senate Bill No. 526
(By Senators Bailey, Love, Dittmar, Wiedebusch,
Miller and Wagner)
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[Introduced February 19, 1996; referred to the Committee
on Pensions; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-two, article ten,
chapter five of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the West
Virginia public employees retirement act; retirement
annuity; and providing for a graduating multiplier.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-two, article ten, chapter five of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 10. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT ACT.
§5-10-22. Retirement annuity.
Upon a member's retirement, as provided in this article,
he or she shall receive a straight life annuity equal to one and five-tenths percent of his or her final average salary multiplied
by the number of years, and fraction of a year, of his or her
credited service in force at the time of his or her retirement:
Provided, That after March one, one thousand nine hundred
seventy, all members retired and all members retiring shall
receive a straight life annuity equal to two percent of his or
her final average salary multiplied by the number of years, and
fraction of a year, of his or her credited service in force at
the time of his or her retirement: Provided, however, That after
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, all
retired members and those retiring shall receive a straight life
annuity equal to two and two-tenths percent of his or her final
average salary multiplied by the number of years, and fraction of
a year, of his or her credited service in force at the time of
his or her retirement; after the first day of July, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-seven, all retired members and those retiring
shall receive a straight life annuity equal to two and three-
tenths percent of his or her final average salary multiplied by
the number of years, and fraction of a year, of his or her
credited service in force at the time of his or her retirement;
after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight, all retired members and those retiring shall receive a
straight life annuity equal to two and four-tenths percent of his
or her final average salary multiplied by the number of years,
and fraction of a year, of his or her credited service in force
at the time of his or her retirement; after the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine, all retired members
and those retiring shall receive a straight life annuity equal to
two and five-tenths percent of his or her final average salary
multiplied by the number of years, and fraction of a year, of his
or her credited service in force at the time of his or her
retirement. In either event, upon his or her retirement he or
she shall have the right to elect an option provided for in
section twenty-four of this article. All annuity payments shall
commence effective the first of the month following the month in
which a member retires or a member dies leaving a beneficiary
entitled to benefits and shall continue to the end of the month
in which said retirant or beneficiary dies, and said annuity
payments shall not be prorated for any portion of a month in
which a member retires or retirant or beneficiary dies.
The annuity of any member of the Legislature who
participates in the retirement system as a member of the Legislature and who retires under this article or of any former
member of the Legislature who has retired under this article
(including any former member of the Legislature who has retired
under this article and whose annuity was readjusted as of March
one, one thousand nine hundred seventy, under the former
provisions of this section) shall be increased from time to time
during the period of his or her retirement when and if the
legislative compensation paid under section two, article two-a,
chapter four of this code to a member of the Legislature shall be
increased to the point where a higher annuity would be payable to
the retirant if he or she were retiring as of the effective date
of the latest increase in such legislative compensation, but on
the basis of his or her years of credited service to the date of
his or her actual retirement.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide a graduated
multiplier used to determine the retirement annuity.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.