ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 601
(By Senators Plymale, Fanning, Edgell, Jackson,
McCabe, Prezioso and Sprouse, original sponsors)
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[Passed March 9, 2002; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend article twenty-two, chapter eight of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
twenty-a, relating to municipal police and firemen's pension
and relief funds; setting forth legislative findings;
requiring the treasurer to select and contract with a single
qualified actuary to serve as a consultant with respect to the
funds; requiring annual valuations of the funds; specifying
requirements for reporting the valuations; and providing that
the funds are not a responsibility or obligation of this
state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article twenty-two, chapter eight of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section twenty-a, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 22. RETIREMENT BENEFITS GENERALLY; POLICEMEN'S PENSION AND
RELIEF FUND; FIREMEN'S PENSION AND RELIEF FUND; PENSION PLANS
FOR EMPLOYEES OF WATERWORKS SYSTEM, SEWERAGE SYSTEM OR
COMBINED WATERWORKS AND SEWERAGE SYSTEM.
§8-22-20a. Hiring of actuary; preparation of actuarial valuations.
(a) (1) The Legislature finds that it is in the best interests
of the state and its municipalities to have accurate data regarding
the various municipal police and firemen's pension and relief
funds. The Legislature finds that data received from the funds is
not always reliable due to inconsistent methods of reporting. The
Legislature also finds that the municipalities need to know if the
data they are basing their decisions on regarding pensions for
their police and firemen is accurate and that they can depend on
it.
(2) The Legislature finds that the state treasurer should
contract with an actuary as a consultant for the municipal police
and firemen's pension and relief funds and that among other duties
the actuary should determine if there is consistent reporting from
the various funds. The Legislature further finds that the state
treasurer should share the results of the actuary's annual
valuation with the appropriate municipality.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, beginning the first day of July, two thousand two, the
state treasurer shall select by competitive bid and contract with a single qualified actuary. The actuary shall serve as a
consultant to the treasurer with regard to the operation of the
municipal police and firemen's pension and relief funds and shall
report annually to the treasurer with regard to all funds existing
in this state by virtue of this article. The treasurer may pay for
costs associated with the actuary's work out of the fund
established pursuant to section fourteen-d, article three, chapter
thirty-three of this code.
(c) With respect to each municipal police or firemen's pension
and relief fund, the actuary shall complete an annual valuation in
accordance with actuarial standards of practice promulgated by the
actuarial standards board of the American academy of actuaries.
The report of the valuation shall include: (1) A summary of the
benefit provisions evaluated; (2) a summary of the census data and
financial information used in the valuation; (3) a description of
the actuarial assumptions, actuarial costs method and asset
valuation method used in the valuation, including a statement of
the assumed rate of payroll growth and assumed rate of growth or
decline in the number of the fund members' contribution to the
pension fund; (4) a summary of findings that includes a statement
of the actuarially accrued pension liabilities and unfunded
actuarial accrued pension liabilities; (5) a schedule showing the
effect of any changes in the benefit provisions, actuarial
assumptions or cost methods since the last annual actuarial
valuation; (6) a statement of whether contributions to the pension
fund are in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and whether they are expected to be sufficient; and (7) any other
matters determined by the treasurer to be necessary or appropriate.
The treasurer shall forward a copy of the annual valuation to the
municipality for which it was completed.
(d) (1) The hiring of an actuary under the provisions of this
section shall not be construed to make the municipal police and
firemen's pension and relief funds the responsibility or obligation
of the state of West Virginia.
(2) Any actuarial deficiency identified by the actuary under
this section or this article is not an obligation of the state of
West Virginia.