Senate Bill sb2206

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206

    By Senator Peaden





    2-1505-03

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Florida Retirement

  3         System; amending ss. 121.021, 121.0515, F.S.;

  4         including mosquito control officers of counties

  5         and mosquito control districts in the special

  6         risk class; restoring special risk

  7         classification to certain law enforcement

  8         officer employees of the Department of

  9         Environmental Protection and the Department of

10         Insurance or their predecessor agencies;

11         providing for payment of increased benefits to

12         such officers who have retired or entered the

13         Deferred Retirement Option Program or to the

14         beneficiaries of deceased employees; providing

15         for funding such increased benefits; providing

16         an effective date.

17  

18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

19  

20         Section 1.  Paragraph (f) is added to subsection (15)

21  of section 121.021, Florida Statutes, to read:

22         121.021  Definitions.--The following words and phrases

23  as used in this chapter have the respective meanings set forth

24  unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context:

25         (15)

26         (f)  As of the effective date of this paragraph, the

27  term "special risk member" includes any member employed as a

28  mosquito control officer by a county or a mosquito control

29  district operating under chapter 388.

30         Section 2.  Subsections (2) and (8) of section

31  121.0515, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
    2-1505-03




 1         121.0515  Special risk membership.--

 2         (2)  CRITERIA.--A member, to be designated as a special

 3  risk member, must meet the following criteria:

 4         (a)  The member must be employed as a law enforcement

 5  officer and be certified, or required to be certified, in

 6  compliance with s. 943.1395; however, sheriffs and elected

 7  police chiefs shall be excluded from meeting the certification

 8  requirements of this paragraph.  In addition, the member's

 9  duties and responsibilities must include the pursuit,

10  apprehension, and arrest of law violators or suspected law

11  violators; or the member must be an active member of a bomb

12  disposal unit whose primary responsibility is the location,

13  handling, and disposal of explosive devices; or the member

14  must be the supervisor or command officer of a member or

15  members who have such responsibilities; provided, however,

16  administrative support personnel, including, but not limited

17  to, those whose primary duties and responsibilities are in

18  accounting, purchasing, legal, and personnel, shall not be

19  included;

20         (b)  The member must be employed as a firefighter and

21  be certified, or required to be certified, in compliance with

22  s. 633.35 and be employed solely within the fire department of

23  a local government employer or an agency of state government

24  with firefighting responsibilities. In addition, the member's

25  duties and responsibilities must include on-the-scene fighting

26  of fires, fire prevention, or firefighter training; direct

27  supervision of firefighting units, fire prevention, or

28  firefighter training; or aerial firefighting surveillance

29  performed by fixed-wing aircraft pilots employed by the

30  Division of Forestry of the Department of Agriculture and

31  Consumer Services; or the member must be the supervisor or

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
    2-1505-03




 1  command officer of a member or members who have such

 2  responsibilities; provided, however, administrative support

 3  personnel, including, but not limited to, those whose primary

 4  duties and responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing,

 5  legal, and personnel, shall not be included and further

 6  provided that all periods of creditable service in fire

 7  prevention or firefighter training, or as the supervisor or

 8  command officer of a member or members who have such

 9  responsibilities, and for which the employer paid the special

10  risk contribution rate, shall be included;

11         (c)  The member must be employed as a correctional

12  officer and be certified, or required to be certified, in

13  compliance with s. 943.1395.  In addition, the member's

14  primary duties and responsibilities must be the custody, and

15  physical restraint when necessary, of prisoners or inmates

16  within a prison, jail, or other criminal detention facility,

17  or while on work detail outside the facility, or while being

18  transported; or the member must be the supervisor or command

19  officer of a member or members who have such responsibilities;

20  provided, however, administrative support personnel,

21  including, but not limited to, those whose primary duties and

22  responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal, and

23  personnel, shall not be included; however, wardens and

24  assistant wardens, as defined by rule, shall participate in

25  the Special Risk Class;

26         (d)  The member must be employed by a licensed Advance

27  Life Support (ALS) or Basic Life Support (BLS) employer as an

28  emergency medical technician or a paramedic and be certified

29  in compliance with s. 401.27.  In addition, the member's

30  primary duties and responsibilities must include on-the-scene

31  emergency medical care or direct supervision of emergency

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
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 1  medical technicians or paramedics, or the member must be the

 2  supervisor or command officer of one or more members who have

 3  such responsibility.  However, administrative support

 4  personnel, including, but not limited to, those whose primary

 5  responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal, and

 6  personnel, shall not be included;

 7         (e)  The member must be employed as a community-based

 8  correctional probation officer and be certified, or required

 9  to be certified, in compliance with s. 943.1395.  In addition,

10  the member's primary duties and responsibilities must be the

11  supervised custody, surveillance, control, investigation, and

12  counseling of assigned inmates, probationers, parolees, or

13  community controllees within the community; or the member must

14  be the supervisor of a member or members who have such

15  responsibilities. Administrative support personnel, including,

16  but not limited to, those whose primary duties and

17  responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal

18  services, and personnel management, shall not be included;

19  however, probation and parole circuit and deputy circuit

20  administrators shall participate in the Special Risk Class; or

21         (f)  The member must be employed in one of the

22  following classes and must spend at least 75 percent of his or

23  her time performing duties which involve contact with patients

24  or inmates in a correctional or forensic facility or

25  institution:

26         1.  Dietitian (class codes 5203 and 5204).

27         2.  Public health nutrition consultant (class code

28  5224).

29         3.  Psychological specialist (class codes 5230 and

30  5231).

31         4.  Psychologist (class code 5234).

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
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 1         5.  Senior psychologist (class codes 5237 and 5238).

 2         6.  Regional mental health consultant (class code

 3  5240).

 4         7.  Psychological Services Director--DCF (class code

 5  5242).

 6         8.  Pharmacist (class codes 5245 and 5246).

 7         9.  Senior pharmacist (class codes 5248 and 5249).

 8         10.  Dentist (class code 5266).

 9         11.  Senior dentist (class code 5269).

10         12.  Registered nurse (class codes 5290 and 5291).

11         13.  Senior registered nurse (class codes 5292 and

12  5293).

13         14.  Registered nurse specialist (class codes 5294 and

14  5295).

15         15.  Clinical associate (class codes 5298 and 5299).

16         16.  Advanced registered nurse practitioner (class

17  codes 5297 and 5300).

18         17.  Advanced registered nurse practitioner specialist

19  (class codes 5304 and 5305).

20         18.  Registered nurse supervisor (class codes 5306 and

21  5307).

22         19.  Senior registered nurse supervisor (class codes

23  5308 and 5309).

24         20.  Registered nursing consultant (class codes 5312

25  and 5313).

26         21.  Quality management program supervisor (class code

27  5314).

28         22.  Executive nursing director (class codes 5320 and

29  5321).

30         23.  Speech and hearing therapist (class code 5406); or

31         24.  Pharmacy manager (class code 5251);.

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
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 1         (g)  The member must be employed as a youth custody

 2  officer and be certified, or required to be certified, in

 3  compliance with s. 943.1395. In addition, the member's primary

 4  duties and responsibilities must be the supervised custody,

 5  surveillance, control, investigation, apprehension, arrest,

 6  and counseling of assigned juveniles within the community; or.

 7         (h)  The member must be employed as a mosquito control

 8  officer by a county or a mosquito control district operating

 9  under chapter 388. Any mosquito control officer participating

10  in the system on the effective date of this paragraph becomes

11  a member of the special risk class on that date.

12         (8)  RESTORATION OF SPECIAL RISK CREDIT FOR SPECIFIED

13  PERIOD OF EMPLOYMENT.--

14         (a)  A special risk member who was removed from the

15  Special Risk Class effective October 1978, for the sole reason

16  that he or she did not possess the required certificate or

17  temporary waiver of certificate, and who obtained

18  certification and was approved for special risk membership on

19  or before June 30, 1982, shall be permitted to have special

20  risk credit restored for that period upon:

21         1.(a)  Certification by his or her employer that all

22  requirements for special risk membership except the

23  requirement for certification or temporary waiver of

24  certification were met; and

25         2.(b)  Payment of contributions equal to the difference

26  in the contributions that were paid during the period and the

27  contributions required for special risk members during that

28  period, plus 6.5 percent interest thereon, compounded each

29  June 30 from date of service until date of payment.

30  

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
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 1  This credit may be purchased by the member or by the employer

 2  on behalf of the member.

 3         (b)  A special risk member who is or was a law

 4  enforcement officer of the Division of Recreation and Parks of

 5  the Department of Environmental Protection or the Division of

 6  Insurance Fraud of the Department of Insurance or who served

 7  in such capacity in a predecessor agency shall have special

 8  risk credit restored for the time the member spent as a member

 9  of the system and served as a law enforcement officer with

10  power of arrest but was not credited with membership in the

11  special risk class. If the member has retired or entered the

12  Deferred Retirement Option Program of the system before the

13  effective date of this paragraph, the restored special risk

14  credit shall be applicable to future benefits. If the member

15  is deceased, the restored special risk credit shall be

16  applicable to future benefits received by the member's

17  beneficiaries.

18         Section 3.  It is the intent of the Legislature that

19  any additional costs attributable to increased retirement

20  benefits paid as a result of the amendments by section 2 be

21  funded by the necessary amount from the excess actuarial

22  assets of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund.

23         Section 4.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

24  law.

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2206
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 1            *****************************************

 2                          SENATE SUMMARY

 3    Makes mosquito control officers of counties and mosquito
      control districts members of the special risk class of
 4    the Florida Retirement System. Restores special risk
      membership benefits to persons employed as law
 5    enforcement officers by the Department of Environmental
      Protection and the Department of Insurance or their
 6    predecessor agencies and provides for funding such
      increased benefits from excess actuarial assets of the
 7    Florida Retirement System Trust Fund.

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