| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Florida Retirement System; amending |
| 3 | s. 121.0515, F.S.; revising the criteria under which |
| 4 | certain employees of the Department of Law Enforcement, |
| 5 | the Division of State Fire Marshal, or a local government |
| 6 | law enforcement agency or medical examiner's office are |
| 7 | eligible for membership in the Special Risk Class; |
| 8 | authorizing the Department of Management Services to |
| 9 | review the special risk designation of certain members; |
| 10 | authorizing certain members to purchase additional |
| 11 | retirement credit to upgrade prior service to Special Risk |
| 12 | Class service; providing for the calculation of |
| 13 | contributions for such service upgrade; authorizing the |
| 14 | employer to purchase such additional credit for certain |
| 15 | members; providing a declaration of important state |
| 16 | interest; providing an effective date. |
| 17 |
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| 18 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 19 |
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| 20 | Section 1. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) and subsection |
| 21 | (4) of section 121.0515, Florida Statutes, are amended, |
| 22 | paragraphs (i) and (j) are added to subsection (2) of that |
| 23 | section, and paragraph (c) is added to subsection (9) of that |
| 24 | section, to read: |
| 25 | 121.0515 Special risk membership.-- |
| 26 | (2) CRITERIA.--A member, to be designated as a special |
| 27 | risk member, must meet the following criteria: |
| 28 | (h) Effective October 1, 2005, through June 30, 2008, the |
| 29 | member must be employed by a law enforcement agency or medical |
| 30 | examiner's office in a forensic discipline recognized by the |
| 31 | International Association for Identification and must qualify |
| 32 | for active membership in the International Association for |
| 33 | Identification. The member's primary duties and responsibilities |
| 34 | must include the collection, examination, preservation, |
| 35 | documentation, preparation, or analysis of physical evidence or |
| 36 | testimony, or both, or the member must be the direct supervisor, |
| 37 | quality management supervisor, or command officer of one or more |
| 38 | individuals with such responsibility. Administrative support |
| 39 | personnel, including, but not limited to, those whose primary |
| 40 | responsibilities are clerical or in accounting, purchasing, |
| 41 | legal, and personnel, shall not be included. |
| 42 | (i) Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by |
| 43 | the Department of Law Enforcement in the crime laboratory or by |
| 44 | the Division of State Fire Marshal in the forensic laboratory in |
| 45 | one of the following classes: |
| 46 | 1. Forensic technologist (class code 8459); |
| 47 | 2. Crime laboratory technician (class code 8461); |
| 48 | 3. Crime laboratory analyst (class code 8463); |
| 49 | 4. Senior crime laboratory analyst (class code 8464); |
| 50 | 5. Crime laboratory analyst supervisor (class code 8466); |
| 51 | 6. Forensic chief (class code 9602); or |
| 52 | 7. Forensic services quality manager (class code 9603). |
| 53 | (j) Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by |
| 54 | a local government law enforcement agency or medical examiner's |
| 55 | office and must spend at least 65 percent of his or her time |
| 56 | performing duties that involve the collection, examination, |
| 57 | preservation, documentation, preparation, or analysis of human |
| 58 | tissues or fluids or physical evidence having potential |
| 59 | biological, chemical, or radiological hazard or contamination, |
| 60 | or use chemicals, processes, or materials that may have |
| 61 | carcinogenic or health-damaging properties in the analysis of |
| 62 | such evidence, or the member must be the direct supervisor of |
| 63 | one or more individuals having such responsibility. If a special |
| 64 | risk member changes to another position within the same agency, |
| 65 | he or she must submit a complete application as provided in |
| 66 | paragraph (3)(a). |
| 67 | (4) REMOVAL OF SPECIAL RISK MEMBERSHIP.-- |
| 68 | (a) Any member who is a special risk member on October 1, |
| 69 | 1978, and who fails to meet the criteria for special risk |
| 70 | membership established by this section shall have his or her |
| 71 | special risk designation removed and thereafter shall be a |
| 72 | regular member and shall earn only regular membership credit. |
| 73 | The department shall have the authority to review the special |
| 74 | risk designation of members to determine whether or not those |
| 75 | members continue to meet the criteria for special risk |
| 76 | membership. |
| 77 | (b) Any member who is a special risk member on July 1, |
| 78 | 2008, and who became eligible to participate under paragraph |
| 79 | (2)(h) but fails to meet the criteria for special risk |
| 80 | membership established by paragraph (2)(i) or paragraph (2)(j) |
| 81 | shall have his or her special risk designation removed and |
| 82 | thereafter shall be a Regular Class member and earn only Regular |
| 83 | Class membership credit. The department may review the special |
| 84 | risk designation of members to determine whether or not those |
| 85 | members continue to meet the criteria for special risk |
| 86 | membership. |
| 87 | (9) CREDIT FOR UPGRADED SERVICE.-- |
| 88 | (c) Any member of the Special Risk Class who has earned |
| 89 | creditable service in another membership class of the Florida |
| 90 | Retirement System in a position with the Department of Law |
| 91 | Enforcement or the Division of State Fire Marshal and became |
| 92 | covered by the Special Risk Class as described in paragraph |
| 93 | (2)(i), or with a local government law enforcement agency or |
| 94 | medical examiner's office and became covered by the Special Risk |
| 95 | Class as described in paragraph (2)(j), which service is within |
| 96 | the purview of the Special Risk Class, and is employed in such |
| 97 | position on or after July 1, 2008, may purchase additional |
| 98 | retirement credit to upgrade such service to Special Risk Class |
| 99 | service, to the extent of the percentages of the member's |
| 100 | average final compensation provided in s. 121.091(1)(a)2. The |
| 101 | cost for such credit shall be an amount representing the |
| 102 | actuarial accrued liability for the difference in accrual value |
| 103 | during the affected period of service. The cost shall be |
| 104 | calculated using the discount rate and other relevant actuarial |
| 105 | assumptions that were used to value the Florida Retirement |
| 106 | System defined benefit plan liabilities in the most recent |
| 107 | actuarial valuation. The division shall ensure that the transfer |
| 108 | sum is prepared using a formula and methodology certified by an |
| 109 | enrolled actuary. The cost must be paid immediately upon |
| 110 | notification by the division. The local government employer may |
| 111 | purchase the upgraded service credit on behalf of the member if |
| 112 | the member has been employed by that employer for at least 3 |
| 113 | years. |
| 114 | Section 2. The Legislature finds that a proper and |
| 115 | legitimate state purpose is served when employees and retirees |
| 116 | of the state and its political subdivisions, and the dependents, |
| 117 | survivors, and beneficiaries of such employees and retirees, are |
| 118 | extended additional protections afforded by governmental |
| 119 | retirement systems. These persons must be provided benefits that |
| 120 | are fair and adequate and that are managed, administered, and |
| 121 | funded in a sound actuarial manner, as required by Section 14, |
| 122 | Article X of the State Constitution and part VII of chapter 112, |
| 123 | Florida Statutes. Therefore, the Legislature determines and |
| 124 | declares that this act fulfills an important state interest. |
| 125 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2008. |