Birmingham Retirement and Relief System, amended to revise, effective July 1, 2021, certain contribution rates, eligibility requirements, maximum normal retirement benefit, ordinary disability allowance, spousal survivor benefits, and early retirement benefits, Secs. 45-37A-51.190, 45-37A-51.192, 45-37A-51.196, 45-37A-51.220, 45-37A-51.221, 45-37A-51.222, 45-37A-51.225, 45-37A-51.228, 45-37A-51.232, 45-37A-51.244, 45-37A-51.302, 45-37A-51.305, 45-37A-51.306, 45-37A-51.307, 45-37A-51.308 am'd.
Description
Relating to the Birmingham retirement and relief system for officers and employees of the city; to amend Sections 45-37A-51.190, 45-37A-51.192, 45-37A-51.196, 45-37A-51.220, 45-37A-51.221, 45-37A-51.222, 45-37A-51.225, 45-37A-51.228, 45-37A-51.232, 45-37A-51.244, 45-37A-51.302, 45-37A-51.305, 45-37A-51.306, 45-37A-51.307, and 45-37A-51.308, Code of Alabama 1975; to revise, effective on and after July 1, 2021, the contribution rate of participants to the pension system to 7.5 percent; to revise, effective on and after July 1, 2021, the contribution rate of the city and participating constructive subsidiaries to the pension system to an amount to be determined by the actuary at the level necessary to fully fund the system and to amortize the unfunded accrued liability of the system over a closed period not to exceed 30 years; to revise the eligibility for a normal retirement benefit for participants who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, excluding fire and police employees, and to provide for those participants to either attain age 62 or older and to complete 10 or more years of credited service, or to attain age 55 or older and to complete 30 or more years of credited service; to revise the normal retirement benefit for participants who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, excluding fire and police employees, from 2.25 percent to 1.75 percent of the participant's final average salary multiplied by years of credited service; to revise the maximum normal retirement benefit for participants who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, excluding fire and police employees, to a maximum benefit of 52.5 percent of final average salary consistent with changes to the normal retirement benefit formula for those participants; to revise the ordinary disability allowance for all participants who incur a disability on or after July 1, 2021, excluding fire and police employees, from 2 percent to 1.75 percent of those participants' final average salary multiplied by years of credited service; to revise the spousal survivor's benefits for legally married participants who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, to remove the subsidized survivor's benefit, and to provide those participants the option to elect payment of an actuarially reduced retirement benefit to provide a survivor's benefit; to revise the spousal survivor's benefit available to legally married participants retiring under the firefighters' and police officers' supplemental pension system who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, to remove the subsidized spousal survivor's benefit, and to provide those participants the option to elect payment of an actuarially reduced retirement benefit to provide a spousal survivor's benefit; and to revise the early retirement benefit for participants who first become participants on or after July 1, 2021, from 1.85 percent to 1.45 percent of those participants' final average salary multiplied by years of credited service.
