COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 275
(By Senator Snyder)
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[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization;
reported February 26, 2004.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §5-16-13 of the code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to public employees insurance
generally; eliminating a gap in benefits for certain alcohol
beverage control commission employees; and specifying period
of time.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §5-16-13 of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES INSURANCE ACT.
§5-16-13. Payment of costs by employer and employee; spouse and
dependent coverage; involuntary employee termination
coverage; conversion of annual leave and sick leave
authorized for health or retirement benefits;
authorization for retiree participation; continuation
of health insurance for surviving dependents of
deceased employees; requirement of new health plan, limiting employer contribution.
(a)
Cost-sharing. -- The director shall provide under any
contract or contracts entered into under the provisions of this
article that the costs of any group hospital and surgical
insurance, group major medical insurance, group prescription drug
insurance, group life and accidental death insurance benefit plan
or plans shall be paid by the employer and employee.
(b)
Spouse and dependent coverage. -- Each employee is
entitled to have his or her spouse and dependents, as defined by
the rules of the public employees insurance agency, included in any
group hospital and surgical insurance, group major medical
insurance or group prescription drug insurance coverage to which
the employee is entitled to participate:
Provided, That the spouse
and dependent coverage is limited to excess or secondary coverage
for each spouse and dependent who has primary coverage from any
other source. For purposes of this section, the term "primary
coverage" means individual or group hospital and surgical insurance
coverage or individual or group major medical insurance coverage or
group prescription drug coverage in which the spouse or dependent
is the named insured or certificate holder. The director may
require proof regarding spouse and dependent primary coverage and
shall adopt rules governing the nature, discontinuance and
resumption of any employee's coverage for his or her spouse and
dependents.
(c)
Continuation after termination. -- If an employee participating in the plan is terminated from employment
involuntarily or in reduction of work force, the employee's
insurance coverage provided under this article shall continue for
a period of three months at no additional cost to the employee and
the employer shall continue to contribute the employer's share of
plan premiums for the coverage. An employee discharged for
misconduct
shall is not
be eligible for extended benefits under
this section. Coverage may be extended up to the maximum period of
three months, while administrative remedies contesting the charge
of misconduct are pursued. If the discharge for misconduct
be is
upheld, the full cost of the extended coverage shall be reimbursed
by the employee. If the employee is again employed or recalled to
active employment within twelve months of his or her prior
termination, he or she
shall is not
be considered a new enrollee
and
may is not
be required to again contribute his or her share of
the premium cost, if he or she had already fully contributed
such
the share during the prior period of employment.
(d)
Conversion of accrued annual and sick leave for extended
insurance coverage upon retirement for employees who elected to
participate in the plan before July, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-eight. -- Except as otherwise provided in subsection (g) of
this section, when an employee participating in the plan, who
elected to participate in the plan before the first day of July,
one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, is compelled or required by
law to retire before reaching the age of sixty-five, or when a
participating employee voluntarily retires as provided by law, that employee's accrued annual leave and sick leave, if any, shall be
credited toward an extension of the insurance coverage provided by
this article, according to the following formulae: The insurance
coverage for a retired employee shall continue one additional month
for every two days of annual leave or sick leave, or both
annual
leave and sick leave, which the employee had accrued as of the
effective date of his or her retirement.
(1) For a retired employee, his or her spouse and dependents,
the insurance coverage shall continue one additional month for
every three days of annual leave or sick leave, or both
annual
leave and sick leave, which the employee had accrued as of the
effective date of his or her retirement.
(2) For a participating employee who elected to participate in
the plan before the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-eight, and who ceased participation in the plan due to the
privatization of the state stores operated by the alcohol beverage
control commission and the resulting reduction in employees
occurring between the first day of September and the thirty-first
day of October, one thousand nine hundred ninety, for purposes of
qualifying for the credit formula under this subsection, an
employee is not considered to have a gap in participation in the
plan if the employee reentered the plan through another
participating employer between the
thirty-first day of October, one
thousand nine hundred ninety
, and the first day of
July, one
thousand nine hundred ninety
-two.
(e) Conversion of accrued annual and sick leave for extended insurance coverage upon retirement for employees who elected to
participate in the plan after June, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-eight. -- Notwithstanding subsection (d) of this section,
and except as otherwise provided in subsections (g) and (l) of this
section when an employee participating in the plan who elected to
participate in the plan on and after the first day of July, one
thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, is compelled or required by law
to retire before reaching the age of sixty-five, or when the
participating employee voluntarily retires as provided by law, that
employee's annual leave or sick leave, if any, shall be credited
toward one half of the premium cost of the insurance provided by
this article, for periods and scope of coverage determined
according to the following formulae: (1) One additional month of
single retiree coverage for every two days of annual leave or sick
leave, or both annual leave and sick leave, which the employee had
accrued as of the effective date of his or her retirement; or (2)
one additional month of coverage for a retiree, his or her spouse
and dependents for every three days of annual leave or sick leave,
or both annual leave and sick leave, which the employee had accrued
as of the effective date of his or her retirement. The remaining
premium cost shall be borne by the retired employee if he or she
elects the coverage. For purposes of this subsection, an employee
who has been a participant under spouse or dependent coverage and
who reenters the plan within twelve months after termination of his
or her prior coverage shall be considered to have elected to
participate in the plan as of the date of commencement of the prior coverage. For purposes of this subsection, an employee shall is
not be considered a new employee after returning from extended
authorized leave on or after the first day of July, one thousand
nine hundred eighty-eight.
(f) Increased retirement benefits for retired employees with
accrued annual and sick leave. -- In the alternative to the
extension of insurance coverage through premium payment provided in
subsections (d) and (e) of this section, the accrued annual leave
and sick leave of an employee participating in the plan may be
applied, on the basis of two days' retirement service credit for
each one day of accrued annual and sick leave, toward an increase
in the employee's retirement benefits with those days constituting
additional credited service in computation of the benefits under
any state retirement system. However, the additional credited
service shall may not be used in meeting initial eligibility for
retirement criteria, but only as additional service credited in
excess thereof.
(g) Conversion of accrued annual and sick leave for extended
insurance coverage upon retirement for certain higher education
employees. -- Except as otherwise provided in subsection (l) of
this section, when an employee, who is a higher education full-time
faculty member employed on an annual contract basis other than for
twelve months, is compelled or required by law to retire before
reaching the age of sixty-five, or when such a participating
employee voluntarily retires as provided by law, that employee's
insurance coverage, as provided by this article, shall be extended according to the following formulae: The insurance coverage for a
retired higher education full-time faculty member, formerly
employed on an annual contract basis other than for twelve months,
shall continue beyond the effective date of his or her retirement
one additional year for each three and one-third years of teaching
service, as determined by uniform guidelines established by the
university of West Virginia board of trustees and the board of
directors of the state college system, for individual coverage, or
one additional year for each five years of teaching service for
"family" coverage.
(h) Any employee who retired prior to the twenty-first day of
April, one thousand nine hundred seventy-two, and who also
otherwise meets the conditions of the "retired employee" definition
in section two of this article, shall be is eligible for insurance
coverage under the same terms and provisions of this article. The
retired employee's premium contribution for any such coverage shall
be established by the finance board.
(i) Retiree participation. -- All retirees under the
provisions of this article, including those defined in section two
of this article; those retiring prior to the twenty-first day of
April, one thousand nine hundred seventy-two; and those hereafter
retiring are eligible to obtain health insurance coverage. The
retired employee's premium contribution for the coverage shall be
established by the finance board.
(j) Surviving spouse and dependent participation. -- A
surviving spouse and dependents of a deceased employee, who was either an active or retired employee participating in the plan just
prior to his or her death, are entitled to be included in any group
insurance coverage provided under this article to which the
deceased employee was entitled, and the spouse and dependents shall
bear the premium cost of the insurance coverage. The finance board
shall establish the premium cost of the coverage.
(k) Elected officials. -- In construing the provisions of this
section or any other provisions of this code, the Legislature
declares that it is not now nor has it ever been the Legislature's
intent that elected public officials be provided any sick leave,
annual leave or personal leave, and the enactment of this section
is based upon the fact and assumption that no statutory or inherent
authority exists extending sick leave, annual leave or personal
leave to elected public officials and the very nature of those
positions preclude the arising or accumulation of any leave, so as
to be thereafter usable as premium paying credits for which the
officials may claim extended insurance benefits.
(l) Participation of certain former employees. -- An employee,
eligible for coverage under the provisions of this article who has
twenty years of service with any agency or entity participating in
the public employees insurance program or who has been covered by
the public employees insurance program for twenty years may, upon
leaving employment with a participating agency or entity, continue
to be covered by the program if the employee pays one hundred and
five percent of the cost of retiree coverage: Provided, That the
employee shall elect to continue coverage under this subsection within two years of the date the employment with a participating
agency or entity is terminated.
(m) Prohibition on conversion of accrued annual and sick leave
for extended coverage upon retirement for new employees who elect
to participate in the plan after June, two thousand one. -- Any
employee hired on or after the first day of July, two thousand one
who elects to participate in the plan may not apply accrued annual
or sick leave toward the cost of premiums for extended insurance
coverage upon his or her retirement. This prohibition does not
apply to the conversion of accrued annual or sick leave for
increased retirement benefits, as authorized by this section:
Provided, That any person who has participated in the plan prior to
the first day of July, two thousand one, is not a new employee for
purposes of this subsection if he or she becomes reemployed with an
employer participating in the plan within two years following his
or her separation from employment and he or she elects to
participate in the plan upon his or her reemployment.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to eliminate a certain gap
in employment for certain Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission
employees subject to a reduction in force and who are reemployed.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.