HB3506 S PEN AM #1 3-31
Childs 7949
The Committee on Pensions moved to amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting clause and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
(a) Any judge of a court of record of this state who shall have served for a period of not less than eight full years after attaining the age of sixty-five 65 years and who shall have made payments into the Judges' Retirement Fund as provided in this article for each month during which he or she served as such judge following the effective date of this section, shall be subject to all the applicable terms and provisions of this article, not inconsistent with the provisions hereof, and shall receive retirement benefits in an amount equal to seventy-five 75 percent of the annual salary of the office from which he or she has retired based upon such salary of such office as such salary may be changed from time to time during the period of his or her retirement and the amount of his or her retirement benefits shall be based upon and be equal to seventy-five 75 percent of the highest annual salary of such office for any one calendar year during the period of his or her retirement and shall be payable in monthly installments. If such judge shall become incapacitated to perform his or her said duties before the expiration of his or her said term and after serving for six years thereof, and upon the acceptance of his or her resignation as in this article provided, he or she shall be paid the annual retirement benefits as herein provided so long as he or she shall live. The provisions of this section shall prevail over any language to the contrary in this article contained, except those provisions of sections §51-9-12a and §51-9-12b twelve-a and twelve-b of this article code: Provided, That no individual who is appointed or elected for the first time as judge of a court of record of this state after July 1, 2005, is eligible for retirement under this section subsection.
(b) Any individual who is appointed or elected for the first time as a family court judge, a judge of a court of record, judge of the Intermediate Court of Appeals, or as a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, of this state after July 1, 2005, who having attained the age of 65 years, and who shall have served as a sitting judge of said court or courts for a period of not less than 12 full years, and who shall have made payments into the Judges’ Retirement Fund as provided in this article for each month during which he or she served as a judge or justice, shall be eligible to receive the pension to which he or she would otherwise have been entitled to receive as if at 16 years of credited service, but with an actuarial reduction of pension benefit to be established as a reduced annuity receivable throughout retirement, and shall be paid as an annual retirement benefit as herein provided so long as he or she shall live.
(a) There shall be paid, from the fund created or continued by section two of this article §51-9-2 of this code, or from such funds as may be appropriated by the Legislature for such purpose, an annuity to the surviving spouse of a judge, if such judge at the time of his or her death is eligible for the retirement benefits provided by any of the provisions of this article, or who has, at death, actually served five years or more as a sitting judge of any court of record of this state, exclusive of any other service credit to which such judge may otherwise be entitled, and who dies either while in office or after resignation or retirement from office pursuant to the provisions of this article. Said annuity shall amount to forty 50 percent of the annual salary of the office which said judge held at his or her death or from which he or she resigned or retired. In the event said salary is increased or decreased while an annuitant is receiving the benefits hereunder, his or her annuity shall amount to forty 50 percent of the new salary.: Provided, That with respect to any individual who is appointed or elected for the first time as judge of a court of record of this state after July 1, 2005, any annuity to the surviving spouse of the judge shall be an amount equal to forty percent of the judge's final average salary: Provided, however, That the annuitant is not entitled to an increase in benefits by virtue of any increase in the salaries of the offices of circuit court judge or Justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals. The annuity granted hereunder shall accrue monthly and shall be due and payable in monthly installments on the first business day of the month following the month for which the annuity shall have accrued. Such annuity shall commence on the first day of the month in which said judge dies and shall, subject to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, terminate upon the death of the annuitant or shall terminate upon the remarriage of the annuitant.
(b) If there be no surviving spouse at the time of death of a judge who dies after serving five years or more as a sitting judge of any court of record and such judge leaves surviving him or her any dependent child or children, such dependent child or children shall receive an amount equal to twenty 20 percent of the annual salary of the office which said judge held at the time of his or her death: Provided, That the total of all such annuities payable to each such child shall not exceed in the aggregate an amount equal to forty 40 percent of such salary. Such annuity shall continue as to each such child until: (i) He or she attains the age of eighteen 18 years; or (ii) attains the age of twenty-three 23 years so long as such child remains a full-time student. The Auditor shall by legislative rule establish the criteria for determining a person's status as a full-time student within the meaning and intent of this subsection. In the event there are surviving any such judge three or more dependent children, then each such child's annuity shall be proratably reduced in order that the aggregate annuity received by all such dependent children does not exceed forty 40 percent of such salary and the amount to be so received by any such child shall continue throughout the entire period during which each such child is eligible to receive such annuity. The provisions of this subsection shall also apply to those circumstances and situations wherein a surviving spouse of a deceased judge shall die while receiving benefits pursuant to subsection (a) of this section and who shall leave surviving dependent children of such deceased judge who would be entitled to benefits under this subsection as if they had succeeded to such annuity benefits upon the death of such judge in the first instance. In the event the salary of judges is increased or decreased while an annuitant is receiving benefits pursuant to this subsection, the annuities payable shall be likewise increased or decreased proportionately to reflect such change in salary: Provided, however, That with respect to any individual who is appointed or elected for the first time as judge of a court of record of this state after July 1, 2005, any annuity to any children of the judge shall be calculated with respect to the judge's final average salary: Provided further, That the child is not entitled to an increase in benefits by virtue of any increase in the salaries of the offices of circuit court judge, family court judge, Intermediate Court of Appeals Judge, or Justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals. The annuities granted hereunder shall accrue monthly and shall be due and payable in monthly installments on the same day as surviving spouses' benefits are required to be paid. Such annuities shall commence on the first day of the month in which any such dependent child becomes eligible for benefits hereunder and shall terminate on the last day of the month during which such eligibility ceases.
[Repealed]
[Repealed]
Adopted
Rejected