Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
 State of Arkansas
 94th General Assembly                        A Bill
 Regular Session, 2023                                                             HOUSE BILL 1262
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 By: Representatives L. Johnson, Hawk, Maddox, Vaught
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                                   For An Act To Be Entitled
                AN ACT TO AMEND RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
                UNDER THE ARKANSAS LOCAL POLICE AND FIRE RETIREMENT
                SYSTEM; TO AMEND RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
                FOR PUBLIC SAFETY MEMBERS OF THE ARKANSAS PUBLIC
                EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM; TO AMEND RETIREMENT
                ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE STATE POLICE
                RETIREMENT SYSTEM; TO AMEND THE DEFINITIONS UNDER THE
                ARKANSAS STATE HIGHWAY EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM;
                TO AMEND THE RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
                UNDER THE ARKANSAS STATE HIGHWAY EMPLOYEES'
                RETIREMENT SYSTEM; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
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                                               Subtitle
                         TO AMEND RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY
                         REQUIREMENTS UNDER VARIOUS PUBLIC
                         RETIREMENT SYSTEMS OF THE STATE OF
                         ARKANSAS FOR POLICE OFFICERS,
                         FIREFIGHTERS, PUBLIC SAFETY MEMBERS, AND
                         SHERIFFS.
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 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
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        SECTION 1.       Arkansas Code § 24-4-101(28)(D), concerning the definition
 of "normal retirement age" as it applies to a noncontributory member with
 credited service for employment as a public safety employee or as a sheriff
 under the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System, is amended to read as
 follows:
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                    (D)(i) For a noncontributory member with credited service
 for employment as a public safety employee or as a sheriff, age sixty-five
 (65) years of age reduced by one (1) month for each two (2) months of such
 credited service, but in no event to an age younger than fifty-five (55)
 years of age, except in the case of a sheriff who has a minimum of ten (10)
 years of actual service as a sheriff or who has eight (8) years of actual
 service as a sheriff and a minimum of two (2) years of service in another
 state-supported retirement system, for whom the minimum retirement age shall
 be fifty-two (52) years of age; or
                          (ii)   The age upon completion of twenty-six (26)
 years of credited service;
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      SECTION 2.    Arkansas Code § 24-4-101(28), concerning the definition of
 "normal retirement age" under the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement
 System, is amended to add an additional subdivision to read as follows:
                    (I)   For a public safety member, sheriff, or any member who
 is employed as a police officer or firefighter, regardless of the date of
 commencement of the member's employment, the age upon completion of twenty-
 six (26) years of credited service;
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      SECTION 3.    Arkansas Code § 24-4-508(a), concerning the requirements
 for voluntary retirement under the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement
 System, is amended to read as follows:
      (a)   Any Except as provided in § 24-4-101(28), any member may
 voluntarily retire upon his or her written application filed with the Board
 of Trustees of the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System setting forth
 at what time, not less than thirty (30) days nor more than ninety (90) days
 subsequent to the execution and filing of the application, that he or she
 desires to be retired if that member has:
            (1)    Twenty-eight (28) or more years of credited service
 regardless of age;
            (2)    Attained or attains age sixty (60) and has twenty (20) or
 more years of actual contributory service commenced prior to January 1, 1978;
 or
            (3)    Attained or attains age sixty-five (65) and has five (5) or
 more years of actual service, except for a member of the General Assembly who
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 must have ten (10) or more years of actual service if he or she only has
 service as a member of the General Assembly.
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        SECTION 4.    Arkansas Code § 24-5-101, concerning the definitions under
 the Arkansas State Highway Employees' Retirement System, is amended to add an
 additional subdivision to read as follows:
             (16)(A)        "Police officer" means a permanent employee whose
 primary duty is law enforcement with the Arkansas Highway Police Division of
 the Arkansas Department of Transportation.
                      (B)    "Police officer" does not include a person who has not
 satisfied the training requirements to be a police officer established by the
 Arkansas Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training under § 12-9-
 106.
                      (C)    "Police officer" does not include any civilian
 employee of the division or any person temporarily employed as a police
 officer during an emergency, except as described in subdivision (16)(D) of
 this section.
                      (D)    A police officer who, although assigned to
 administrative duties, is still subject to call for service at patrol duty or
 duty in the field or is subject to call for duties in emergency situations
 requiring the officer to be armed with a firearm shall be considered to have
 the primary duty of law enforcement for the purpose of subdivision (16)(A) of
 this section.
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        SECTION 5.    Arkansas Code § 24-5-112(a), concerning the age requirement
 for voluntary retirement under the Arkansas State Highway Employees'
 Retirement System, is amended to add an additional subdivision to read as
 follows:
             (5)     Regardless of age, with twenty-six (26) years of creditable
 service in the system, if the member is a police officer.
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        SECTION 6.    Arkansas Code § 24-5-204(b), concerning applicability of
 rules promulgated by the Board of Trustees of the Arkansas State Highway
 Employees' Retirement System when the rule lowers the required years of
 service for entry into the Arkansas State Highway Employees' Deferred
 Retirement Option Plan, is amended to read as follows:
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        (b)   This section shall apply only to entry into the plan by a person
 who:
                 (1)   Who is not a police officer;
                 (2)   Who has twenty-eight (28) or twenty-nine (29) years of
 creditable service; and whose
                 (3)   Whose eligibility for retirement is based on rules adopted
 pursuant to § 24-5-112(c).
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        SECTION 7.      Arkansas Code § 24-6-226(a), concerning the eligibility
 requirements for voluntary retirement for Tier I noncontributory members of
 the State Police Retirement System, is amended to read as follows:
        (a)(1)     Any member who has acquired five (5) years but less than
 twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26) years of actual service and has attained
 age sixty-five (65) sixty-five (65) years of age may retire upon written
 application filed with the Board of Trustees of the State Police Retirement
 System.
                 (2)   Any member who has acquired five (5) or more years of actual
 service and has attained age fifty-two (52) fifty-two (52) years of age may
 retire upon written application filed with the State Police Retirement
 System.
                 (3)   Any member who acquired twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26) or
 more years of actual service may retire at any age upon written application
 filed with the board.
                 (4)   For those members with less than twenty-eight (28) twenty-
 six (26) actual years of service, the age sixty-five (65) age-sixty-five
 requirement shall be reduced by one (1) month for every two (2) months of
 public safety credit, but in no event to an age younger than fifty-two (52)
 years of age.
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        SECTION 8.      Arkansas Code § 24-6-301 is amended to read as follows:
        24-6-301.      Election to participate.
        In lieu of terminating employment and accepting a service retirement
 pension, any a state police officer who is a member of Tier I of the State
 Police Retirement System who has not less than twenty-eight (28) twenty-six
 (26) years of credited service and who is eligible to receive a service
 retirement pension may elect to participate in the Arkansas State Police
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 Officers Deferred Option Plan and defer the receipt of benefits in accordance
 with the provisions of this subchapter, provided the Board of Trustees of the
 State Police Retirement System approves the participation in the plan.
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      SECTION 9.      Arkansas Code § 24-6-404(a), concerning eligibility
 requirements for voluntary retirement under the Tier Two Benefit Plan of the
 State Police Retirement System, is amended to read as follows:
      (a)(1)     Any A member who has acquired five (5) years but less than
 twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26) years of credited service and has attained
 age sixty-five (65) sixty-five (65) years of age may retire upon his or her
 written application filed with the Board of Trustees of the State Police
 Retirement System.
               (2)   Any A member who has acquired twenty-eight (28) twenty-six
 (26) or more years of credited service may retire at any age upon his or her
 written application filed with the board.
               (3)   For those members with less than twenty-eight (28) twenty-
 six (26) credited years of service, the age sixty-five age-sixty-five
 requirement shall be reduced by seventy-five hundredths (0.75) of a month for
 each credited month of service, but in no event to an age younger than fifty-
 five (55) years of age.
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      SECTION 10.      Arkansas Code § 24-6-502(1)(B), concerning the requirement
 for a state police officer to have twenty-eight years of actual service as a
 member of the State Police Retirement System's Tier Two Benefit Plan before
 electing to participate in the Tier Two Deferred Retirement Option Plan, is
 amended to read as follows:
                      (B)   Has at least twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26) years
 of actual service as a member of the State Police Retirement System's Tier
 Two Benefit Plan under § 24-6-401 et seq., including service credit a member
 earns after April 3, 1997, as a member of the plan under § 24-6-401 et seq.,
 and the member's service credit from a reciprocal retirement system under §
 24-2-401 et seq.; and
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      SECTION 11.      Arkansas Code § 24-10-102(23)(C), concerning the
 definition of "normal retirement age" for the Arkansas Local Police and Fire
 Retirement System, is amended to read as follows:
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                      (C)   Any age if the member has twenty-eight (28) twenty-six
 (26) or more years of credited service;
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      SECTION 12.      Arkansas Code § 24-10-607(d)(1)(C)(ii)(a), concerning the
 amount of annuity paid to a member of the Arkansas Local Police and Fire
 Retirement System who is retiring due to a catastrophic duty disability, is
 amended to read as follows:
                                        (a)   The annuity paid to a retirant with
 twenty-eight (28) twenty-five (25) years of accrued paid service credit; or
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      SECTION 13.      Arkansas Code § 24-10-701(a)(1), concerning the
 eligibility of a member of the Arkansas Local Police and Fire Retirement
 System to participate in the Local Police and Fire Deferred Retirement Option
 Plan, is amended to read as follows:
               (1)   The member has at least twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26)
 years of service; or
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      SECTION 14.      Arkansas Code § 24-10-703(c), concerning contributions to
 the Local Police and Fire Deferred Retirement Option Plan, is amended to read
 as follows:
      (c)(1)     For a member who has at least twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26)
 years of service before electing to participate in the plan, seventy-five
 percent (75%) of the member's monthly retirement benefit that would have been
 payable had the member elected to cease employment and receive a service
 retirement shall be paid into the member's plan account.
               (2)   For a member who has at least twenty (20) years of service
 but less than twenty-eight (28) twenty-six (26) years of service and is at
 least fifty-five (55) years of age before electing to participate in the
 plan, seventy-two percent (72%) of the member's monthly retirement benefit
 that would have been payable had the member elected to cease employment and
 receive a service retirement shall be paid into the member's plan account.
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Statutes affected: 
HB 1262: 24-4-101(28), 24-4-508(a), 24-5-101, 24-5-112(a), 24-5-204(b), 24-6-226(a), 24-6-301, 24-6-404(a), 24-6-502(1), 24-10-102(23), 24-10-607(d), 24-10-701(a), 24-10-703(c)