The bill seeks to amend and clarify various provisions related to public employee pensions, particularly focusing on disability and survivor pensions. It establishes a "disability review committee" within the retirement board to oversee disability retirement applications, ensuring the involvement of at least one licensed physician in the review process. The bill also allows for the crediting of personal service rendered to affiliated public employers under specific conditions and mandates the correction and recovery of overpayments made to members or beneficiaries due to errors. Additionally, it introduces an exemption from the Procurement Code for the collection of overpayments and clarifies eligibility criteria for survivor pensions, specifying that they may be granted to designated beneficiaries or surviving spouses if the member's death is work-related.

Moreover, the bill modifies the distribution of survivor pensions, ensuring equal division among eligible surviving children if no designated beneficiary or spouse exists. It also clarifies the pension amounts payable based on the deceased member's final average salary and the coverage plan. The retirement board's authority and membership structure are updated to enhance management of the retirement system, while confidentiality rules regarding member and retiree information are revised to allow for certain disclosures with protections against unauthorized access. Lastly, the bill establishes compliance with the Gift Act for retirement board members and candidates, sets limits on contributions to candidates, and mandates that all magistrates become members of the Magistrate Retirement Act unless an exemption is filed, reinforcing the integrity of the retirement system.

Statutes affected:
introduced version: 10-11-4, 10-11-4.2, 10-11-10.1, 10-11-14.5, 10-11-26.3, 10-11-130, 10-11-130.1, 10-11-135, 10-11A-7