Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

General Assembly                     Raised Bill No. 5471
       February Session, 2020              LCO No. 2700
     Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY
     Introduced by:
       (JUD)
 AN ACT CONCERNING THE REVISOR'S TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS
 TO THE GENERAL STATUTES.
 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
 Assembly convened:
       Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 5-259 of the 2020 supplement to
    the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu
    thereof (Effective October 1, 2020):
      (a) The Comptroller, with the approval of the Attorney General and
   of the Insurance Commissioner, shall arrange and procure a group
   hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan or plans for (1)
   state employees, (2) members of the General Assembly who elect
   coverage under such plan or plans, (3) participants in an alternate
   retirement program who meet the service requirements of section 5-162
   or subsection (a) of section 5-166, (4) anyone receiving benefits under
   section 5-144 or from any state-sponsored retirement system, except the
   teachers' retirement system and the municipal employees retirement
   system, (5) judges of probate and Probate Court employees, (6) the
   surviving spouse, and any dependent children of a state police officer, a
   member of an organized local police department, a firefighter or a
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 constable who performs criminal law enforcement duties who dies
 before, on or after June 26, 2003, as the result of injuries received while
 acting within the scope of such officer's or firefighter's or constable's
 employment and not as the result of illness or natural causes, and whose
 surviving spouse and dependent children are not otherwise eligible for
 a group hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan.
 Coverage for a dependent child pursuant to this subdivision shall
 terminate no earlier than the end of the calendar year during whichever
 of the following occurs first, the date on which the child: Becomes
 covered under a group health plan through the dependent's own
 employment; or attains the age of twenty-six, (7) employees of the
 Capital Region Development Authority established by section 32-601,
 and (8) the surviving spouse and dependent children of any employee
 of a municipality who dies on or after October 1, 2000, as the result of
 injuries received while acting within the scope of such employee's
 employment and not as the result of illness or natural causes, and whose
 surviving spouse and dependent children are not otherwise eligible for
 a group hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan. For
 purposes of this subdivision, "employee" means any regular employee
 or elective officer receiving pay from a municipality, "municipality"
 means any town, city, borough, school district, taxing district, fire
 district, district department of health, probate district, housing
 authority, regional [work force] workforce development board
 established under section 31-3k, as amended by this act, flood
 commission or authority established by special act or regional council
 of governments. For purposes of subdivision (6) of this subsection,
 "firefighter" means any person who is regularly employed and paid by
 any municipality for the purpose of performing firefighting duties for a
 municipality on average of not less than thirty-five hours per week. The
 minimum benefits to be provided by such plan or plans shall be
 substantially equal in value to the benefits that each such employee or
 member of the General Assembly could secure in such plan or plans on
 an individual basis on the preceding first day of July. The state shall pay
 for each such employee and each member of the General Assembly
 covered by such plan or plans the portion of the premium charged for
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 such member's or employee's individual coverage and seventy per cent
 of the additional cost of the form of coverage and such amount shall be
 credited to the total premiums owed by such employee or member of
 the General Assembly for the form of such member's or employee's
 coverage under such plan or plans. On and after January 1, 1989, the
 state shall pay for anyone receiving benefits from any such state-
 sponsored retirement system one hundred per cent of the portion of the
 premium charged for such member's or employee's individual coverage
 and one hundred per cent of any additional cost for the form of
 coverage. The balance of any premiums payable by an individual
 employee or by a member of the General Assembly for the form of
 coverage shall be deducted from the payroll by the State Comptroller.
 The total premiums payable shall be remitted by the Comptroller to the
 insurance company or companies or nonprofit organization or
 organizations providing the coverage. The amount of the state's
 contribution per employee for a health maintenance organization option
 shall be equal, in terms of dollars and cents, to the largest amount of the
 contribution per employee paid for any other option that is available to
 all eligible state employees included in the health benefits plan, but shall
 not be required to exceed the amount of the health maintenance
 organization premium.
    Sec. 2. Subsection (i) of section 5-259 of the 2020 supplement to the
 general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu
 thereof (Effective October 1, 2020):
    (i) The Comptroller may provide for coverage of employees of
 municipalities, nonprofit corporations, community action agencies and
 small employers and individuals eligible for a health coverage tax
 credit, retired members or members of an association for personal care
 assistants under the plan or plans procured under subsection (a) of this
 section, provided: (1) Participation by each municipality, nonprofit
 corporation, community action agency, small employer, eligible
 individual, retired member or association for personal care assistants
 shall be on a voluntary basis; (2) where an employee organization
 represents employees of a municipality, nonprofit corporation,
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 community action agency or small employer, participation in a plan or
 plans to be procured under subsection (a) of this section shall be by
 mutual agreement of the municipality, nonprofit corporation,
 community action agency or small employer and the employee
 organization only and neither party may submit the issue of
 participation to binding arbitration except by mutual agreement if such
 binding arbitration is available; (3) no group of employees shall be
 refused entry into the plan by reason of past or future health care costs
 or claim experience; (4) rates paid by the state for its employees under
 subsection (a) of this section are not adversely affected by this
 subsection; (5) administrative costs to the plan or plans provided under
 this subsection shall not be paid by the state; (6) participation in the plan
 or plans in an amount determined by the state shall be for the duration
 of the period of the plan or plans, or for such other period as mutually
 agreed by the municipality, nonprofit corporation, community action
 agency, small employer, retired member or association for personal care
 assistants and the Comptroller; and (7) nothing in this section or section
 12-202a, 38a-551 or 38a-556 shall be construed as requiring a
 participating insurer or health care center to issue individual policies to
 individuals eligible for a health coverage tax credit. The coverage
 provided under this section may be referred to as the "Municipal
 Employee Health Insurance Plan". The Comptroller may arrange and
 procure for the employees and eligible individuals under this subsection
 health benefit plans that vary from the plan or plans procured under
 subsection (a) of this section. Notwithstanding any provision of part V
 of chapter 700c, the coverage provided under this subsection may be
 offered on either a fully underwritten or risk-pooled basis at the
 discretion of the Comptroller. For the purposes of this subsection, (A)
 "municipality" means any town, city, borough, school district, taxing
 district, fire district, district department of health, probate district,
 housing authority, regional [work force] workforce development board
 established under section 31-3k, as amended by this act, regional
 emergency telecommunications center, tourism district established
 under section 32-302, flood commission or authority established by
 special act, regional council of governments, transit district formed
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 under chapter 103a, or the Children's Center established by number 571
 of the public acts of 1969; (B) "nonprofit corporation" means (i) a
 nonprofit corporation organized under 26 USC 501 that has a contract
 with the state or receives a portion of its funding from a municipality,
 the state or the federal government, or (ii) an organization that is tax
 exempt pursuant to 26 USC 501(c)(5); (C) "community action agency"
 means a community action agency, as defined in section 17b-885; (D)
 "small employer" means a small employer, as defined in section 38a-564;
 (E) "eligible individuals" or "individuals eligible for a health coverage
 tax credit" means individuals who are eligible for the credit for health
 insurance costs under Section 35 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,
 or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United
 States, as from time to time amended, in accordance with the Pension
 Benefit Guaranty Corporation; (F) "association for personal care
 assistants" means an organization composed of personal care attendants
 who are employed by recipients of service (i) under the home-care
 program for the elderly under section 17b-342, (ii) under the personal
 care assistance program under section 17b-605a, (iii) in an independent
 living center pursuant to sections 17b-613 to 17b-615, inclusive, or (iv)
 under the program for individuals with acquired brain injury as
 described in section 17b-260a; and (G) "retired members" means
 individuals eligible for a retirement benefit from the Connecticut
 municipal employees' retirement system.
    Sec. 3. Subdivision (1) of section 7-425 of the general statutes is
 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October
 1, 2020):
    (1) "Municipality" means any town, city, borough, school district,
 regional school district, taxing district, fire district, district department
 of health, probate district, housing authority, regional [work force]
 workforce development board established under section 31-3k, as
 amended by this act, regional emergency telecommunications center,
 tourism district established under section 10-397, flood commission or
 authority established by special act or regional council of governments;
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    Sec. 4. Subsection (a) of section 7-427 of the general statutes is
 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October
 1, 2020):
    (a) Any municipality except a housing authority, which is governed
 by subsection (b) of this section or a regional [work force] workforce
 development board established under section 31-3k, as amended by this
 act, which is governed by section 7-427a, as amended by this act, may,
 by resolution passed by its legislative body and subject to such
 referendum as may be hereinafter provided, accept this part as to any
 department or departments of such municipality as may be designated
 therein, including elective officers if so specified, free public libraries
 which receive part or all of their income from municipal appropriation,
 and the redevelopment agency of such municipality whether or not
 such municipality is a member of the system, as defined in section 7-452,
 but such acceptance shall not repeal, amend or replace, or affect the
 continuance of, any pension system established in such municipality by
 or under the authority of any special act and all such special acts shall
 remain in full force and effect until repealed or amended by the General
 Assembly or as provided by chapter 99. The acceptance of this part as to
 any department or departments of a municipality shall not affect the
 right of such municipality to accept it in the future as to any other
 department or departments. In any municipality other than a district
 department of health, housing authority, flood commission or authority,
 regional council of governments or supervision district board of
 education, such resolution shall not take effect until it has been
 approved by a majority of the electors of the municipality voting
 thereon at the next regular election or meeting or at a special election or
 meeting called for the purpose. The effective date of participation shall
 be at least ninety days subsequent to the receipt by the Retirement
 Commission of the certified copy of such resolution. The Retirement
 Commission shall furnish to any municipality contemplating
 acceptance of this part, at the expense of such municipality, an estimate
 of the probable cost to such municipality of such acceptance as to any
 department or departments thereof.
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    Sec. 5. Section 7-427a of the general statutes is repealed and the
 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2020):
    If the majority of the members of a regional [work force] workforce
 development board vote to participate in this part, employees of a
 regional [work force] workforce development board who are eligible
 under section 7-425, as amended by this act, and who are not members
 of the Municipal Employees' Retirement Fund B shall become members
 thereof on July 1, 1998. Membership in any other retirement system shall
 terminate on said date. The members of a regional [work force]
 workforce development board shall arrange for termination of such
 systems, which arrangements shall include provision that the rights of
 members who retired prior to July 1, 1998, under such system shall not
 be affected and provision that any refunds of employee contributions
 made to such other retirement system shall be transferred to the
 Municipal Employees' Retirement Fund B and the appropriate amount
 credited to the account of each transferring employee's benefit. Each
 employee of the regional [work force] workforce development board
 shall pay his pro rata share of the actual cost of such transfer at no
 additional cost to the municipality or board.
    Sec. 6. Section 7-427b of the general statutes is repealed and the
 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2020):
    (a) Any employee of a regional [work force] workforce development
 board which has voted to participate in this part who previously was an
 employee of a private industry council shall receive credit for the
 purposes of retirement under the provisions of this part for the period
 of his service with the private industry council upon payment to the
 Municipal Employees' Retirement Fund of a sum equal to that which he
 would have paid had such service been covered by the provisions of this
 part, provided such sum is paid within one year of the date of such
 board's first participation in this part.
   (b) Any employee of a regional [work force] workforce development
 board which has voted to participate in this part shall receive credit for
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 the purposes of retirement under the provisions of this part for the
 period of his service with such board when such board was not
 participating under the provisions of this part upon payment to the
 Municipal Employees' Retirement Fund of a sum equal to that which he
 would have paid had such service been covered by the provisions of this
 part, provided such sum is paid within one year of the date of such
 board's first participation in this part.
    Sec. 7. Section 10a-55f of the general statutes is repealed and the
 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2020):
    Public institutions of higher education, in consultation with the
 regional [work force] workforce development boards, shall support any
 efforts to develop career ladders and lattices in the green technology
 industry, particularly for those workers who ga