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                                                      PRINTER'S NO. 2594

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


HOUSE BILL

No. 1887 Session of 2007


        INTRODUCED BY READSHAW, BRENNAN, GEORGE, HARHAI, KORTZ, PETRONE,
           THOMAS, WALKO AND WOJNAROSKI, OCTOBER 4, 2007

        REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON FINANCE, OCTOBER 4, 2007

                                     AN ACT

     1  Amending the act of May 25, 1933 (P.L.1050, No.242), entitled
     2     "An act creating and establishing a fund for the care,
     3     maintenance, and relief of aged, retired and disabled
     4     employes of the bureau of fire in cities of the second class;
     5     creating a board for the management thereof; providing the
     6     mode and manner of payment to beneficiaries, and for the care
     7     and disposition of its funds; and providing for the transfer
     8     and payment of all moneys and securities in existing funds in
     9     similar boards superseded by the fund and board herein
    10     created," further providing for membership in the fund; and
    11     providing for limited vested benefits.

    12     The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
    13  hereby enacts as follows:
    14     Section 1.  The title and section 8 of the act of May 25,
    15  1933 (P.L.1050, No.242), referred to as the Second Class City
    16  Firemen Relief Law, are amended to read:
    17                               AN ACT
    18  Creating and establishing a fund for the care, maintenance, and
    19     relief of aged, retired and disabled employes of the bureau
    20     of fire and of the bureau of emergency medical services in
    21     cities of the second class; creating a board for the
    22     management thereof; providing the mode and manner of payment

     1     to beneficiaries, and for the care and disposition of its
     2     funds; and providing for the transfer and payment of all
     3     moneys and securities in existing funds in similar boards
     4     superseded by the fund and board herein created."
     5     Section 8.  Those eligible to membership in the fund shall
     6  be:
     7     (1)  All uniformed employes of the bureau of fire, including
     8  the commanding officer and the chief of the bureau.
     9     (2)  All substitute uniformed employes of the bureau of fire.
    10     (3)  All persons who are at present members of the existing
    11  fund in such city. Employes of the bureaus of electricity and
    12  building inspection in such city who have entered such service
    13  since the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred and
    14  eighteen, shall not be eligible to be members of such fund.
    15     (4)  All employes of the bureau of emergency medical
    16  services.
    17     Section 2.  The act is amended by adding a section to read:
    18     Section 11.2.  (a)  Members of the fund who become eligible
    19  under section 8(4) of this act may become eligible for a limited
    20  vested benefit once the Pittsburgh City Council passes an
    21  ordinance authorizing this type of benefit. The ordinance may
    22  provide for a limited vested benefit if such would conform to
    23  section 305 of the act of December 18, 1984 (P.L.1005, No.205),
    24  known as the "Municipal Pension Plan Funding Standard and
    25  Recovery Act." Under the provisions of the benefit, should a
    26  member of the firemen's pension fund, before completing the
    27  minimum period of continuous service requirements but after
    28  having completed twelve years of full-time service, the member
    29  shall be entitled to vest his or her retirement benefits subject
    30  to the following conditions:
    20070H1887B2594                  - 2 -     

     1     (1)  the member must file with the management board of the
     2  firemen's pension fund a written notice of his or her intention
     3  to vest;
     4     (2)  the member must include in the notice, the date the
     5  member intends to terminate his or her service as a full-time
     6  employe of the bureau of emergency medical services;
     7     (3)  the termination date shall be at least thirty days later
     8  than the date of notice to vest;
     9     (4)  the member must be in good standing with the bureau of
    10  emergency medical services on the date of notice to vest; and
    11     (5)  the board shall indicate on the notice to vest the rate
    12  of the monthly pay of the member as of the date of said notice
    13  to vest or the highest average annual salary which the member
    14  received during any five years of service preceding said date,
    15  whichever is the higher.
    16     (b)  Upon reaching the date which would have been the
    17  member's retirement date had the member continued his or her
    18  full-time employment with the bureau of emergency medical
    19  services, the member shall notify the board, in writing, that
    20  the member desires to collect his or her pension. The amount of
    21  retirement benefits the member is entitled to receive under this
    22  section shall be computed as follows:
    23     (1)  the initial determination of the member's base
    24  retirement benefits shall be computed on the salary indicated on
    25  the notice to vest; and
    26     (2)  the portion of the base retirement benefits due the
    27  member shall be determined by applying to the base amount the
    28  percentage that his or her years of service actually rendered
    29  bears to the years of service which would have been rendered had
    30  the member continued to be employed by the bureau of emergency
    20070H1887B2594                  - 3 -     

     1  medical services until his or her minimum retirement date.
     2     Section 3.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.



















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