Regular Session 2021-2022 House Bill 1008 P.N. 1040

PRINTER'S NO. 1040

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1008

Session of

2021

INTRODUCED BY RYAN, STAATS, MENTZER, GROVE, KAUFFMAN, GAYDOS,

MOUL AND B. MILLER, MARCH 24, 2021

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON FINANCE, MARCH 24, 2021

AN ACT

Amending the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), entitled

"An act relating to the finances of the State government;

providing for cancer control, prevention and research, for

ambulatory surgical center data collection, for the Joint

Underwriting Association, for entertainment business

financial management firms, for private dam financial

assurance and for reinstatement of item vetoes; providing for

the settlement, assessment, collection, and lien of taxes,

bonus, and all other accounts due the Commonwealth, the

collection and recovery of fees and other money or property

due or belonging to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

including escheated property and the proceeds of its sale,

the custody and disbursement or other disposition of funds

and securities belonging to or in the possession of the

Commonwealth, and the settlement of claims against the

Commonwealth, the resettlement of accounts and appeals to the

courts, refunds of moneys erroneously paid to the

Commonwealth, auditing the accounts of the Commonwealth and

all agencies thereof, of all public officers collecting

moneys payable to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

and all receipts of appropriations from the Commonwealth,

authorizing the Commonwealth to issue tax anticipation notes

to defray current expenses, implementing the provisions of

section 7(a) of Article VIII of the Constitution of

Pennsylvania authorizing and restricting the incurring of

certain debt and imposing penalties; affecting every

department, board, commission, and officer of the State

government, every political subdivision of the State, and

certain officers of such subdivisions, every person,

association, and corporation required to pay, assess, or

collect taxes, or to make returns or reports under the laws

imposing taxes for State purposes, or to pay license fees or

other moneys to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

every State depository and every debtor or creditor of the

Commonwealth," in additional special funds and restricted

accounts, providing for Unfunded Liability Solvency Reserve

Fund.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Article XVII-A.1 of the act of April 9, 1929

(P.L.343, No.176), known as The Fiscal Code, is amended by

adding a subarticle to read:

SUBARTICLE J

UNFUNDED LIABILITY SOLVENCY RESERVE FUND

Section 1791-A.1. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this subarticle

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Public retirement funds." The State Employees' Retirement

Fund and the Public School Employees' Retirement Fund.

"Public School Employees' Retirement Fund." The fund

established under 24 Pa.C.S. Pt. IV (relating to retirement for

school employees).

"Solvency Reserve Fund." The Unfunded Liability Solvency

Reserve Fund established under section 1792-A.1.

"State Employees' Retirement Fund." The fund established

under 71 Pa.C.S. Pt. XXV (relating to retirement for State

employees and officers).

Section 1792-A.1. Unfunded Liability Solvency Reserve Fund.

(a) Establishment.--The Unfunded Liability Solvency Reserve

Fund is established within the State Treasury as a special fund.

(b) Deposits.--The following shall be deposited into the

Solvency Reserve Fund:

(1) If the Secretary of the Budget certifies that there

is a surplus in the General Fund for a specific fiscal year,

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any amount of the surplus which is not deposited into the

Budget Stabilization Reserve Fund under section 1702-A(b). A

deposit under this paragraph shall be deposited by the end of

the next succeeding quarter into the Solvency Reserve Fund.

(2) Any amount appropriated to the Solvency Reserve Fund

by the General Assembly.

(3) Any amount transferred to the Solvency Reserve Fund

by law.

shall only be appropriated to the public retirement funds in

accordance with subsections (d), (e), (f) and (g).

(d) Restrictions on appropriations.--Money in the Solvency

Reserve Fund shall be appropriated for the following purposes:

(1) To make an additional contribution to the Public

School Employees' Retirement Fund in excess of the

actuarially required contribution for the fiscal year.

(2) To make an additional contribution to the State

Employees' Retirement Fund in excess of the actuarially

required contribution for the fiscal year.

(e) Treatment of transfers.--Amounts transferred to the

public retirement funds must be in addition to required annual

employer contributions required under 24 Pa.C.S. §§ 8326

(relating to contributions by the Commonwealth) and 8327

(relating to payments by employers) and 71 Pa.C.S. § 5507

(relating to contributions to the system by the Commonwealth and

other employers) and may not be used to replace any portion of

the annual employer contributions certified by the boards under

24 Pa.C.S. § 8328 (relating to actuarial cost method) and 71

Pa.C.S. §§ 5507, 5508 (relating to actuarial cost method) and

5902(k) (relating to administrative duties of the board). The

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Public School Employees' Retirement Board and the State

Employees' Retirement Board shall accept the transferred money

and apply the money to offset the current unfunded actuarial

accrued liabilities of the public retirement funds.

(f) Certifications.--On July 1, 2021, and July 1 of each

subsequent year, the Secretary of the Budget shall certify the

following:

(1) The total unfunded actuarial accrued liabilities of

the Public School Employees' Retirement Fund.

(2) The total unfunded actuarial accrued liabilities of

the State Employees' Retirement Fund as determined by the

State Employees' Retirement Board in the most recent

actuarial valuation of the State Employees' Retirement

system.

(g) Amounts.--The following shall apply:

(1) For the 2021-2022 fiscal year and each subsequent

fiscal year, the following amounts are appropriated from the

Solvency Reserve Fund to the Public School Employees'

Retirement Fund:

(i) The total amount in the Solvency Reserve Fund as

of the first day of the fiscal year, multiplied by a

quotient, the numerator of which is the amount certified

under subsection (f)(1) and the denominator of which is

the total amount certified under subsection (f).

(ii) (Reserved).

(2) For the 2021-2022 fiscal year and each subsequent

fiscal year, the following amounts are appropriated from the

Solvency Reserve Fund to the State Employees' Retirement

Fund:

(i) The total amount in the Solvency Reserve Fund as

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of the first day of the fiscal year, multiplied by a

quotient, the numerator of which is the amount certified

under subsection (f)(2) and the denominator of which is

the total amount certified under subsection (f).

(ii) (Reserved).

(h) Recognition of amounts appropriated from the Solvency

Reserve Fund.--Amounts received by the State Employees'

Retirement Fund under this subarticle shall be recognized by the

State Employees' Retirement Board as part of the experience

adjustment factor under 71 Pa.C.S. § 5508(f) as a percentage of

all the active members and active participants.

Section 2. This act shall take effect in 120 days.

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