HB4607 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB097 18128 EFG 63352 b

97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB4607

Introduced , by Rep. Sandy Cole

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

40 ILCS 5/7-109

from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-109

Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code, Amends the definition of "employee" to exclude persons whose employment does not benefit the public. Also includes technical changes. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by changing Section 7-109 as follows:

(40 ILCS 5/7-109) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-109)

Sec. 7-109. Employee.

(1) "Employee" means any person who:

(a) 1. Receives earnings as payment for the performance of personal services or official duties out of the general fund of a municipality, or out of any special fund or funds controlled by a municipality, or by an instrumentality thereof, or a participating instrumentality, including, in counties, the fees or earnings of any county fee office; and

2. Under the usual common law rules applicable in determining the employer-employee relationship, has the status of an employee with a municipality, or any instrumentality thereof, or a participating instrumentality, including aldermen, county supervisors and other persons (excepting those employed as independent contractors) who are paid compensation, fees, allowances or other emolument for official duties, and, in counties, the several county fee offices.

(b) Serves as a township treasurer appointed under the School Code, as heretofore or hereafter amended, and who receives for such services regular compensation as distinguished from per diem compensation, and any regular employee in the office of any township treasurer whether or not his earnings are paid from the income of the permanent township fund or from funds subject to distribution to the several school districts and parts of school districts as provided in the School Code, or from both such sources; or is the chief executive officer, chief educational officer, chief fiscal officer, or other employee of a Financial Oversight Panel established pursuant to Article 1H of the School Code, other than a superintendent or certified school business official, except that such person shall not be treated as an employee under this Section if that person has negotiated with the Financial Oversight Panel, in conjunction with the school district, a contractual agreement for exclusion from this Section.

(c) Holds an elective office in a municipality, instrumentality thereof or participating instrumentality.

(2) "Employee" does not include persons who:

(a) Are eligible for inclusion under any of the following laws:

1. "An Act in relation to an Illinois State Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund", approved May 27, 1915, as amended;

2. Articles 15 and 16 of this Code.

However, such persons shall be included as employees to the extent of earnings that are not eligible for inclusion under the foregoing laws for services not of an instructional nature of any kind.

However, any member of the armed forces who is employed as a teacher of subjects in the Reserve Officers Training Corps of any school and who is not certified under the law governing the certification of teachers shall be included as an employee.

(b) Are designated by the governing body of a municipality in which a pension fund is required by law to be established for policemen or firemen, respectively, as performing police or fire protection duties, except that when such persons are the heads of the police or fire department and are not eligible to be included within any such pension fund, they shall be included within this Article; provided, that such persons shall not be excluded to the extent of concurrent service and earnings not designated as being for police or fire protection duties. However, (i) any head of a police department who was a participant under this Article immediately before October 1, 1977 and did not elect, under Section 3-109 of this Act, to participate in a police pension fund shall be an "employee", and (ii) any chief of police who elects to participate in this Fund under Section 3-109.1 of this Code, regardless of whether such person continues to be employed as chief of police or is employed in some other rank or capacity within the police department, shall be an employee under this Article for so long as such person is employed to perform police duties by a participating municipality and has not lawfully rescinded that election.

(c) After August 26, 2011 (the effective date of Public Act 97-609) this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly, are contributors to or eligible to contribute to a Taft-Hartley pension plan established on or before June 1, 2011 and are employees of a theatre, arena, or convention center that is located in a municipality located in a county with a population greater than 5,000,000, and to which the participating municipality is required to contribute as the person's employer based on earnings from the municipality. Nothing in this paragraph shall affect service credit or creditable service for any period of service prior to August 26, 2011 the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly, and this paragraph shall not apply to individuals who are participating in the Fund prior to August 26, 2011 the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(3) All persons, including, without limitation, public defenders and probation officers, who receive earnings from general or special funds of a county for performance of personal services or official duties within the territorial limits of the county, are employees of the county (unless excluded by subsection (2) of this Section) notwithstanding that they may be appointed by and are subject to the direction of a person or persons other than a county board or a county officer. It is hereby established that an employer-employee relationship under the usual common law rules exists between such employees and the county paying their salaries by reason of the fact that the county boards fix their rates of compensation, appropriate funds for payment of their earnings and otherwise exercise control over them. This finding and this amendatory Act shall apply to all such employees from the date of appointment whether such date is prior to or after the effective date of this amendatory Act and is intended to clarify existing law pertaining to their status as participating employees in the Fund.

(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly, "employee" does not include any person whose employment does not benefit the public.

(Source: P.A. 97-429, eff. 8-16-11; 97-609, eff. 8-26-11; revised 9-28-11.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.