ORDINANCE NO. 07-11
AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF INDIALANTIC, BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, RELATING TO THE PENSION PLAN FOR POLICE OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS; PROVIDING FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A DEFERRED RETIREMENT OPTION PLAN; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY/INTERPRETATION CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR THE REPEAL OF CERTAIN INCONSISTENT ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE
WHEREAS, the Town Code provides for a defined benefit pension plan for police officer and firefighter employees of the Town of Indialantic; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees for the Town of Indialantic Police Officers’ and Firefighters’ Retirement System has expressed the desire to provide a Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP) within the system; and
WHEREAS, Foster & Foster, Inc. has conveyed information reflecting, under certain circumstances, that the provision will have no impact on the funding requirements of the Plan; and
WHEREAS, the Town Council desires to add a deferred retirement option plan to the Pension Plan for Police Officers and Firefighters;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ENACTED by the Town Council of the Town of Indialantic, Brevard County, Florida:
SECTION 1. That Sec. 2-228 of the Code of Ordinances of Indialantic, Florida, is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 2-228. Benefit amounts and eligibility.
* * *
(f) Deferred Retirement Option Plan (“DROP”).
(1) Eligibility to participate in the DROP.
a. Any member who is eligible to receive a normal retirement pension under section 2-228(a)(1) may participate in the DROP. Members shall elect to participate by applying to the board of trustees on a form provided for that purpose and complying with the requirements of sub-section (f)(1)e. An eligible member may participate in the DROP for a period not to exceed a maximum of sixty (60) calendar months.
b. All rights to participate in the DROP shall be forfeited if not exercised within 1095 days (three years) of the member’s initial eligibility for retirement. The option to participate shall be exercised, if at all, as prescribed in sub- section (f)(1)e.
c. A member shall not participate in the DROP beyond the time of attaining 39 years of service and the total years of participation in DROP shall not exceed five (5) years.
For example:
1. Members with thirty-four (34) years of credited service at time of entry shall only participate for five (5) years.
2. Members with thirty-five (35) years of credited service at time of entry shall only participate for four (4) years.
3. Members with thirty-six (36) years of credited service at time of entry shall only participate for three (3) years.
d. Upon a member’s election to participate in the DROP, he or she shall be a retiree and is precluded from accruing any additional benefit under the fund. For all fund purposes, the DROP participating member becomes a retired employee for purposes of the fund. The amount of credited service, final average salary and percentage of average monthly earnings (the multiplier) freeze for fund purposes as of the date of entry into the DROP. The DROP participant remains otherwise eligible to be an employee during the DROP period and entitled to all the non-fund benefits of employment. Participation in the DROP does not guarantee employment for the specified period of the DROP. Participation in the DROP by an eligible member beyond the initial 60-month period as authorized by this code shall be subject to town approval and on an annual contractual basis for all participants.
e. Upon deciding to participate in the DROP, the member shall submit, on forms provided:
1. An application for service retirement;
2. A binding letter of resignation with the Town, establishing a deferred termination date which shall be the date of discontinuing in DROP. The termination date may be changed by a DROP participant within the limitations specified in sub-section (f)(1)a. and
3. Any other information required by the board or pursuant to law.
(2) Amounts payable upon election to participate in DROP.
a. Monthly retirement benefits that would have been payable had the member terminated employment with the department and elected to receive monthly pension payments will be paid into the DROP and credited to the participating member. Payments into the DROP will be made monthly over the period that the participating member participates in the DROP, up to a maximum of sixty (60) months.
b. Payments to the DROP earn interest using the actuarial asset rate of return earned on pension fund assets during the twelve (12) month period ending September 30th. The rate determined shall be the rate reported to the division of retirement pursuant to Part VII of Chapter 112, Florida Statutes.
c. No payments will be made from DROP until the member terminates employment as a police officer or firefighter.
d. Upon termination of employment, participants in the DROP will receive the balance of the DROP account in accordance with the following rules:
1. Members shall receive payment upon termination of employment.
2. Payment shall be made in a lump sum. The entire DROP account balance, less any required federal tax
withholding, will be paid to the participating member upon approval of the Board of Trustees.
e. This payment will be made in accordance with the minimum distribution requirements of the 26 USC §401(a)(9) of the
Internal Revenue Code.
f. The beneficiary of the DROP participant who dies before payment from DROP begins shall receive the payment in a lump
sum less any required federal tax withholding upon approval of the board of trustees.
SECTION 2. Severability/Interpretation Clause
(a) In the event that any term, provision, clause, sentence or section of this Ordinance shall be held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be partially or wholly unenforceable or invalid for any reason whatsoever, any such invalidity, illegality, or unenforceability shall not affect any of the other or remaining terms, provisions, clauses, sentences, or sections of this Ordinance, and this Ordinance shall be read and/or applied as if the invalid, illegal, or unenforceable term, provision, clause, sentence, or section did not exist.
(b) In interpreting the provision of this Ordinance, the following rules and symbols shall apply:
(1) Words underlined are additions to existing text.
(2)
Words stricken
through are deletions from existing text.
(3) Asterisks (* * *) indicate a deletion from the Ordinance of text existing in the Code of Ordinances. It is intended that the text in the Code of Ordinances denoted by the asterisks and not set forth in this Ordinance shall remain unchanged from the language existing prior to adoption of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. Ordinances and Resolutions in Conflict. All ordinances or resolutions or parts thereof that may be determined to be in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.
SECTION 4. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall become effective upon adoption.
PASSED by the Town Council of the Town of Indialantic on first reading on the 15th day of May, 2007, and ADOPTED by the Town Council of the Town of Indialantic, Florida on final reading on the 19th day of June, 2007.
TOWN OF INDIALANTIC
________________________
Robert L. Cochran, Jr.
Mayor
ATTEST:________________________ (TOWN SEAL)
Laura Eaton, CMC
Town Clerk