HBA-TBM H.B. 1428 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1428
By: Longoria
Pensions & Investments
3/23/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, statewide retirement systems that offer proportionate retirement
have different rules and regulations as to who is eligible to buy back
service credit.  Because the rules lack uniformity, some member employees
may have mistakenly terminated membership in a retirement system and lost
prior established service credit.  House Bill 1428 specifies a uniform
policy regarding purchasing prior service credit and sets forth provisions
for the reestablishment of service credit previously canceled.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1428 amends the Government Code to authorize an eligible member
of a retirement system participating in the proportionate retirement
program (program) to reestablish service credit, including prior service
credit if applicable, previously canceled in another retirement system
participating in the program. A person eligible to reestablish service
credit is one who terminated service covered by and withdrew contributions
from a retirement system in the program and began service in and currently
holds a position covered by another retirement system in the program.  A
person may apply to reestablish service credit by filing an application
with the retirement system in which the service was originally credited.
The bill requires the system in which the service was originally credited
to grant the service credit when the system receives from the applicant a
contribution in the amount required to reestablish service credit including
any applicable interest and membership fees, and a certification that the
applicant currently holds a position included in the membership of the
certifying system.  If service credit is reestablished in the Texas County
and District Retirement System or the Texas Municipal Retirement System,
the service is creditable pro rata to the account of each subdivision or
municipality for which the service was performed.  The bill prohibits
service credit from being reestablished for service performed for a
subdivision or municipality not participating in the program.   

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.