1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to retirement; public employees police and 
  1.3             fire retirement plan; authorizing the election of a 50 
  1.4             percent joint and survivor benefit by certain retired 
  1.5             members of the former Duluth police consolidation 
  1.6             account. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [PERA POLICE AND FIRE PLAN; SURVIVING SPOUSE 
  1.9   OPTIONAL ANNUITY ELECTION.] 
  1.10     (a) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, an 
  1.11  eligible person described in paragraph (b) is entitled to elect 
  1.12  a 50 percent joint and survivor optional annuity with the 
  1.13  person's former spouse under the terms of Laws 2000, chapter 
  1.14  461, article 9, section 4, subdivision 2. 
  1.15     (b) An eligible person is a person who: 
  1.16     (1) was employed by the Duluth police department from 1966 
  1.17  to 1987; 
  1.18     (2) is currently receiving a retirement annuity from the 
  1.19  public employees police and fire fund; 
  1.20     (3) was employed as the St. Louis county sheriff from 1987 
  1.21  to 1998 with coverage under the PERA police and fire plan; and 
  1.22     (4) had the marriage to the former spouse dissolved on July 
  1.23  9, 1996. 
  1.24     (c) The joint and survivor annuity under paragraph (a) must 
  1.25  be elected in writing on a form prescribed by the executive 
  1.26  director of the public employees retirement association and 
  2.1   signed by the eligible person described in paragraph (b) before 
  2.2   October 1, 2003.  The optional annuity must have the eligible 
  2.3   person's former spouse named as the second covered life.  The 
  2.4   optional annuity election is effective as of February 1, 1995, 
  2.5   the eligible person's retirement date with respect to the former 
  2.6   Duluth police consolidation account, and any post-February 1, 
  2.7   1995, benefit overpayments recovered by the public employees 
  2.8   retirement association.  The optional annuity must be the 
  2.9   actuarial equivalent of the eligible person's retirement annuity 
  2.10  from the former Duluth police consolidation account as of that 
  2.11  date.  Once an optional annuity is selected, the optional 
  2.12  annuity form election is irrevocable. 
  2.13     (d) The executive director of the public employees 
  2.14  retirement association shall provide appropriate counseling to 
  2.15  an eligible person described in paragraph (b) and to the 
  2.16  eligible person's former spouse regarding the election of a 
  2.17  joint and survivor annuity under paragraph (a). 
  2.18     Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.19     Section 1 is effective the day following final enactment.