(a) The city shall never be held liable or responsible for any claim or asserted claim for benefits under the provisions of this article, but all claims shall be paid from the fund for which provision has been specifically made in this division. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the city, pursuant to its policies, programs and applicable law, shall indemnify and hold harmless the board and its individual members against any and all loss, damage and expense, including court costs and attorney’s fees, resulting from or arising out of the actions and inactions of the board and its members in connection with the performance of their duties under the retirement ordinance, provided, however, that such obligation of the city to indemnify and hold harmless shall not apply to any member of the board to the extent that the loss, damage or expense is attributable to such member’s gross negligence or willful misconduct.
(b) No portion of this fund shall, at any time before or after its disbursement, be held, seized, taken, subjected to or detained or levied upon by virtue of any execution, attachment, garnishment, assignment, injunction or other writ, order or decree, or any processor proceedings whatsoever issued out of or by any court for the payment or satisfaction, in whole or in part, of any debt, damage, claim, demand or judgment against any person entitled to a benefit from this fund, nor shall the fund, or any claim thereto, be directly or indirectly, assigned or transferred, and any attempt to transfer or assign same shall be void; provided that:
(1) Nothing in this section shall prevent the deduction of the spouse’s insurance premiums from the fund for the purpose of paying same, on behalf of the spouse, to the health and life insurance carrier for the city only; and
(2) Nothing shall prevent the fund from dividing a member’s pension benefit between the member and a former spouse and/or children or other dependents of the member according to the terms of a valid court order from a court of competent jurisdiction as set forth in subsection (c) below.
(c) (1) The court order must be a “qualified domestic relations order” within the meaning of § 414(p) of the code and must also satisfy the provisions of this section. The maximum pension benefit that can be paid to a former spouse is 50% of the member’s pension benefit. The order must state a specific amount payable monthly or a percentage of the member’s pension benefit to be divided between the member and the former spouse. Except as otherwise provided below with respect to the return of the member’s contributions, no single sum payment shall be made to a former spouse.
(2) a. Upon the member’s death, no further monthly pension benefit shall be paid to the former spouse. If, however, at the time of the member’s death, the member and the former spouse had not yet received pension benefits from the fund in excess of the member’s total contributions to the fund (plus regular interest), the member’s remaining contributions (plus regular interest) shall be divided between the member and the former spouse according to:
1. The ratio of the pension benefit payable to the former spouse divided by the pension benefit payable to the member but for the divorce; or
2. The percentage used to calculate the pension benefit payable to the member and the former spouse.
b. The former spouse shall receive his or her portion of the remaining contributions (plus regular interest) in a single sum distribution.
(3) If such deceased member died with no dependent child, dependent parent or surviving spouse to whom the member had been married for at least the one year immediately prior to the member’s retirement, the member’s portion of the remaining contributions (plus regular interest) shall be paid in a single sum to the member’s estate. If the deceased member died with a dependent child (or children), dependent parent (or parents), or a surviving spouse to whom the member had been married for at least the one year immediately prior to the member’s retirement, such person(s) shall be entitled to a monthly benefit under the terms of this division, but adjusted as provided below. Upon a single sum payment to the former spouse, such monthly pension benefit shall be reduced according to the following methodology:
a. Create a fraction, the numerator of which is the single sum amount paid to the former spouse and the denominator of which is the sum of the member’s contributions (plus regular interest) and the city’s contributions on behalf of the member;
b. Multiply that fraction by the monthly pension benefit which would otherwise be payable to the dependent child, parent or surviving spouse; and
c. The difference between the result of the second step and the monthly pension benefit which would otherwise be payable to the dependent child, dependent parent or surviving spouse is the monthly pension benefit which should be paid to the dependent child, dependent parent or surviving spouse.
(4) Since any pension benefit payable to a former spouse is derived from the member’s pension, a former spouse’s pension benefit shall not commence until the member’s pension benefit commences.
(5) If a member with respect to whom a former spouse has obtained a domestic relations order purporting to be a qualified domestic relations order terminates employment with the city and receives a return of contributions (plus regular interest) rather than a pension benefit, the former spouse shall not receive a pension benefit, but shall instead receive a percentage (or fixed dollar amount) of the returned contributions (plus regular interest).
(6) No court order shall be honored if it:
a. Provides for any form of benefit or option not otherwise provided by this division;
b. Requires the fund to provide increased benefits determined on the basis of actuarial value; or
c. Requires the payment of benefits to a former spouse that are required to be paid to another former spouse.
(d) Unless otherwise expressly provided for in this division, the board shall not reduce an individual pension.
(e) No part of the corpus or income of the fund shall ever revert to the city or be used for, or diverted to, any purpose other than for the exclusive purpose of providing benefits to members and their beneficiaries in accordance with the terms of this division.
(Ord. 20471-10-2012, § 2, passed 10-23-2012)