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(a) Time off With Pay. Whenever a Tier 2 System Member, for overtime work, shall take a period of time off with pay:
(1) a deduction for pension purposes shall be made from such pay but only in the same amount as that which would have been deducted from his Monthly Salary and additional monthly pay if such period had been one of regular work;
(2) such pay shall be part of his Monthly Salary and additional monthly pay but only in the same amount as that which would have been his Monthly Salary and additional monthly pay if such period had been one of regular work; and
(3) such period shall be part of his Years of Service.
(b) Cash Payment. Whenever a Tier 2 System Member, for overtime work, shall receive a cash payment:
(1) a deduction for pension purposes shall not be made from such payment;
(2) such payment shall not be part of his Monthly Salary and additional monthly pay; and
(3) the period of overtime work for which he shall receive such payment shall not be part of his Years of Service except that any period of a Tier 2 System Member’s overtime work, for which he shall not have taken time off with pay, shall be credited, by the Board, as part of his Years of Service, upon his or his survivor’s written request therefor, to the same extent as he would have been entitled to take time off with pay but only to the extent, and not in excess thereof, that he, while a Department Member, shall have had any period of absence from work without pay, but such request shall be accompanied with payment of the amount which would have been deducted for pension purposes from his Monthly Salary and additional monthly pay if the period of overtime work, to the extent credited, had been one of regular work.
(Formerly Article XXXV, Plan 1)
(a) Appointed Members. Each person who shall be appointed as a Department Member on or after December 8, 1980 through June 30, 1997 shall become a Plan Member upon graduation by such person from training at the Police or Fire Academies or equivalent facility imparting basic training as a firefighter or police officer and maintained as such by the City of Los Angeles. A Chief of Police or a Fire Chief who is appointed to that position without having graduated from such facility may become a Member upon appointment. Upon becoming a Plan Member, a person may elect to purchase Years of Service credit for the period of such training in accordance with rules adopted by the Board.
(b) Former Tier 1 & 2 Members. A person formerly a system member under the provisions of Tier 1 or 2 of this Article whose membership had previously terminated by reason of resignation or discharge shall upon again being appointed as a Department Member become a Plan Member as of the effective date of such appointment. In the event such person did not receive a refund of contributions upon his or her termination as a System Member, then the definition of “Years of Service” elsewhere contained in this Tier 3 shall be controlling with respect to such person’s entitlement to service credit; and further, such person need not make back contributions on account of such former service and does not have any right to have contributions formerly made by him or her under the provisions of Tier 1 or 2 refunded in the event he or she should subsequently terminate as a Plan Member. In the event such person received a refund of his or her contributions under the provisions of Tier 1 or 2 as a result of his or her termination, then such person’s entitlement to Years of Service credit for the period of such former service shall be conditioned upon such person electing to repay and having paid to the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 the amount of previously refunded contributions, with interest thereon and an amount calculated as interest which would have been earned between the date of such termination and the date of entry into service as a Plan Member in accordance with rules adopted by the Board. In the event such member does not elect to so repay, the term Years of Service as elsewhere used in this Tier 3 shall not include any periods prior to his or her becoming a Plan Member, notwithstanding the definitions contained in Section 1502(m) and (n).
(c) Certain Former Tier 4 Members. Each person who irrevocably elects in accordance with this subsection to become eligible for the service, vesting and contribution provisions of this Tier 3 shall become a Tier 3 Plan Member.
(1) Election of Tier 4 Members to Become Tier 3 Members. Any Department Member hired under Section 1600(a) during the period July 1, 1997 through December 31, 1997 who became a Tier 4 Plan Member in accordance with Section 1600 shall have the option to make an irrevocable election, in writing, to become eligible for the service, vesting and contribution provisions of Tier 3 and thereby become a Tier 3 Plan Member.
(2) Election Period. The election period shall commence no later than sixty (60) days following the operative date of this subsection and shall remain in effect for six months from such date.
(3) Tier 4 Members on Disability. Any Tier 4 Plan Member hired during the period of July 1, 1997 through December 31, 1997 and who as a member of Tier 4 is receiving a disability pension pursuant to Section 1606 and who, thereafter, is restored to active duty as a Department Member after the end of the election period provided in subsection (c)(2), shall not be eligible to elect to become a Tier 3 Plan Member.
(4) Members on Military Leave. Persons who are not active members during the election period provided in subsection (c)(2) due to service in the armed forces shall have 90 days following their return to active duty or the expiration date of the election period, whichever is later, to make an election to become a Tier 3 Plan Member.
(5) Release of Liability. The Board shall have the authority to establish rules requiring a full and complete release from liability from members and their spouses or domestic partners upon the Plan Member’s election to transfer from Tier 4 to Tier 3.
(d) Paramedics and Civilian Ambulance Employees. In addition to those Department Members described in subsection (a) of this section, paramedics or civilian ambulance employees shall become Plan Members upon the effective date of this subsection, except that persons employed as paramedic trainees shall become Plan Members only upon their certification, as provided by law, as mobile intensive care paramedics or equivalent. Upon certification, Plan Members may elect to purchase Years of Service credit for the period of such training in accordance with rules to be adopted by the Board.
If such a Plan Member had periods of membership in the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System while he or she was a paramedic or civilian ambulance employee, such Plan Member shall be entitled to elect to acquire Years of Service credit for such periods of membership in the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System. Upon such election his or her contributions, plus interest credited thereon, and his or her City service credit shall be transferred to the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 in accordance with rules to be adopted by the Board.
(e) Purchase of Credit by Surviving Spouse. A surviving spouse of a Plan Member may complete the purchase of Years of Service credit elected by the Plan Member.
(f) Prohibition of Double Benefits. No Plan Member may receive double benefits by receiving credit for Years of Service for the same periods of City service from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System and under the provisions of this Tier 3. Further, no Plan Member may transfer credit received from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System while employed in a capacity other than paramedic or civilian ambulance employee.
(g) Transfer of Released Liability. Upon the election by a Plan Member to acquire Years of Service credit, the released liability of the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System shall be transferred to the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3. For the purposes of this subsection, the phrase Released Liability means the City’s share of the actuarially determined present value of benefits under the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System as of the date of transfer.
In addition to the words and phrases defined in the Fire and Police Pension Plans General Provisions in this Part 3, and for the purposes of this Tier 3, the following words or phrases shall have the meaning ascribed to them in this section, unless a different meaning is clearly indicated in the context.
(a) Member of the Fire Department. Member of the Fire Department means the Fire Chief and a person duly and regularly appointed in the Fire Department, under civil service rules and regulations or provisions of the Charter, or both, governing the making of original regular and permanent appointments which require the serving of probationary periods but not of original emergency or temporary appointments, to perform duties as a firefighter or as a paramedic or civilian ambulance employee for the City, under whatever designation such person may be described in any salary or departmental ordinance providing salaries for the members of the department, but such person shall be a member of the department only until his or her status as such shall be terminated by reason of retirement, resignation or discharge or for any other reason.
(b) Member of the Police Department. Member of the Police Department means the Chief of Police and a person duly and regularly appointed in the Police Department, under civil service rules and regulations or provisions of the Charter, or both, governing the making of original regular and permanent appointments which require the serving of probationary periods but not of original emergency or temporary appointments therein, and sworn in, as provided by law, to perform duties as a police officer for the City, under whatever designation such person may be described in any salary or departmental ordinance providing salaries for the members of the department, but such person shall be a member of the department only until his or her status as such shall be terminated by reason of his or her retirement, resignation or discharge or for any other reason.
(c) Plan Member. Plan Member means a person who is a Department Member and whose pension rights and benefits are governed by this Tier 3. Status as a Plan Member is limited by the provisions of Section 1500.
(d) Qualified Surviving Spouse. Qualified Surviving Spouse means a person who is the widow or widower of a deceased Plan Member or Retired Plan Member and who has been married:
(1) to the Plan Member for at least one year prior to the date of his or her nonservice-connected death while a Plan Member, or
(2) to the Plan Member as of the date of his or her service-connected death while a Plan Member, or
(4) to the Retired Plan Member as of the effective date of his or her retirement upon a service-connected disability pension pursuant to Section 1506(a).
(e) Minor Child. Minor Child means a person who is a child or an adopted child of a deceased Plan Member or a Retired Plan Member, but such person shall be a Minor Child only until such person shall attain the age of 18 years or shall marry, whichever shall be earlier.
A person may further qualify for the benefits provided for a Minor Child under the provisions of this article until he or she reaches the age of 22 years if such person is enrolled in school on a full-time basis as determined by the Board but such person’s marriage terminates entitlement to the benefits of a Minor Child.
(f) Dependent Child. Dependent Child means a person who is a child of a deceased Plan Member or a deceased Retired Plan Member, who is not married and who, while under the age of 21 years, had become disabled, either prior or after the date of death of such Plan Member or Retired Plan Member, from earning a livelihood for any cause or reason whatsoever, but such person shall be a Dependent Child only until he or she shall cease to be disabled from earning a livelihood. Should disability cease before the age of 22 years, the limitations set forth in subsection (e) shall be applicable.
(g) Dependent Parent. Dependent Parent means a person who is a parent of a deceased Plan Member or a deceased Retired Plan Member to or for whom such deceased Plan Member or deceased Retired Plan Member, during at least one year immediately preceding his or her death, contributed one-half or more of such Dependent Parent’s necessary living expenses and who is unable to pay such expenses without the receipt of a pension, but such person shall be a Dependent Parent only until he or she shall be able to pay his or her necessary living expenses.
(h) Length of Service Pay. Length of Service Pay means any additional gross monthly pay which, by reason of length of service, shall be provided by ordinance.
(i) Special Pay. Special Pay means any additional gross monthly pay which, by reason of assignment to perform special duties other than hazardous duties, shall be provided by ordinance.
(j) Hazard Pay. Hazard Pay means any additional gross monthly pay which, by reason of assignment to perform helicopter duties, two-wheel motorcycle duties or any other hazardous duties shall be provided by ordinance.
(k) Assignment Pay. Assignment Pay means any additional gross monthly pay which, by reason of assignment to perform special duties or hazardous duties, in a higher class, position, grade, code or other title than the lowest thereof within the Plan Member’s permanent rank, shall be provided therefor by ordinance.
(l) Year. Year means a period of 12 months or, in aggregating partial years for purposes of determining Years of Service, means 365 days.
(m) Years of Service. Years of Service means and includes only those periods during or for which the Plan Member was a Department Member of the Fire Department or of the Police Department, or of both and whether prior to or after his or her becoming a Plan Member and subject to the limitations contained in Section 1500 of this Tier 3:
(1) did or shall receive salary, whether in full or reduced amounts thereof;
(2) did or shall receive either a service-connected disability pension or a nonservice-connected disability pension under any Tier of the Fire and Police Pension Plans if he or she was or shall be restored to active duty as a Department Member and did or shall perform his or her duties as such for at least one year prior to again retiring or being retired pursuant to this Tier 3, which year shall not include any time off from work by reason of any injury or illness which had been caused by or contributed to by any injury or illness which had been sustained or suffered by him or her prior to such restoration. The restored Plan Member, upon completing one Year of Service following restoration, shall be eligible for such credit only to the extent that the length of service following restoration matches the period the disability pension was received; but upon completing three years of restored service, the restored Plan Member is eligible for credit for the entire period the disability pension was received; and provided further that a period during which a Plan Member was on a nonservice-connected disability pension may only be counted toward his or her Years of Service if the Plan Member makes contributions therefor at the rate provided in Section 1514 of this Tier 3 in accordance with the rules to be adopted by the Board;
(3) is or shall become entitled, under any provision of general law or ordinance of the City, to credit toward retirement for periods of military service or military leave;
(4) did or shall receive Workers’ Compensation benefits for temporary disability as provided by general law on account of any injury or illness arising out of and in the course of employment, but such period shall be made a part of the Plan Member’s Years of Service only if the Plan Member has made contributions to the Fire and Police Pension Plan in the manner prescribed by Board rule;
(5) is or shall become entitled pursuant to any ordinance of the City providing compensation for injury on duty; and
(6) had served as a member of the Fire and Police Pension System - Tiers 1 or 2 of this Article, without having become eligible to service retirement benefits but such prior service as a member under provisions of Tiers 1 or 2 does not entitle the Plan Member to a refund of contributions made on account of such previous service.
A Plan Member who has previously been a Plan Member and who has ceased to be such by virtue of his or her resignation or discharge and who subsequently again becomes a Plan Member, shall be entitled to service credit only if he or she has first redeposited with interest, any Plan Member contributions previously withdrawn by him or her, in the manner provided by the Board.
(n) Partial Year of Service. Partial Year of Service means any period mentioned in subsection (m) of this section which is less than 12 months.
Any such Partial Year of Service shall be calculated from the end of the Plan Member’s last completed Year of Service to the end of the payroll period immediately prior to the date of his or her retirement and shall be counted as part of a Plan Member’s Years of Service for his or her retirement upon a service pension hereafter granted or for a pension hereafter granted to his or her Qualified Surviving Spouse, Minor Child or children, Dependent Child or children or Dependent Parent or parents if he or she hereafter shall die while upon a service pension hereafter granted or while eligible for a service pension.
(o) Final Average Salary. Final Average Salary means an amount equivalent to a monthly average of salary actually received during any 12 consecutive months of service as a Plan Member as designated by the Plan Member. In the absence of such designation, the last 12 consecutive months preceding the date upon which retirement would become effective shall be used as the basis for the calculation of Final Average Salary.
For Plan Members employed as paramedics or civilian ambulance employees who have formerly been members of the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System, and who, pursuant to the provisions of Section 1500 of this Tier 3 have become Plan Members, the determination of Final Average Salary shall include periods of City service for which such Plan Members have elected to acquire Years of Service credit by transfer of their contributions from the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System to the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3. If a Plan Member should die before having made such election, his or her surviving spouse may make the election in place of the Plan Member.
For the purposes of determining Final Average Salary periods during which the Plan Member receives less than full salary on account of injury or illness, pursuant to any applicable ordinance of the City, shall be included in the calculation of Final Average Salary based upon the salary, including any Length of Service Pay, Special Pay, Assignment Pay or Hazard Pay, the Plan Member would have received but for the injury or illness.
Included in the calculation of Final Average Salary shall be Length of Service Pay, Special Pay, Assignment Pay and Hazard Pay actually received during the 12 consecutive months used to determine Final Average Salary. To the extent that Hazard Pay was not received during all or any part of the 12 consecutive months used to determine Final Average Salary, then it shall be included in the calculation of Final Average Salary only if the Plan Member retires at the same rank as that occupied by him or her at a time when Hazard Pay was received during a period or periods other than the 12 months used to determine Final Average Salary, and for each such completed 12 month period during which the Plan Member served at that rank and received Hazard Pay, he or she shall be entitled to have included in the Final Average Salary 10% of the Hazard Pay which would have been payable had the hazardous duty been performed during the period for which the Final Average Salary is calculated except the total amount includable in the Final Average Salary for Hazard Pay may not exceed 100% of the amount the Plan Member would have received had he or she been entitled to Hazard Pay during the entire 12 month period utilized in the calculation of Final Average Salary.
Overtime compensation or payments of money to the member not designated as salary by an ordinance of the City shall not be considered for purposes of calculating Final Average Salary.
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, if a Retired Plan Member were to be restored to active duty as a Department Member and thereby again were to become a Plan Member and if he or she again were to retire or to be retired without having performed his or her duties for at least one year subsequent to such restoration, which year shall not include any time off from work by reason of any injury or illness which had been caused by or contributed to by any injury or illness which had been sustained or suffered by him or her prior to such restoration, the Final Average Salary which shall be applicable to his or her later retirement shall be the Final Average Salary which had been applicable to his or her previous retirement.
Should a Plan Member not have completed 12 consecutive months of service as a Plan Member, then and in that event only shall the Final Average Salary be calculated as a monthly average of all consecutive calendar months completed, and, if the Plan Member has completed less than one month of total service as a Plan Member, the salary actually received shall be used to calculate its monthly equivalent.
The following provision shall be effective for Plan Members who retire on or after July 1, 2000 from the Fire Department while holding a rank no higher than Captain or from the Police Department holding a rank no higher than Lieutenant. If Hazard Pay was not received during all or any part of the 12 consecutive months used to determine Final Average Salary, then an amount equivalent to 10% of the Hazard Pay received at the time of the termination of the last assignment to hazardous duties for each year in the aggregate of the assignment to hazardous duties shall be added to the Final Average Salary, not to exceed 10 years in the aggregate. The total amount of Hazard Pay included in Final Average Salary may not exceed 100% of the amount the Plan Member would have received had the Plan Member been entitled to Hazard Pay during the entire 12 month period utilized in the calculation of Final Average Salary.
(a) Normal Retirement. Starting at the age of 50 years, a Plan Member who shall have 10 or more Years of Service, shall be retired by order of the Board from further active duty as a Department Member either upon the filing of his or her written application or upon the filing of a written request by or on behalf of the head of the department in which he or she is a Department Member, if it shall be determined by the Board to be for the good of such department, other than for a cause or reason which would entitle such Plan Member to a disability pension pursuant to Section 1506, and the Board, if it shall so determine, shall state the cause or reason in its order retiring such Plan Member.
(b) Service Pension Benefits for Terminated Employees. A former Plan Member who became such because of termination of his or her employment for any reason other than death or retirement on account of disability pursuant to the provisions of Section 1506, and who has completed at least 10 Years of Service, may elect to leave his or her contributions in the Fire and Police Service Pension Fund. Upon reaching the age of 50 years, such former Plan Member shall be entitled to receive service retirement benefits in accordance with the formula hereinafter set forth. The election to leave member contributions in the fund shall be irrevocable and must be in writing, filed with the Board within three years from the date of such termination of employment. Upon the execution and filing of the same, the former Plan Member’s individual account shall be credited with an amount equal to all of the regular interest which, had he or she otherwise been entitled to the same, would have been credited thereto between the date of such termination of employment and the date of the filing of such election and thereafter, regular interest shall, until he or she be paid a pension, be credited thereto in the same manner as Plan Members’ individual accounts shall be credited. In the event that any such person should die before being paid a pension, the only benefit which shall be paid under the provisions of this Tier 3 is the payment of his or her accumulated contributions, including interest credited thereto, to such persons as may be entitled thereto. Failure to file such an election within three years shall constitute an irrevocable decision not to take the service retirement benefits herein provided.
(c) Physical Examination for Employees Age 70 and Over. After a Plan Member has attained the age of 70 years, he or she shall annually submit to an examination by a regularly licensed, practicing physician selected by the head of his or her department who shall render a written report to such department and to the Board as to whether or not the Plan Member is physically and mentally fit to continue his or her duties as a Department Member. If the Plan Member is found by the Board not to be physically or mentally fit to so continue his or her duties, he or she shall be retired effective the first day of the calendar month next succeeding that month in which the physician’s report is received by the Board.
(d) Pension Amount. A pension payable pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be paid monthly for life in an amount which shall be equal to 2% of Final Average Salary per Year of Service for up to 20 Years of Service; and for each additional year of service after 20 years, 3% of Final Average Salary per year; but the maximum percentage of Final Average Salary payable, regardless of length of service, shall be 70% of such Final Average Salary.
(a) Service-Connected Disability. Upon the filing of his or her written application for a disability pension or upon the filing of a written request therefor by or on behalf of the head of the department in which he or she is a Department Member, any Plan Member whom the Board shall determine has become physically or mentally incapacitated by reason of injuries received or sickness caused by the discharge of the duties of such person as a Department Member, and who is incapable as a result thereof from performing his or her assigned duties, or those to which he or she would be assigned within the Plan Member’s civil service classification if returned to duty, shall be retired by order of the Board from further active duty as a Department Member.
A Plan Member’s incapacity is caused by the discharge of his or her duties if there is clear and convincing evidence that the discharge of the Plan Member’s duties is the predominant cause of the incapacity.
A Plan Member retired under the provisions of this subsection shall be paid thereafter a monthly service-connected disability pension in an amount which shall be equal to the same percentage of the Plan Member’s Final Average Salary as the Board shall determine, from time to time, to be the percentage of his or her disability. Such pension shall be in an amount of not less than 30% and not more than 90% of the Retired Plan Member’s Final Average Salary, but in no case shall the pension be less than the equivalent of 2% of Final Average Salary for each Year of Service of the Retired Plan Member.
No Retired Plan Member, while retired pursuant to this subsection, ever shall be paid any pension pursuant to Section 1504 or subsection (b) of this section.
(b) Nonservice-Connected Disability. Upon the filing of his or her written application for disability pension by a Plan Member who shall have five Years of Service or more, or upon the filing of a written request with respect to such a Plan Member by or on behalf of the head of the department in which he or she is a Department Member, any Plan Member whom the Board shall determine has become physically or mentally incapacitated by reason of injuries or sickness other than injuries received or sickness caused by the discharge of the duties of such person as a Department Member, and who is incapable as a result thereof from performing his or her assigned duties or those to which he or she would be assigned within the Plan Member’s civil service classification if returned to duty, shall be retired by order of the Board from further active duty as a Department Member.
As a further condition of entitlement to such a pension, the Board shall also determine that such disability was not principally due to or caused by voluntary action of the Plan Member intended to entitle him or her to a nonservice-connected disability pension.
A Retired Plan Member, retired under the provisions of this subsection shall be paid thereafter a monthly nonservice-connected disability pension in an amount which shall be equal to the same percentage of the Retired Member’s Final Average Salary as the Board shall determine, from time to time, to be the percentage of his or her disability; but such pension shall be in an amount of not less than 30% and not more than 50% of the Retired Plan Member’s Final Average Salary.
No Retired Plan Member, while retired pursuant to this subsection, ever shall be paid any pension pursuant either to Section 1504 or to subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Determination of Disability. Upon the filing of any written application or request for a disability pension, as referred to in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the Board: (1) shall cause the Plan Member to be examined by and a written report thereon rendered by at least three regular licensed and practicing physicians selected by it; (2) shall hold a hearing with respect to such application or request; (3) shall receive or hear such other evidence relating to or concerning the Plan Member’s disability or claimed disability as may be presented to it. The Board shall have the power to hear and determine all matters pertaining to the granting and denying of any such application or request for a disability pension. The Board first shall determine whether or not the Plan Member is incapable of performing his or her assigned duties or those to which he or she would be assigned within the Plan Member’s civil service classification if returned to duty. If the Board were to determine that he or she is not so incapable, it then shall be the duty of the Board to deny the application or request. If the Board were to determine that he or she is so incapable, it then shall determine, pursuant to the language used in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, whether his or her incapacity or disability is service-connected or nonservice-connected. The Board then shall determine the percentage of his or her incapacity or disability, within the limitations prescribed in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, and shall grant the application or request accordingly. If the Board were to determine that the disability is nonservice-connected, and that the incapacity or disability was principally due to or caused by voluntary action by the Plan Member intended to entitle him or her to a nonservice-connected disability pension, it then shall be the duty of the Board to deny the application or request. The Board upon its own motion or upon the written request of any Retired Plan Member, retired pursuant to subsections (a) or (b) of this section, shall have the power to consider new evidence pertaining to the case of any such Retired Plan Member and to increase or decrease the percentage of his or her incapacity or disability within the limitations prescribed in subsections (a) or (b) of this section; but any such increase or decrease shall be based only upon injuries or sickness for which he or she was retired. In the case of any former Plan Member who became such by reason of his or her resignation or discharge as a Department Member, the Board, in order to grant any application filed by him or her for a disability pension, must also determine, in addition to all of the foregoing, that any existing incapacity or disability upon his or her part occurred prior to the termination of his or her active status as a Department Member and had been continuous up to the date of the Board’s determinations.
The Board shall adopt by rule, within a reasonable time, a disability rating schedule to assist in standardizing disability pension awards.
(d) Termination of Disability Pensions. The pension of any Retired Plan Member, retired pursuant to subsections (a) or (b) of this section and whose active status as a Department Member had been terminated by reason of his or her retirement, shall cease when the incapacity or disability for which he or she had been retired shall cease and he or she either:
(1) shall have been restored to active duty as a Department Member in the same permanent rank which he or she had held as of the date of retirement; or
(2) shall have been ordered restored to active duty as a Department Member in such same permanent rank and shall have declined, refused or neglected to report therefor or to perform duties as such.
Any former Plan Member who has been retired for more than five years from the date of the Board’s action by which he or she was retired may never be restored to active duty as a Department Member. The pension of any Retired Plan Member, retired pursuant to subsections (a) or (b) of this section and whose active status as a Department Member had been terminated by reason of his or her resignation or discharge as such, shall cease when the incapacity or disability for which he or she received a disability pension shall cease. The Board shall have the power to hear and determine upon its own motion all matters pertaining to the termination of any such pension.
After a Retired Plan Member, whose active status as a Department Member has been terminated by reason of his or her retirement, has been retired on a service-connected disability pension or on a nonservice-connected disability pension for five years, and has been found to be no longer disabled, the Board shall adjust such Retired Plan Member’s pension to 30% of his or her Final Average Salary. The adjusted pension shall reflect such cost of living adjustments as would have occurred had the Retired Plan Member’s pension originally been based on such adjusted percentage.
(e) Periodic Medical Examinations. Except in those instances in which the Board has determined that, due to the nature of the disability, no purpose would be served in having periodic medical examinations to determine whether or not a Retired Plan Member is still disabled, all Retired Plan Members on a disability pension shall undergo medical examinations at periodic intervals, as determined by the Board, for the first five years of their disability retirement. Retired Plan Members who receive service-connected disability pensions exceeding 30% of Final Average Salary and Plan Members who terminated City employment by reason of resignation or discharge prior to being granted a disability retirement, shall thereafter undergo medical examinations as determined by the Board.
If a Retired Plan Member resides outside of the State of California, the Board shall have the authority to order medical examinations of Retired Plan Members at any place it may determine to be desirable and shall, if it is determined that it would impose hardship on the person to be examined to travel to such place, have the authority to defray the reasonable cost of any such travel required.
(f) Assessing Cost for Missed Medical Appointments. The Board shall have the authority to provide, by rule, for assessing the cost of medical appointments missed by disability pension applicants, or by Retired Plan Members on a disability pension, where such missed appointments were not caused by factors beyond the control of the Plan Member or Retired Plan Member.
(g) Re-application After Denial of Disability Pension. The Board shall establish reasonable rules governing the re-application by Plan Members for a disability pension where an application has been denied and a new application has been filed subsequently for the same or similar medical reasons as those which were the basis of a previously denied application.
(h) Transfers Under Civil Service. For a period of one year following the effective date of a Retired Plan Member’s disability pension, such Retired Plan Member shall be eligible for status without examination under the provisions of Section 1014 of the Charter in civil service classifications other than those that would entitle him or her to membership in any of the Fire and Police Pension Plans established by this Article but the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to former Plan Members whose status as Department Members had terminated by reason of resignation or discharge.
(i) Exclusion for Willful Conduct. In making its determinations and findings relative to subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this section, the Board shall consider whether and to what extent the activity giving rise to the disability of a member of the Police Department was caused or aggravated by such member’s willful misconduct. If the Board finds that the disability was caused or aggravated by such willful misconduct, the Board shall deny the Plan Member’s application for a disability pension. The provisions of this subsection shall be applicable only to those Plan members who became members of the Police Department on or after July 6, 1992.
(a) Pension for Qualified Surviving Spouse.
(1) Plan Member’s Service-Connected Death. The Qualified Surviving Spouse of a Plan Member who shall die by reason of injuries received or sickness caused by the discharge of his or her duties while a Department Member, shall be paid for life a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 75% of the deceased Plan Member’s Final Average Salary.
For the purposes of the benefit provided in this subsection (a)(1), a Plan Member has died by reason of injuries received or sickness caused by the discharge of his or her duties if there is clear and convincing evidence that the discharge of the Plan Member’s duties were the predominant cause of his or her death.
(2) Plan Member’s Nonservice-Connected Death. The Qualified Surviving Spouse of a Plan Member who shall have five or more Years of Service and who shall die while a Department Member, by reason of injuries or sickness other than injuries received or sickness caused by the discharge of his or her duties, shall be paid for life a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 30% of the deceased Plan Member’s Final Average Salary, or, if the Plan Member, at the time of death, was then eligible to receive a pension on account of Years of Service, 80% of the amount of such service pension as the Plan Member at the time of his or her death would have been entitled to receive on account of Years of Service whichever is higher but the entitlement of a Qualified Surviving Spouse under the provisions of this subsection (a)(2) may not exceed 40% of the deceased Plan Member’s Final Average Salary.
(3) Retired Plan Member’s Death While on a Service Pension. The Qualified Surviving Spouse of a Retired Plan Member, who shall die while he or she is receiving a pension pursuant to Section 1504, shall be paid for life a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 60% of the pension received by the deceased Retired Plan Member immediately preceding the date of his or her death. The benefit described in this subsection (a)(3) may be modified as provided in subsection (b) of this section.
(4) Retired Plan Member’s Death While on a Service-Connected Disability Pension. The Qualified Surviving Spouse of a Retired Plan Member, who shall die while he or she is receiving a service-connected disability pension pursuant to Section 1506, shall be paid for life a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 60% of the pension received by the deceased Retired Plan Member immediately preceding the date of his or her death, unless the death of the Retired Plan Member occurs within three years after the effective date of his or her pension and is due to service-connected causes, in which case, the qualified Surviving Spouse shall receive, or in a case where an option has been elected pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, may elect to receive, 75% of the Retired Member’s Final Average Salary, as modified by the cost of living adjustments made pursuant to Section 1516 of this Tier 3 since the date of retirement of the Retired Plan Member. The benefit described in this subsection (a)(4) may be modified as provided in subsection (b) of this section.
(5) Retired Plan Member’s Death While on a Nonservice-Connected Disability Pension. The Qualified Surviving Spouse of a Retired Plan Member, who shall die while he or she is receiving a nonservice-connected disability pension pursuant to Section 1506, shall be paid for life a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 60% of the pension received by the deceased Retired Plan Member immediately preceding the date of his or her death. The benefit described in this subsection (a)(5) may be modified as provided in subsection (b) of this section.
(6) Nonservice-Connected Death of Plan Member with Less than Five Years of Service. In the event the Plan Member died of nonservice-connected causes before having completed five Years of Service, the Qualified Surviving Spouse of the deceased Plan Member, or his or her Minor or Dependent Children if there is no Qualified Spouse, or his or her Dependent Parents if there is No Qualified Surviving Spouse and no Minor or Dependent Children, shall be entitled to the Basic Death Benefit described in subsection (a)(7) below.
(7) Basic Death Benefit and Election. The Basic Death Benefit shall consist of: (1) the return of a deceased Plan Member’s contributions to the Plan with accrued interest thereon; subject, however to the rights created by virtue of the Plan Member’s designation of a beneficiary as otherwise provided in this Tier 3; and (2) if the deceased Plan Member had at least one Year of Service, the deceased Plan Member’s Final Average Salary multiplied by the number of completed Years of Service, not to exceed six years; provided that said amount shall be paid in monthly installments of one-half of the deceased Plan Member’s Final Average Salary.
A Qualified Surviving Spouse, or a guardian acting on behalf of the Minor or Dependent Children of a deceased Plan Member if there is no Qualified Surviving Spouse, or Dependent Parents if there is no Qualified Surviving Spouse and no Minor or Dependent Children entitled to a pension pursuant to any of the provisions of this section, where benefits are based upon the Plan Member’s death in active service, may in lieu of the pension provided and before the first payment of such pension, elect to receive the Basic Death Benefit.
(b) Optional Pensions for Qualified Surviving Spouse. At any time before the first payment of a service pension, a service-connected disability pension, or a nonservice-connected disability pension, the Plan Member may elect to receive, in lieu of his or her pension as provided in Section 1504 or Section 1506, the actuarial equivalent at that time of such pension and of the pension for the Qualified Surviving Spouse as provided in subsection (a) of this section, by electing an optional pension payable throughout the balance of his or her life, with the provision that upon his or her death such optional pension shall be continued to the Plan Member’s Qualified Surviving Spouse in the proportional amount designated by the Plan Member at the time of election of the option provided by this section.
The amount of such optional pension shall be so calculated that the liability of the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 at the date of retirement under the optional pension shall be equal to the liability of the Fire and Police Pension Plan at the same date under the pension awarded in accordance with the provisions of Section 1504 or Section 1506 and of the survivorship pension provided by subsection (a) of this section. For the purpose of this section, the liability of the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 is defined as the present value, in accordance with tables adopted by the Board, of the pensions or optional pensions calculated by approved actuarial methods, and recommended by the Board’s actuary. In determining the actuarial equivalent of the pension for a Qualified Surviving Spouse as provided pursuant to subsections (a)(3), (4), and (5) of this section, the equivalent of a 60% survivorship pension shall be used in all cases.
The optional amounts, calculated in accordance with the foregoing paragraph, shall provide a range of optional values such that the amount to be paid to the Qualified Surviving Spouse of the Plan Member shall range from 60% to 100% of the pension payable to the Plan Member, varying by increments of 5%.
If a Retired Plan Member, previously retired on a disability pension pursuant to the provisions of Section 1506, should be reinstated to active duty upon termination of his or her disability, the election to receive the optional pension as herein provided, shall be deemed cancelled as of the effective date of such reinstatement.
A Retired Plan Member, previously retired on a disability pension pursuant to the provisions of Section 1506 and whose pension has subsequently been adjusted as provided for in Section 1506, shall have the right to cancel any option previously elected by him or her pursuant to the provisions of this subsection.
The Board shall by rule provide for a method in which the election to receive an optional pension shall be exercised.
(c) Additional Pension Amounts. Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die and leave surviving him or her, in addition to a Qualified Surviving Spouse, a Minor Child or Children or a Dependent Child or Children of his or her marriage to the Qualified Surviving Spouse, then such Qualified Surviving Spouse, shall be paid an additional monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 25% of the pension he or she as a Qualified Surviving Spouse would be entitled to pursuant to the provisions of subsection (a) of this section while there is one Minor Child or Dependent Child, 40% while there are two Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination thereof, and 50% while there are three or more Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination, and such additional monthly pension shall be the exclusive property of such Qualified Surviving Spouse and not the property of any such Minor Child or Dependent Child. Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die and leave surviving him or her in addition to a Qualified Surviving Spouse, a Minor Child or Children or a Dependent Child or Children of his or her marriage to a former spouse, then the guardian or guardians of the estate or estates of any such Minor Child or Children or Dependent Child or Children shall be paid a monthly pension in an amount which shall be equal to 25% of the pension the Qualified Surviving Spouse would be entitled to pursuant to the provisions of subsection (a) of this section while there is one Minor Child or Dependent Child, 40% while there are two Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination, and 50% while there are three or more Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination.
Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die and leave surviving him or her, in addition to a Qualified Surviving Spouse, a Minor Child or Children or a Dependent Child or Children of his or her marriage to the Qualified Surviving Spouse and a Minor Child or Children or a Dependent Child or Children of his or her marriage to a former spouse, then a monthly pension shall be paid in an amount which shall be equal to 25% of the pension the Qualified Surviving Spouse would be entitled to pursuant to the provisions of subsection (a) of this section while there is one Minor Child or Dependent Child, 40% while there are two Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination, and 50% while there are three or more Minor Children or Dependent Children or a combination. The amount of such monthly pension shall be divided by the number of Minor Children or Dependent Children and shall be adjusted accordingly whenever any Minor or Dependent Child shall cease to be such.
The Qualified Surviving Spouse shall be paid the portion of such monthly pension which shall be applicable to the number of his or her Minor Children or Dependent Children and the same shall be her or his exclusive property. The guardian or guardians of the estate or estates of the Minor Children or Dependent Children who are not those of the Qualified Surviving Spouse shall be paid the portion of such monthly pension which shall be applicable to such Minor Children or Dependent Children and the same shall be the exclusive property of such children.
The additional pension amounts provided in this subsection for persons other than a Qualified Surviving Spouse are to be calculated on the basis of the applicable Qualified Surviving Spouse pension provided pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, unmodified by any election that may previously have been made pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.
Additional pension amounts are also subject to the limitation that the amount of any survivorship pension provided in this section, after the additional payments provided in this subsection are added thereto, may not exceed 100% of the Final Average Salary of the deceased Plan Member or 100% of the Final Average Salary of the Retired Plan Member, as modified by the cost of living adjustments made pursuant to Section 1516 of this Tier 3 since the date of retirement of the Retired Plan Member. In case of such excess, any additional pension amounts shall be reduced to a level where the total amount of pension is equal to such maximum.
(d) Reinstatement of Pension of Reinstated Qualified Surviving Spouse. Subject to Section 1208 of the General Provisions for Fire and Police Pension Plans, any Qualified Surviving Spouse, who shall marry and thereby cease to be a Qualified Surviving Spouse, shall be reinstated as a Qualified Surviving Spouse as of:
(1) the date upon which a judgment or decree shall become final dissolving such marriage upon any ground or declaring a void or voidable marriage to have been null and void or voided but such date shall be within five years from the date of the marriage ceremony; or
(2) the date upon which such marriage shall be dissolved by the death of the other party thereto but such date shall be within five years from the date of the marriage ceremony. Such reinstated Qualified Surviving Spouse shall be entitled to the reinstatement of his or her pension effective as of either such date, which shall be applicable, but shall not be entitled to the payment of any pension for the period prior to such applicable date and subsequent to the date of the marriage ceremony. The pension paid to any other persons entitled under the provisions of the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 during the period of the marriage or purported marriage of such reinstated Qualified Surviving Spouse shall cease when his or her pension shall be reinstated, except as otherwise provided in subsection (c) of this section. However, should such reinstated Qualified Surviving Spouse thereafter be a party to another marriage ceremony, his or her pension shall cease and never again shall be reinstated regardless of whether such marriage ceremony shall result in a valid marriage or in a voidable or void marriage and whether or not the same legally shall be terminated.
(e) Pension for Minor or Dependent Children. Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die without leaving a Qualified Surviving Spouse, the guardian of the estate of his or her Minor or Dependent Children shall be paid, until each such child shall cease to be a Minor or Dependent Child, a monthly pension equal to the pension a Qualified Surviving Spouse would have been eligible to receive pursuant to subsection (a) of this section had a Qualified Surviving Spouse survived such Member. Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die leaving a Qualified Surviving Spouse who thereafter shall die or who thereafter shall cease to be a reinstated Qualified Surviving Spouse, the guardian of the estate of his or her Minor or Dependent Children shall be paid, until each such child shall cease to be a Minor or Dependent Child, a monthly pension equal to the pension a Qualified Surviving Spouse would have been eligible to receive pursuant to subsection (a) of this section. In any of the foregoing events and if there were to be more than one Minor or Dependent Child, an equal share of such monthly pension shall be paid for and on behalf of each such child to the guardian of his or her estate and shall be adjusted as each of them shall cease to be a Minor or Dependent Child in the manner set forth in subsection (c) of this section. If payments are made pursuant to this subsection (e), no additional pension amounts shall be paid pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.
(f) Pension for Dependent Parents. Whenever any Plan Member or Retired Plan Member shall die without leaving a Qualified Surviving Spouse or a Minor Dependent Child, a monthly pension shall be paid to such Dependent Parents or to the survivor of them until each such Dependent Parent shall cease to be such. Any Dependent Parent who shall cease to be such but who thereafter again shall become unable to pay his or her necessary living expenses without a pension shall be entitled to have his or her pension reinstated.
The total amount of a pension payable to the Dependent Parent or Parents shall be the same as that to which a Qualified Surviving Spouse would have been entitled pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(g) Determinations With Respect to Cause of Death and Dependency. The Board shall have the same power as that which has been given to it by Section 1506(c) and (d) in order to determine:
(1) the fact whether a Plan Member’s death was service-connected or nonservice-connected for the purposes of Section 1508(a)(1) and (2);
(2) the fact of whether or not a child of a deceased Plan Member or Retired Plan Member is a Dependent Child; and
(3) whether or not any parent of a deceased Plan Member or Retired Plan Member is a Dependent Parent.
The Board also shall have the power to determine, from time to time, the fact of whether or not a child continues to be a Dependent Child, the fact of whether or not a parent continues to be a Dependent Parent and the fact of whether or not a Dependent Parent who had ceased to be such thereafter shall have become entitled to have his or her pension reinstated.
(h) Medical Reports and Hearings. The power of the Board to determine the fact of whether a Plan Member’s death was service-connected or nonservice-connected, as provided in subsection (g) of this section, hereafter may be exercised by it upon the basis of a written report from one regularly licensed and practicing physician selected by it but the Board, in its discretion, may obtain such a report from more than one such physician. The determination hereinbefore referred to in this subsection may, at the option of the Board, be made without a hearing being held pursuant to the provisions of subsection (g) of this section.
(i) Distribution of Contributions. Whenever a Plan Member dies without leaving a person or persons entitled to receive a pension pursuant to the provisions of this section, then, and in that event, his or her contributions to the Plan, together with such interest as may have been credited to the Plan Member’s individual account shall be paid to such person as he or she shall have nominated by written designation duly executed and filed with the Board. In the event there is no written designation of beneficiary, surviving spouse, children or parents, then the contributions shall be paid to the executor or administrator of the estate of such deceased Plan Member, or to any other person legally authorized to collect money due the decedent.
(a) Creation of Funds. Two entirely separate and distinct funds hereby are created and established for the payment of pension benefits pursuant to this Tier 3, for the payment of certain other benefits as may be authorized by ordinance pursuant to the enabling provisions of this Tier 3 and for the payment of the administrative expenses of the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3, one of which shall be known as the “Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund” and the other of which shall be known as the “Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund.”
(b) Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund. The Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund shall consist of:
(1) deductions made pursuant to Section 1514, from the salaries of Plan Members;
(2) all contributions and donations to the Fire Department or to the Police Department for services by any Plan Members, except amounts of money donated to provide for any medal or permanent competitive award;
(3) all fines imposed upon Plan Members for violations of rules and regulations of the respective department in which they are Department Members;
(4) proceeds from the sale of unclaimed property as determined by the Board; and
(5) all interest, earnings and profits resulting from investments of such monies.
(c) Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund. The Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund shall consist of:
(1) all money appropriated to the fund by the Council;
(2) all interest, earnings and profits resulting from investment of such monies.
(d) Use of Funds. The monies in the Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund shall be used, other than for the investment thereof, exclusively for the payment of service pensions granted pursuant to Section 1504 and for the refund of contributions as provided in this Tier 3. The monies in the Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund shall be used, other than for the investment thereof, exclusively for the payment of all pensions other than service pensions, such benefits as may be provided by ordinance adopted pursuant to the enabling provisions contained in this Tier 3 and of all administrative expenses of the Fire and Police Tier 3 Pension Plan.
(e) Authorized Transfer Between Funds. In the event that the monies in the Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund should be insufficient, at any time, to pay all service pensions, then the Board shall have the power and authority to cause the Controller of the City to transfer to the fund sufficient monies therefor from the Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund. In no other event shall any of the money in either of the funds be commingled with any money in the other fund.
(f) Benefits Shall be General Obligation of the City. The obligation to pay benefits pursuant to this Tier 3 shall be a general obligation of the City.
(a) Actuarial Standards. The Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 shall be maintained on a reserve basis which, for the purposes of this Tier 3, shall mean one which provides for the accumulation and maintenance of the Fire and Police Tier 3 Service Pension Fund and the Fire and Police Tier 3 General Pension Fund which together will at all times be equal to the difference between the present value of the obligations assumed and the present value of the monies to be received for paying such obligations, where such present values are estimated in accordance with accepted actuarial methods and on the basis of an assumed rate of interest and the mathematical probabilities of the occurrence of such contingencies as affect both the payment of the assumed obligations and the receipt of monies with which they are to be paid in accordance with the provisions of Sections 1210(b)(3) and 1514.
(b) Actuarial Valuations. The Board shall secure an actuarial valuation showing the cost of maintaining the plan and funds on such reserve basis and, at intervals of not to exceed five years, shall cause to be made an actuarial investigation including, but not limited to, the mortality, service and salary experience of the Plan Members and other beneficiaries and shall further cause to be made annually an actuarial valuation of the assets and liabilities of the funds.
The Board, from time to time and with the advice of the investment counsel, shall establish such an assumed rate of interest for the purpose of actuarial valuations, as in its judgment seems proper in the light of the experience and prospective earnings on the investment of the funds.
(c) Retention of Actuary. The Board shall retain a competent consulting actuary for the purpose of making the necessary actuarial studies, reports, investigations and valuations and shall, with the advice of the actuary, adopt such actuarial assumptions as shall be necessary.
(d) Accounting for Unrealized Profits and Losses. With the advice of the consulting actuary and of the investment counsel, the Board, for the purpose of the actuarial valuations, may provide by rule for the manner and the extent to which any unrealized profits or losses in the equity type investments of the funds shall be taken into account.
(e) Unfunded Liabilities. The unfunded liabilities of the Fire and Police Pension Plan – Tier 3 shall be funded in accordance with the actuarial funding method adopted by the Board upon the advice of its consulting actuary. Any unfunded liabilities resulting from amendment of the provisions of this Tier 3 or by ordinance as authorized by this Tier 3 shall be amortized over a 30 year period. Actuarial experience gains and losses shall be amortized over a 15 year period.
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