(a) Death Benefits. Upon a participant's death prior to his or her retirement date, his or her beneficiary will be entitled to receive a death benefit equal to a refund of the participant's contributions (without interest) including any pick-up contributions pursuant to Section 286.03(b)(6).
(b) Beneficiary Designation. "Beneficiary" shall mean the person or entity designated by the participant to receive a refund of the participant's contributions (without interest) should the participant die prior to becoming entitled to a retirement benefit. In the event that a participant does not designate a beneficiary or the beneficiary does not survive the participant, the beneficiary shall be the surviving spouse, or if there is no surviving spouse, the participant's children, or if there are no surviving children, the estate; but if no personal representative has been appointed, to those persons who would be entitled to the estate under the intestacy laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania if the participant had died intestate and a resident of Pennsylvania.
(c) Survivor Benefit. The survivor benefit paid pursuant to Sections 286.04(a), 286.04(b), 286.06(b), 288.06(c), (when the participant would have reached 55 years of age) or 286.06(d) shall be a pension equal to the pension the participant was receiving or would have received had he been retired at the time of his or her death and shall be paid to the surviving spouse until the date of death of the surviving spouse. Upon the death of the surviving spouse of a participant, 50 percent (100 percent in the case of disability pensions) of the pension the participant was receiving or would have been eligible to receive had he or she been retired at the time of his or her death shall be paid monthly in equal shares to the surviving children of the deceased participant until the death or attainment of age 18 of each child. The shares payable to the surviving children shall be adjusted as each child ceases to be eligible to receive a share of the benefit hereunder due to death or attainment of age 18. The payee above, whether the spouse or the children shall be defined herein as the survivor.
(d) Distribution of Minor Beneficiary. In the event a distribution is to be made to a minor, then the Commission shall direct that such distribution be paid to the legal guardian, or if none, to a parent of such minor or a responsible adult with whom the minor maintains his or her residence, or to the custodian for such minor under the Uniform Gift to Minors Act or Gift to Minors Act, if such is permitted by the laws of the state in which said minor resides. Such a payment to the legal guardian or parent of a minor shall fully discharge the Commission, employer and Plan from liability on account thereof.
(Ord. 01-02. Passed 4-8-02.)