[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
East Pittsburgh as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-15-1974 by Ord. No. 727 (Ch. 1, Art. XII, of the 1980 Code
of Ordinances)]
The Borough hereby establishes a self-administered Service Employees'
Pension Fund.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Section 17 of Ord. No. 727 provided that
the Pension Fund be established immediately; Section 18 authorized
the proper persons to execute all necessary documents; Section 19
repealed all inconsistent ordinances and part of ordinances.
The fund is to be maintained by a charge against each member
of the Service Employees' Pension Fund, by annual appropriations
made by the Borough, by gifts, grants, devises, or bequests granted
especially to the Service Employees' Pension Fund.
Such Service Employees' Pension Fund shall be under the
control of the Council and administered by the Borough Pension Committee
under regulations adopted by such Committee.
The Borough is hereby authorized to take by gift, grant, devise
or bequest any money or property, real, personal or mixed, in trust
for the benefit of such fund, and the care, management, investment
and disposal of such trust funds or property shall be vested in the
Borough Pension Committee, and the said trust funds shall be governed
thereby subject to such directions not inconsistent therewith as the
donors of such funds and property may prescribe.
Any person employed by the Borough as an employee of the Service
Department shall be eligible to participate in the Service Employees'
Pension Fund immediately after such employment; provided, however,
that he has not reached the age of 60 years at the time of such employment.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 744; 6-6-1981 by Ord. No. 764; 5-8-1989 by Ord. No. 803-A; 3-25-1991 by Ord. No. 820]
A.
The normal retirement age shall be 65 years of age, provided the
member has completed five years of continuous service with the Borough.
The normal monthly retirement benefit shall be made up of:
B.
The current pensions of all those now receiving pensions shall be
increased to $200 per month effective as of January 1, 1989, and this
amount shall be the minimum for future retirees. The Borough Treasurer
and Secretary are authorized to submit the appropriate sum necessary
to fund the prospective benefits based on the opinion of the Borough
Actuary.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 744]
A member shall be eligible to retire prior to normal retirement
age, provided he be 60 years of age. The early-retirement-age benefit
shall be equal to an actuarial equivalent of the normal retirement
age pension benefit at the time of actual retirement.
Any member who has reached the age of 65 may request of the
Council for an extension of full-time employment as a street employee.
Such extension may be granted by the Council from year to year; however,
not beyond the member's age 70, providing such member has met
the age and years of service requirements as hereinbefore stated.
The postponed retirement age benefit shall be equal to that amount
as such member would be entitled to receive under the formulas used
in the normal retirement age benefit.
Payments made under the provisions of the Service Employees'
Pension Fund shall not be a charge on any other fund in the treasury
of the Borough or any other fund under its control save the Service
Employees' Pension Fund herein provided for.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 744; 6-8-1981 by Ord. No. 764]
Members shall pay into the fund the sum of $18 to be deducted
from their pay for each payroll period. The remainder of the needed
annual contributions as determined by the actuary shall become the
obligation of the Borough and shall be paid by it to the Pension Fund
by annual appropriations.
The existing assets of the present fund together with the cash surrender value of the life insurance contracts maintained as part of the former fund shall be transferred into the Pension Fund established under this Article I, Employee Pension Plan.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 744]
Any member of the service department in a borough, town or township
who for any reason whatsoever, including death, shall be ineligible
to receive a pension from the fund established pursuant to the provisions
of the Enabling Act shall be entitled, or in the event of death his
estate, to a refund of all such moneys paid by him into the fund,
plus all interest earned by such moneys while in the Street Employees'
Pension Fund, as determined by regulations of the governing body immediately
upon discontinuance of his employment with the Service Department.
If such discontinuance is due to death, such moneys shall be paid
to his designated beneficiary or, in the absence thereof, to his estate.
Interest earned will be calculated at a rate of 5%.
The actuarial calculations with respect to the Street Employees' Pension Fund hereby established shall be provided through J.J. Markotan and Co., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to determine the present value of the liability on account of pensions payable under §§ 84-6, 84-7, and 87-8 of this Article I, Employee Pension Plan, to original members for service prior to the date of the establishment of this fund, and shall offset the value of any assets transferred to this fund from the previous pension fund established by the Borough to determine the unfunded liability. In addition, there shall also be determinations to show the amount which shall be contributed, annually, into the fund for members' service subsequent to the establishment of this fund, to be known as "future service cost."
The pension payments herein provided for shall not be subject
to attachment, execution, levy, garnishment, or other legal process,
and shall be payable only to the member or his designated beneficiary
and shall not be subject to assignment or transfer.
The Council hereby authorizes and directs the Secretary to make
regular annual deposits into the fund as recommended by the administrator.
The procedure hereinbefore set forth to include new members
in the Pension Plan shall be followed from time to time and from year
to year with the necessary and desired factual changes without the
necessity to pass any new ordinance or resolution authorizing such
members' inclusion in the Plan.
[Added 8-14-1989 by Ord.
No. 803-A]
In the event of the death of an employee of the Borough covered by a pension under this Article I, Employee Pension Plan, prior to or after retirement, his widow, provided that the marriage has been in existence for five or more years, shall be entitled to 1/2 the amount that would otherwise have been payable to such member for as long as she lives or until she remarries.
[Added 5-11-1981 by Ord.
No. 762]
Beginning with January 1, 1981, and each and every January 1
thereafter, in the event that a monthly pension has been paid for
the previous 12 months, such pension amount shall be increased by
a percentage equivalent to any increase for the preceding year in
the Consumer Price Index as established and maintained by the federal
government, provided:
A.
That no such increase for any particular member shall exceed the
percentage increase from the year in which such member last worked;
and
B.
That in no case shall the total benefit exceed 75% of the salary
for computing pension benefits; and
C.
That the cumulative yearly increases shall not exceed 30% of the
original pension amount; and
D.
That no cost of living increase shall be granted which would impair
the actuarial soundness of the pension funds.
[Adopted 11-11-1974 by Ord. No. 726 (Ch. 1, Art. XIII, of the 1980 Code
of Ordinances)]
Pursuant to the provisions of Act 600 and any amendments thereto,
the Borough hereby establishes a self-administered Police Pension
Fund.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Section 15 of Ord. No. 726 directed that
the Pension Fund be established immediately; Section 16 directed the
proper Borough officers to do everything necessary to implement the
Plan; Section 17 repealed any conflicting ordinance or part thereof.
The fund is to be maintained by a charge against each member
of the police force, by annual appropriations made by the Borough,
by payments made by the State Treasurer to the Borough Treasurer from
monies received from taxes paid on premiums by foreign casualty insurance
companies for purposes of pension for policemen, and by gifts, grants,
devises or bequests granted to such Pension Fund pursuant to the provisions
of such Act.
Such Police Pension Fund shall be under the control of the Council
and administered by the Borough Pension Committee under regulations
adopted by such Committee.
The Police Pension Fund is hereby authorized to take, by gift,
grant, devise or bequest, any money or property, real, personal or
mixed, for the benefit of such fund, and the care, management, investment
and disposal of such trust funds or property shall be shall be governed
thereby subject to such directions not be inconsistent therewith as
the donors of such funds and property may prescribe.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 743; 11-10-1980 by Ord. No. 755; 12-27-1982 by Ord. No. 773; 1-6-1986 by Ord. No. 782; 7-13-1998 by Ord. No. 860]
From the effective date of this section, all members of the
Borough police force shall be eligible for a monthly pension or retirement
benefit (a disability benefit) pension from the police pension fund
for a total and permanent disablement or disability directly resulting
from service-related injuries incurred in the line of duty as defined
in the statute. The amount of the disability benefit shall be computed
in accordance with this article. For purposes of this section, the
total and permanent disability of a police officer shall be deemed
to constitute a "retirement."
Any member of the police force employed by the Borough who has
been a regular appointed employee of the Borough for a period of at
least six months and who thereafter shall enter into the military
service of the United States shall have credited to his employment
record for pension or retirement benefits all of the time spent by
him in such military service, if such person returns or has heretofore
returned to his employment within six months after his separation
from the service.
[Added 4-14-1978 by Ord.
No. 787]
A.
The normal monthly pension or retirement benefit other than length
of service increments shall be computed at 1/2 the average salary
of such member during not more than the last 60 nor less than the
last 36 months of employment.
B.
Pension payments in event of member death.
(1)
In the event that a member is eligible for and receives a regular
retirement pension or a disability pension and dies, or dies prior
to retirement, his wife at the time of his death or retirement, whichever
be sooner, will receive during her lifetime or until her remarriage,
or the children of such member under the age of 18, if their mother
be dead or dies or remarries, shall receive 50% of the pension that
the member was receiving or would have been receiving had he been
retired at the time of his death.
(2)
Such pension of the widow shall continue until she remarries or dies
and for the children shall begin only if their mother remarries or
be dead, at which time the pension payable to such child or children
shall be divided equally among them and paid until each reaches the
age of 18.
C.
In the event of the death of a member of the police force prior to
or after retirement, his widow, provided that the marriage has been
in existence for five or more years, shall be entitled to 1/2 the
amount that would otherwise have been payable to such member for as
long as she lives or remarries.
[Amended 2-8-1988 by Ord.
No. 798]
A.
If a member shall cease to be an employee of the Borough, except
as otherwise herein provided, his interest and rights in this fund
shall be limited to those contained in this section.
B.
If a member's employment with the employer has been terminated
for any reason (other than death) prior to his normal retirement date,
and he is neither eligible for a pension under the plan nor has he
elected to vest his benefit under this section, such member or his
beneficiary shall be entitled to receive a refund of his accumulated
contributions, said member and his beneficiary shall not be entitled
to any further payments from the plan.
C.
In lieu of receiving a refund of his accumulated contributions, a
member who has completed at least 12 years of aggregate service with
the employer and who ceased to be a full-time police officer of the
employer for any reason other than death or retirement shall vest
at the option of the member. Such vesting option must be exercised
by the member by filing a written notice of his intention to vest
with the Board within 90 days of the date he ceases to be a full-time
officer of the employer. A member who exercised such an option shall
be eligible, upon attainment of what would have been his normal retirement
date had he continued to be a full-time police officer of the employer,
to a vested retirement benefit equal to the benefit determined on
the basis of his final monthly average salary at termination of employment,
multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which shall be the member's
years of service as a police officer of the Borough as of the date
when his employment terminates, and the denominator of which shall
be the total years of service which would have been credited to the
member if he had continued to be employed as a full-time police officer
of the Borough until his normal retirement date. If a member elects
to vest his benefit but dies prior to the commencement thereof, the
beneficiary of such member shall be entitled to a refund of the member's
accumulated contributions in accordance with the terms of the preceding
subsection.
[Amended 4-13-1978 by Ord. No. 743; 4-14-1986 by Ord. No. 787]
The actuarial calculations with respect to the Police Pension Fund hereby established shall be provided through J.J. Markotan and Co., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to determine the present value of the liability on account of pensions payable under § 84-25 of this article to original members for service prior to the date of the establishment of this fund, and shall offset the value of any assets transferred to this fund from the previous pension fund established by the Borough to determine the unfunded liability. In addition, there shall also be determinations to show the amount which shall be contributed, annually, into the fund for members' service subsequent to the establishment of this fund, to be known as "future service cost."
[Amended 12-28-1990 by Ord. No. 818]
Members shall pay into the fund, monthly, an amount equal to
1% of monthly compensation. The remainder of the needed annual contributions,
as determined by the actuary, shall become the obligation of the Borough,
and shall be paid by it to the Pension Fund by annual appropriations.
If an actuarial study shows that the condition of the Police Pension
Fund of the Borough is such that payments into the fund by members
may be reduced below the minimum percentages hereinbefore prescribed,
or eliminated, and that if such payments are reduced or eliminated,
contributions by the Borough will not be required to keep the fund
actuarially sound, the governing body of the Borough may, on an annual
basis, by ordinance or resolution, reduce or eliminate payments into
the fund by members.
The existing assets of the present fund, together with the cash surrender value of the life insurance contracts maintained as part of the former fund, shall be transferred into the Pension Fund established under this Article II, Police Pension Plan.
No person participating in a Police Pension Fund established pursuant to the provisions of this Article II, Police Pension Plan, who becomes entitled to receive a benefit therefrom shall be deprived of his right to an equal proportionate share therein upon the basis upon which he first became entitled thereto.
The pension payments herein provided for shall not be subject
to attachment, execution, levy, garnishment, or other legal process,
and shall be payable only to the member or his designated beneficiary
and shall not be subject to assignment or transfer.
The Council hereby authorizes and directs the Secretary to make
regular annual deposits into the fund as recommended by the administrator.
[Added 5-11-1981 by Ord.
No. 762; amended 3-12-1984 by Ord. No. 776]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Includes base pay, overtime pay, court pay, holiday pay,
vacation pay and all other remuneration.
The fixed amounts paid at periodic intervals excluding overtime,
court pay and holiday pay.
[Added 5-11-1981 by Ord.
No. 762]
Beginning with January 1, 1981, and each and every January 1
thereafter, in the event that a monthly pension has been paid for
the previous 12 months, such pension amount shall be increased by
a percentage equivalent to any increase for the preceding year in
the Consumer Price Index as established and maintained by the federal
government, provided:
A.
That no such increase for any particular member shall exceed the
percentage increase from the year in which such member last worked;
and
B.
That in no case shall the total benefit exceed 75% of the salary
for computing pension benefits; and
C.
That the cumulative yearly increases shall not exceed 30% of the
original pension amount; and
D.
That no cost of living increase shall be granted which would impair
the actuarial soundness of the pension funds.
[1]
Editor's Note: The cost of living increases heretofore
granted shall be frozen at the levels paid for 1984 and that they
remain frozen until they can be paid without impairing the actuarial
soundness of the Police Pension Fund.
[Added 5-11-1981 by Ord.
No. 763]
The Borough shall pay out of its general fund the necessary
premium when necessary to assure Blue Cross and Blue Shield coverage
for retired members of the police force until they reach the age of
65:
A.
Who are currently actively employed and are in excess of 55 years
and who are otherwise eligible to retire and who retire on or before
June 30, 1981; and
B.
Who are currently actively employed and who are less than 55 years
of age and are otherwise eligible to retire and who retire upon reaching
that age.
[Amended 4-14-1986 by Ord. No. 788]
