[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Hazleton 12-17-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-21. Amendments noted where applicable.]
For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
BOARD
The term "Board" or "Board of Managers" shall mean the Board of Managers of the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund.
CHILDREN
Children of a member or of a deceased member but limited to children who are under 18 years of age.
FUND
The Paid Firemen's Pension Fund.
MEMBER
A person employed by the City as a paid and uniformed member of the Fire Department.
SALARY
The fixed amount of compensation paid at regular periodic intervals by the City to the member and from which pension contributions have been deducted.
There is hereby continued in the City a pension fund to be designated as the "Paid Firemen's Pension Fund" for the purpose of providing pensions to the members of such fund and to such other beneficiaries as shall be specified in this chapter. Such a fund shall receive property and funds and shall hold and distribute funds for the purpose and benefit of the members and other beneficiaries of the fund.
A. 
The Paid Firemen's Pension Fund shall be under the direction and control of a Board of Managers consisting of the Mayor, the Director of Administration, the President of Council, a member of Council chosen by a majority vote of Council, the Fire Chief and two members of the Fire Department to be chosen by the members of the Fire Department. Of the first Managers so chosen by the Fire Department, one shall be chosen for a term of two years and one for a term of four years. Biennially thereafter, one Manager shall be chosen for a term of four years to take the place of the Manager whose term expires. In case of a vacancy among the Managers chosen by the members of the Fire Department, a successor shall be chosen by such members for the unexpired term.
B. 
No member of the Board of Managers shall receive any compensation.
The Treasurer and Secretary of the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund shall give a surety bond in a sum to be fixed by resolution of the Board of Managers, conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties imposed upon them by this chapter and the rules and regulations of the Board and that they will turn over to their successor all moneys or securities that shall come into their hands. The premium for the bond shall be paid by the fund.
All members of January 1, 1969, and all subsequently employed members shall be considered members of the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund.
There shall be paid into the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund by each member in the manner prescribed in this chapter 4% of the pay of each member and an additional amount of 1% to provide sufficient funds for payments to surviving spouses of members retired on pension or killed or who die in the service. Such sum shall be deducted at each payroll period by the City of Hazleton and shall be paid forthwith to the Treasurer of the fund.
The City shall pay annually to the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund the sum of money not less than 1/2 of 1% nor more than 3% of all City taxes levied by the City, other than taxes levied to pay interest on or to extinguish the debt of the City or any part thereof. Such sum shall be paid at least quarterly during the fiscal year of the City, but the City Council may exceed the limitations imposed by this section if an additional amount is deemed necessary to provide sufficient funds for payments to surviving spouses of members retired on pension or killed or who die in the service.
A. 
The Paid Firemen's Pension Fund shall be applied, under such regulations as the Board of Managers shall prescribe, for the benefit of such members of the Fire Department as shall receive honorable discharge therefrom by reason of service or age or disability, surviving spouses of retired members, and the families of such as may be killed or who die in the service. All such pensions as shall be allowed to those who are retired by reason of such disability or service or age shall be in conformity with a uniform scale together with service increments as provided in § 89-12. Benefits allowed from such fund to families of such as are killed or who die in service shall take into consideration the member's surviving spouse and his or her minor children under 18 years of age, if any survive.
B. 
The regulations of the Board of Managers of the fund shall prescribe a minimum period of continuous service not less than 20 years, including credit for military service, and a minimum age not less than 50 years, after which members of the Fire Department may be retired or elect to be retired on pension from active duty, and such members as are retired shall be subject to service, from time to time, as a firemen's reserve in cases of emergency until unfitted for such service, when they may be finally discharged by reason of age or disability.
NOTE: Article 15, Pensions, Section 3 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement dated January 1, 2021, provided that each bargaining unit member shall be entitled to retire after accruing 20 years of service, regardless of age.
A. 
The basis of the pension of a member of the fund shall be determined by the monthly salary of the member at the date of retirement, or the highest average annual salary which he received during any five years of service preceding retirement, whichever is higher, whether for disability or by reason of age or service and, except as to service increments provided for in § 89-12, shall be 1/2 the annual salary of such member at the time of retirement computed at such monthly or average annual rate, whichever is higher.
B. 
In the case of the payment of pensions to members for permanent injury incurred in service, and to families of members killed or who die in service, the amount and commencement of the payment of pensions shall be fixed by regulations of the Board of Managers. Such regulations shall not take into consideration the amount and duration of workers' compensation allowed by law.
C. 
Retired firemen.
(1) 
Pensions of firemen now retired (this 28th day of December 2006) and receiving pension benefits shall be and hereby are increased as follows: To the minimum sum of $800 per month, to all those presently on pension and those in the future who may retire after this date, which also includes and pertains to widow's benefits and shall be in strict accordance with 53 P.S. § 39322.1, as amended.
(2) 
That effective January 10, 2007, and hereafter, pensions of retired firemen shall be modified to equal the full (100%) cost-of-living (COLA) adjustment as measured by the Social Security Administration annually. The total retirement pay after the cost-of-living increase cannot exceed 50% of the current salary being paid firefighters of the highest pay grade and shall be in strict accordance with 53 P.S. § 39322.1, as amended.
Effective January 1, 1985, and hereafter, pensions of retired firemen shall be increased 1/2 of the social security increase allowed by the federal government.
NOTE: Article 15, Pensions, Section 4 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement dated January 1, 2021, provides as follows:
A. Presently active bargaining unit members who were hired prior to January 1, 1988 will be eligible to retire on pension without regard to their age, at 50% of final average salary, after completing 20 years of service in the Hazleton City Fire Department. Additionally, this group of presently active bargaining unit members who were hired prior to January 1, 1988 will be entitled to an additional 5% of final average salary for each year of completed City firefighting service up to a cap of 75% of final average salary after completing 25 years of service.
B. Bargaining unit members who were hired after January 1, 1988, will be eligible to retire on pension without regard to their age, at 55% of their average salary, after completing 20 years of service in the Hazleton City Fire Department. The service increment for service in excess of 20 years available to firefighters hired prior to January 1, 1988, is not available to those hired after January 1, 1988. For all groups the concept of "final average salary" shall include and be limited to base salary, longevity pay, night shift differential and overtime pay. The final average salary for the purposes of this section is as defined in the Third Class City Code.
C. Bargaining unit members who were hired after September 1, 2000, will be eligible to retire on pension without regard to their age, at 50% of their average salary, after completing 20 years of service in the Hazleton City Fire Department. The service increment for service in excess of 20 years available to firefighters hired prior to January 1, 1988, is not available to those hired after September 1, 2000. For all groups, the "final average salary" shall include and be limited to base wage/salary, longevity pay, night shift differential and overtime pay. Final average salary for the purposes of this section is as defined in the Third Class City Code.
D. Effective January 10, 2007, and hereafter, pensions of retired firefighters shall be modified to equal the full (100%) cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) as measured by Social Security Administration annually. The total pay after the cost-of-living increase cannot exceed 50% of the current salary being paid firefighters of the highest pay grade and shall be in strict accordance with 53 P.S. § 39322.1, as amended.
E. For all firefighters hired on or after January 1, 2015, all pension benefits will be made in strict compliance with the provisions of Third Class City Code (53 P.S. § 39301 et seq.).
In addition to the pension which is authorized to be paid from the Firemen's Pension Fund by this chapter, and notwithstanding the limitations therein placed upon such pensions and upon contributions, every contributor who shall become entitled to the pension shall also be entitled to the payment of a service increment in accordance with and subject to the following conditions:
A. 
The service increment shall be the sum obtained by computing the number of whole years after having served the minimum required by this chapter during which a contributor has been employed by the City and paid out by the City Treasury, including credit for military service, and multiplying the said number of years so computed by an amount equal to 1/40 of the retirement allowance which has become payable to such contributor in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. In computing the service increment, no employment after the contributor has reached the age of 65 years shall be included, and no service increment shall be paid in excess of $100 per month.
B. 
Each contributor, from and after January 1, 1969, shall pay into the pension fund a monthly sum in addition to his pension contribution, which sum shall not exceed the sum of $1 per month. Such service increment contribution shall not be paid after a contributor has reached the age of 65 years.
C. 
Any person who is a member of the Fire Department on January 1, 1969, who has already reached the age of 65 years shall have his service increment computed on the years of employment prior to the date of reaching his 65th birthday.
D. 
Service increment contributions shall be paid at the same time and in the same manner as pensions, and may be withdrawn in full, without interest, by persons who leave the employment of the City, subject to the same conditions by which retirement contributions may be withdrawn, or by persons who retire before becoming entitled to any service increment.
E. 
All members of the Fire Department who are now contributors to the pension fund and all those employed by the City after January 1, 1969, if required to become contributors to the pension fund, shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter.
All benefit payments being received by members of any previous pension fund of the Fire Department, or their respective surviving spouses, shall continue to be paid from the Paid Firemen's Pension Fund.
A. 
If for any cause any member of the Fire Department contributing to the pension fund shall cease to be a member of the Fire Department before he becomes entitled to a pension, the total amount of the contributions paid into the pension fund by such member shall be refunded to him in full without interest. If any such member shall have returned to him the amount contributed and shall afterward again become a member of the Fire Department, he shall not be entitled to the pension designated until 20 years after his reemployment, unless he shall return to the pension fund the amount withdrawn, in which event the period of 20 years shall be computed from the time the member first became a member of the Fire Department, excluding therefrom any period of time during which the member was not employed by the Fire Department.
B. 
In the event of the death of a member of the Fire Department not in the line of service before the member becomes entitled to the pension and such member is not survived by a spouse or family entitled to payments as provided under this chapter, the total amount of contributions paid into the pension fund by the member shall be paid over to his estate. In case of the death of the member not in the line of service before the member becomes entitled to the pension and such member is survived by a spouse eligible to receive benefits as hereinbefore provided, the total amount of contributions paid into the pension fund by the member shall be paid over to such surviving spouse.
All pensions granted under this chapter, and every portion thereof, shall not be subject to pledge, assignment or transfer and shall be exempt from attachment and shall not be seized, taken or subject to detainer or levied upon by virtue of an execution or any process or proceeding whatsoever.
Pensions for bargaining unit members employed by the Hazleton City Fire Department, shall be vested after completing 12 years of service and thereby, entitled to 100% vesting of the accrued benefit to be paid at normal retirement date and in strict accordance with 53 P.S. § 39320.1, as amended.
NOTE: 53 P.S. § 39320.1, as amended, has been repealed by 2015, Nov. 24, P.L. 242, No. 67, § 2(2), effective in 60 days. [Jan. 25, 2016]
NOTE: 53 P.S. § 4320.1 of the Third Class City Code now provides as follows: Limited Vested Benefit for Firefighters — (a) The ordinance establishing a firefighters' pension fund my provide for a limited vested benefit if [such] it would conform to Section 305 of the act of December 18, 1984 (P.L. 1005, No. 205), known as the "Municipal Pension Plan Funding Standard and Recovery Act."
(a.1) Under a limited vested benefit, if a member of the firefighters' pension fund has not completed the minimum period of continuous service and any applicable minimum age requirement but has completed 12 years of full-time service, and if, for any reason, shall cease to be employed as a full-time firefighter, the member shall be entitled to vest the member's retirement benefits subject to the following conditions:
(1) The member must file with the management board of firefighters' pension fund a written notice of the member's intention to vest.
(2) The member must include in the notice the date the member intends to terminate service as a full-time firefighter.
(3) The termination shall be at least 30 days later than the date of notice to vest.
(4) The member must be in good standing with the fire department on the date of notice to vest.
(5) The board shall indicate on the notice to vest the rate of the monthly pay of the member as of the date of the notice to vest or the highest average annual salary which the member received during any five years of service preceding the date whichever is the higher.
(b) Upon reaching the date which would have been the member's retirement date had the member continued [his or her] full-time employment with the fire department, the member shall notify the board in writing that the member desire to collect the member's pension.
The amount of retirement benefits the member is entitled to receive under this section shall be computed as follows:
(1) The portion of the base retirement benefits due the member shall be determined by applying to the base amount the percentage that the member's years of service actually rendered bears to the years of service which would have been rendered had the member continued to be employed by the department until the member's minimum retirement date.
NOTE: Article 15, Pensions, Section 5 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement dated January 1, 2021, provides that pensions shall be vested after 12 years of service to the fullest extent permitted by law.
A. 
Whenever any person shall become entitles to receive a pension form the firefighter's pension fund, and shall have been admitted to participate therein, the person shall not thereafter be deprived of the person's right to participation therein on the basis upon which the person first became entitled thereto, unless otherwise required by the act of July 8, 1978 (P.L. 752, No. 1400, known as the "Public Employee Pension Forfeiture Act."[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 43 P.S. § 1311 et seq.
B. 
Any termination of a pension shall be only after [such] due notice and hearing as shall be prescribed by regulations of the managers.
NOTE: See 53 P.S. § 4323.