§ 2-1332. Eligibility; retirement benefits.

(a)

Generally. Each member of the plan, as the term member is fully defined in subsection (f), shall receive an annuity payable until the first day of the month following death and beginning 1) the first day of the month following attainment of age 60; or 2) the later of the expiration of the member's last term of office or the date of attaining mandatory retirement age if that date occurs during a term of office. Nothing herein shall be construed as preventing or limiting an elected official's ability after serving one elective term to retire prior to the completion of a term of office and receive an annuity computed in accordance with the retirement date selected by the elected official.

(b)

Application for retirement. Written application to the board of trustees shall be made at least 30 days prior to retirement date.

(c)

Amount of annuity. For those elected officials whose service terminates on or after November 1, 2000, the annuity shall be 2.22 percent of the average monthly compensation received by then serving elected officials of the same office during the 24 months next preceding the beginning of the annuity, multiplied by the number of years' and months' creditable service, limited to 70 percent of the existing salary for then serving elected officials of the same office.

(d)

Cost-of-living adjustment. An annual cost-of-living adjustment in annuities shall be payable under these conditions:

(1)

Effective date of adjustment and applicability. An annual cost-of-living adjustment shall be payable on pension checks to be dated May 1 of the current year and shall remain unchanged until the next effective date of adjustment. This adjustment shall apply to all beneficiaries receiving benefits, except no pension of any member or beneficiary retiring after January 1 of any year shall be adjusted until May 1 of the succeeding year.

(2)

Amount of adjustment. The adjustment shall be three percent, each year, noncompounded.

(e)

Early retirement; rule of 80.

(1)

Elected officials may elect early retirement beginning at the later of age 55 or completion of ten years' creditable service. The benefit as computed in this subsection shall be reduced by 0.5 percent for each month the effective date is prior to the first day of the month following attainment of age 60.

(2)

A member may elect to retire when the total of the member's age and years of creditable service equal or exceed 80, without reduction of benefits as calculated in this subsection.

(f)

Membership.

(1)

Members of the council, including the mayor.

a.

Exclusion from plan. Unless otherwise provided, no members of the council, including the mayor, who commence a term of office after April 30, 2011 shall participate in this plan for any service after April 30, 2011. The city will, however, for those nonmembers, provide a Kansas City Elected Officials Money Purchase Plan for their service after April 30, 2011, as set forth in section 2, article IX, division 9.

b.

Exception. Members of the council, including the mayor, elected on March 27, 2007 for a term beginning May 1, 2007 and also elected on March 22, 2011 for a term beginning May 1, 2011 are members of this plan as long as they are continuously a member of the council, including the mayor.

(2)

Judges of the municipal court.

a.

Continuous service on and after May 1, 2011. Judges of the municipal court, retained on March 22, 2011 for a term beginning May 1, 2011 are members of this plan or any other plan which they previously joined. No judges of the municipal court appointed to the court by the mayor and council on or after May 1, 2011 shall participate in this plan for any service.

b.

Appointment on and after May 1, 2011. Judges of the municipal court appointed on or after May 1, 2011 are not members of this plan. The city will, however, for those nonmembers, provide a Kansas City Elected Officials Money Purchase Plan for their service after April 30, 2011, as set forth in section 2, article IX, division 9.

(g)

Required distributions. Distribution of a member's interest in the retirement system shall commence not later than April 1 of the calendar year following the later of the calendar year in which the member attains age 70½ or the calendar year in which the member retires under the plan.

(h)

Creditable service. The term "creditable service," as used in this section, shall mean service as a city employee and elected official continuously to either the member's retirement date or the member's attaining mandatory retirement age, whichever occurs first. If a member of the employees' retirement system becomes a member of this elected officials' retirement system maintaining a continuous service, the member's employees' retirement system member contributions and interest shall not be refunded, but shall be transferred to the member's account in the elected officials' retirement system.

(i)

Withdrawal of contributions. A member retiring under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, except disability retirements, may elect, with signed consent of the member's spouse, to withdraw all or a portion of the member's accumulated contributions and interest, and receive a reduced annuity. The annuity calculated in this subsection (i) shall be reduced an actuarially equal amount by applying factors adapted by the board of trustees upon recommendation of the retirement system's consulting actuary.

(1)

Rollovers. The provision applies to distributions made on or after January 1, 1993. Notwithstanding any provision of the retirement system plan to the contrary that would otherwise limit a distributee's election under this provision, a distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the board of trustees, to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly to an eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee in a direct rollover.

a.

Eligible rollover distributions. An eligible rollover distribution is any distribution of all or any portion of the balance to the credit of the distributee, except that an eligible rollover distribution does not include: Any distribution that is one of a series of substantially equal periodic payments (not less frequently than annually) made for the life (or life expectancy) of the distributee or the joint lives (or joint life expectancies) of the distributee and the distributee's designated beneficiary, or for a specified period of ten years or more; any distribution to the extent such distribution is required under section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code; and the portion of any distribution that is not includable in gross income (determined without regard to the exclusion for net realized appreciation with respect to employer securities).

b.

Eligible retirement plan. An eligible retirement plan is an individual retirement account described in section 408(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, an individual retirement annuity described in section 408(b) of the Internal Revenue Code, an annuity plan described in section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code, or a qualified trust described in section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, that accepts the distributee's eligible rollover distribution. However, in the case of an eligible rollover to the surviving spouse, an eligible retirement plan is an individual retirement account or individual retirement annuity.

c.

Distributee. A distributee includes a member or former member. In addition, the member's or former member's surviving spouse and the member's former spouse who is the alternative payee under a state domestic relations order determined by the board of trustees, based on written procedures, to be a qualified domestic relations order, are distributees with regard to the interest of the spouse or former spouse.

d.

Direct rollover. A direct rollover is a payment by the fund to the eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee.

(j)

Health insurance subsidy. A $200.00 monthly retiree health insurance subsidy shall be payable to all retired members effective November 1, 2000.

(k)

Limitations. Benefits with respect to a member may not exceed the maximum benefits specified under section 415 of the Federal Internal Revenue Code for governmental plans.

(l)

Spouse. For purposes of this division, spouse is defined as a husband or wife, lawfully married in any jurisdiction, of the member. Surviving spouse is defined as the spouse of a member surviving the member's death.

(Admin. Code 1967, § A9.131; Ord. No. 36147, 11-27-68; Ord. No. 44932, 1-3-75; Ord. No. 56355, 4-27-84; Ord. No. 57088, 10-25-84; Ord. No. 57452, 2-7-85; Ord. No. 61653, 11-12-87; Ord. No. 930282, 4-8-93; Ord. No. 951643, § A, 12-21-95; Ord. No. 960204, § A, 3-28-96; Ord. No. 98144, § 1, 12-29-98; Ord. No. 990413, § 1, 4-1-99; Ord. No. 000865, § 3, 7-13-00; Ord. No. 040660, § 1, 6-24-04; Ord. No. 041003, § 1, 9-23-04; Ord. No. 051548, § 1, 1-5-06; Ord. No. 110218, § 1, 4-14-11; Ord. No. 140976 , § 4, 12-11-14)