HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-12940City of Miami
Legislation
Ordinance: 12940
City Hall
3500 Pan American
Drive
Miami, FL 33133
www.miamigov.com
File Number: 07-01163 Final Action Date: 9/11/2007
AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION AMENDING
THE MIAMI FIRE FIGHTERS' RELIEF AND PENSION FUND ESTABLISHED BY
ORDINANCE NO. 6432, ADOPTED SEPTEMBER 2, 1959, AS SUBSEQUENTLY
AMENDED AND RESTATED BY ORDINANCE NO. 11462, ADOPTED MARCH 20,
1997, TO IMPLEMENT CERTAIN TERMS OF THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE CITY AND I.A.F.F. LOCAL 587; CONTAINING A
REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 6432, adopted September 2, 1959, created the Miami Fire
Fighters' Relief and Pension Fund (the "Fund"); and
WHEREAS, on March 20, 1997, the Fund was amended and restated by Ordinance No. 11462
to ensure that the form of the Ordinance and the operation and administration of the Fund are
consistent with applicable law; and
WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that it is necessary to further amend the Fund on an
emergency basis by amending Section 6, "Benefits," of Ordinance No. 11462 to implement certain
provisions of the collective bargaining agreements between the City of Miami and I.A.F.F. Local
587;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,
FLORIDA:
Section 1. The recitals and findings contained in the Preamble to this Ordinance are
adopted by reference and incorporated as if fully set forth in this Section.
Section 2. The Fund, pursuant to Ordinance No. 6432, adopted September 2, 1959, as
amended by Ordinance No. 11462, on March 20, 1997, is hereby further amended by amending
Section 6, "Benefits," to read as follows:{1}
"Section 6. Benefits.
A Participant shall receive a benefit from the Fund upon his termination of employment,
disability, retirement or death in accordance with this Section 6. However, no Participant
shall receive a benefit from the Fund in excess of the amount credited to his Account.
a) Termination of Employment. Except as otherwise provided in this Section 6, if a
Participant terminates his employment with the Fire Department for any reason whatsoever
City of Miami
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prior to completing nine years of Vesting Service, he shall receive a benefit equal to the
vested portion of his Account determined as follows:
Years of Vesting Service Vested Portion of Account
Less than 3 years 25%
3 years but less than 6 years 50%
6 years but less than 9 years 75%
9 or more years 100%
The portion of the Participant's Account which is not vested on his termination of
employment shall be forfeited and allocated to the Accounts of all remaining Participants in
accordance with the provisions of paragraph (b) of Section 5. Notwithstanding the foregoing,
a Participant shall be 100% vested in, and have a nonforfeitable right to, his entire Account
on the termination of the Fund or the complete discontinuation of the City's contributions to
the Fund.
(b) Death. If a Participant dies before payment of his benefits begin, the entire amount of
his Account shall be paid to his Beneficiary. The Board may require and rely upon such proof
of death and such evidence of the right of any Beneficiary or other person to receive the
value of the Account of a deceased Participant as the Board may deem proper and its
determination of the right of that Beneficiary or other person to receive payment shall be
conclusive.
(c) Retirement or Disability. A Participant who retires by reason of length of service or
disability under any other pension plan of the City shall receive the entire amount of his
Account.
(d) Forfeiture for Cause. Notwithstanding anything in this ordinance to the contrary, if a
Participant is convicted of a specified offense, the provisions of Chapter 112.3173, Florida
Statutes, as amended, shall apply and he shall forfeit all rights to receive a benefit from the
Fund in accordance with the provisions of such Chapter. For purposes of this paragraph (d),
"convicted" and "specified offense" shall have the meanings given to them in Chapter
112.3173.
(e) Form of Benefit. A Participant shall receive his benefit in a single lump sum unless he
elects to take it in one of the following optional forms:
(I) Equal annual payments over a period, designated by the Participant, not to exceed the
life expectancy of the last to survive of the Participant and his Beneficiary. In the event the
Participant dies before all installments have been paid, the remaining balance in his Account
shall be paid in an immediate lump sum to his Beneficiary, if still living, or if the Participant
does not have a Beneficiary or if the Beneficiary has predeceased the Participant, to the
Participant's estate. Upon written request of the Participant (or his Beneficiary in the event of
the Participant's death), the Board may permit the Participant (or his Beneficiary, as the case
may be) to withdraw all or any portion of his unpaid Account after payment of the benefit has
commenced.
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(II) A combination of a lump sum and annual installments as provided in subparagraph (I)
above.
A written notice of election to receive payments in an optional form must be filed with the
Board upon a form prescribed by the Board, and must be sworn to by the person entitled to
receive such monies.
(f) Payment of Benefits. Benefits under this Section 6 shall be payable as soon as
possible following the Valuation Date coincident with or next following the Participant's
termination of employment with the Fire Department unless the Participant elects, in a time
and manner determined by the Board, either (i) to have his benefits commence as of a later
Valuation Date or (ii) to transfer up to his vested balance (determined in accordance with
paragraph (a) of this Section 6) prior to the Participant's termination of employment for the
sole purpose of purchasing creditable service in the City of Miami Fire Fighters' and Police
Officers' Retirement Trust pursuant to paragraph (g) of this Section 6. However, in no event
shall benefits commence after the first Valuation Date coincident with or immediately following
the later of the Participant's 65th birthday or his termination of employment with the Fire
Department. Payment of a Participant's Account as provided in this Section 6 shall be in full
settlement of all claims of a Participant against the Fund.
(g) Purchase of Creditable Service. Upon approval of the Board of Trustees of the City
of Miami Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Retirement Trust, a Participant shall be permitted
to purchase creditable service in, and in accordance with the provisions of, that trust, prior to
the Participant's termination of employment by using the transfer of up to the Participant's
vested balance from the Fund in accordance with paragraph (f) of this Section 6.
(h) Required Distributions. In no event shall the provisions of this ordinance operate so
as to allow the distribution of a Participant's Account to begin after the later of the April 1
following (i) the calendar year in which he attains age 70% or (ii) the calendar year in which
he terminates his employment (the "required beginning date"). In the event a Participant is
required to begin receiving payments while in service under the provisions of this paragraph
(g h), the Participant may elect to receive payments while in service in accordance with
option (I) or (II) as follows:
(I) A Participant may receive one lump sum payment on or before his required beginning
date equal to his entire Account balance and annual lump sum payments thereafter of
amounts accrued during each calendar year; or
(II) A Participant may receive annual payments of the minimum amount necessary to satisfy
the minimum distribution requirements of Section 401(a)(9) of the Code. Such minimum
amount will be determined on the basis of the joint life expectancy of the Participant and his
Beneficiary. Such life expectancy will not be recalculated.
An election under this paragraph (g h) shall be made by a Participant by giving written
notice to the Board within the 90 day period prior to his required beginning date. Upon the
Participant's subsequent termination of employment, payment of his Account shall be made
in accordance with the provisions of this Section 6. In the event a Participant fails to make an
election under this paragraph (g h), payment shall be made in accordance with
subparagraph (II) above.
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(P i) Distribution Limitation. Notwithstanding any other provision of this ordinance, all
distributions from the Fund shall conform to the regulations issued under Section 401(a)(9) of
the Code, including the incidental death benefit provisions of Section 401(a)(9)(G) of the
Code. Further, such regulations shall override any provision of this ordinance that is
inconsistent with Section 401(a)(9) of the Code.
OD Direct Rollover of Certain Distributions. Notwithstanding any provision of this
ordinance to the contrary that would otherwise limit a distributee's election under this
paragraph (#i) , a distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the
Board, to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly by the Fund to an
eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee in a direct rollover. The following
definitions apply to the terms used in this paragraph (#i):
(I) "Eligible rollover distribution" means 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 to the extent such distribution is required under Section 401(a)(9) of
the Code, and the portion of any distribution that is not includible in gross income;
(11) "Eligible retirement plan" means an individual retirement account described in section
408(a) of the Code, an individual retirement annuity described in section 408(b) of the Code,
an annuity plan described in section 403(a) of the Code, or a qualified trust described in
Section 401(a) of the Code, that accepts the distributee's eligible rollover distribution.
However, in the case of an eligible rollover distribution to the surviving spouse, an eligible
retirement plan is an individual retirement account or individual retirement annuity;
(111) "Distributee" means an employee or former employee. In addition, the employee's or
former employee's surviving spouse is a distributee with regard to the interest of the spouse;
and
(IV) "Direct rollover" means a payment by the Fund to the eligible retirement plan
specified by the distributee.
Section 3. If any provision of this ordinance is for any reason held unconstitutional, inoperative or
void, such holding shall not affect the remaining provisions of the ordinance. It shall be deemed to be
the intent of the Commission of the City of Miami to pass this ordinance without such unconstitutional,
inoperative or void provision and the remainder of this ordinance, after the exclusion of such
provision, shall be deemed and held to be valid as if such provision had not been included herein.
Section 4. This Ordinance is declared to be an emergency measure on the grounds of urgent
public need for the preservation of peace, health, safety, and property of the City of Miami, and upon
the further grounds of the necessity to make the required and necessary payments to its employees
and officers, payment of its debts, necessary and required purchases of goods and supplies, and to
generally carry on the functions and duties of municipal affairs.
Section 5. The requirements of reading this Ordinance on two separate days is dispensed with an
affirmative vote of not less than four -fifths (4/5ths) of the members of the Commission.
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Section 6. This Ordinance shall become effective immediately upon its adoption and signature of
the Mayor.{2}
Footnotes:
{1} Words/and or figures stricken through shall be deleted. Underscored words and/or figures
shall be added. The remaining provisions are now in effect and remain unchanged. Asterisks
indicate omitted and unchanged material.
{2} If the Mayor does not sign this Ordinance, it shall become effective at the end of ten calendar
days from the date it was passed and adopted. If the Mayor vetoes this Ordinance, it shall
become effective immediately upon override of the veto by the City Commission.
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