SECTIONS 26200-26216 - California Statutes

EDUCATION CODE

SECTION 26200-26216

26200. Employee contributions, employer contributions, investment
earnings, and any other amounts provided under this part shall be
deposited into the Teachers' Retirement Fund. Disbursement of money
from the fund shall be made upon claims made pursuant to Section
26209 and duly audited in the manner prescribed for the disbursement
of other public funds. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the
Government Code, the Teachers' Retirement Fund is continuously
appropriated for the payment of benefits and investment transactions
pursuant to this part. Disbursements may be made to return funds
deposited in the fund in error.

26201. Investment earnings shall be collected by the Treasurer, and
together with any other moneys received in connection with the Cash
Balance Benefit Program, shall be immediately deposited to the credit
of the Teachers' Retirement Fund and reported to the system.

26202. (a) The board shall establish a Gain and Loss Reserve within
the Teachers' Retirement Fund for the Cash Balance Benefit Program.
The board has sole authority to administer the Gain and Loss Reserve
to be drawn upon to the extent necessary to credit interest to
employee accounts and employer accounts at the minimum interest rate
during years in which the investment earnings of the plan with
respect to the Cash Balance Benefit Program are not sufficient for
that purpose, and, where necessary, to provide additions to the
Annuitant Reserve for monthly annuity payments.
(b) The board shall establish and periodically review goals
regarding the sufficiency of the Gain and Loss Reserve based on the
recommendation of the actuary.
(c) In the event that the total amount of investment earnings of
the plan with respect to the Cash Balance Benefit Program for any
plan year exceeds the sum of the total amount required to credit all
employee and employer accounts at the minimum interest rate for the
plan year plus the administrative costs of the plan with respect to
the Cash Balance Benefit Program for the plan year, the board shall
determine the amount, if any, that is to be credited to the Gain and
Loss Reserve for the plan year. That determination shall be made upon
recommendation of the actuary following the adoption by the board of
the actuarial valuation undertaken following the plan year pursuant
to Section 26202, but no later than June 30 following the end of the
plan year. In determining whether an amount is to be credited to the
Gain and Loss Reserve, the board shall consider the sufficiency of
the reserve in light of the goal established for the sufficiency and
the recommendations of the actuary.

26203. The board may amortize any unfunded actuarial obligation in
accordance with standards established by the Actuarial Standards
Board and Governmental Accounting Standards Board.

26204. The board shall establish an Annuitant Reserve within the
Teachers' Retirement Fund for the Cash Balance Benefit Program. The
board has sole authority to administer the Annuitant Reserve for the
payment of annuities. The board may transfer the credits from a
participant's employee account and employer account to the Annuitant
Reserve upon election of an annuity by the participant or beneficiary
of the participant.

26205. The board may transfer amounts between the Gain and Loss
Reserve and the Annuitant Reserve upon the recommendation of the
actuary.

26206. All administrative costs of the board and system for the
plan with respect to the Cash Balance Benefit Program shall be paid
from the Teachers' Retirement Fund.

26207.5. In no event shall the funding of the Cash Balance Benefit
Program be a liability of the state or the General Fund, nor shall
the General Fund be used to offset or fund any liabilities attributed
to the operation of the Cash Balance Benefit Program.

26208. The board shall establish and maintain records and accounts
following recognized accounting principles and controls with respect
to the Cash Balance Benefit Program.

26209. The board may authorize the transfer and disbursement of
funds from the Teachers' Retirement Fund for the purpose of carrying
into effect the Cash Balance Benefit Program upon the signature of
its chairperson, vice chairperson, the chief executive officer, or
any employee of the system designated by the chief executive officer.

26210. The board has exclusive control of the investment of the
Retirement Fund with respect to assets attributed to the Cash Balance
Benefit Program. In investing the fund, the board and its officers
and employees shall exercise their fiduciary duties set forth in
Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 22250) and Chapter 6 (commencing
with Section 22350) of Part 13.

26211. The board shall acquire the services of an actuary to:
(a) Perform an actuarial investigation of the demographic and
economic experience of the Cash Balance Benefit Program at least once
every four years and make recommendations to the board for the
adoption of actuarial assumptions for the program that are, in the
aggregate, reasonably related to the past experience of the program
and the actuary's best estimate of the future experience of the
program.
(b) Perform an annual actuarial valuation of the assets and
liabilities of the plan with respect to the Cash Balance Benefit
Program, using the actuarial assumptions adopted by the board.
(c) Recommend to the board all rates and factors necessary to
administer the Cash Balance Benefit Program, including, but not
limited to, mortality tables, annuity factors, interest rates,
additional earnings credits, and employer contribution rates.
(d) Recommend to the board the goal for maintaining a sufficient
Gain and Loss Reserve with respect to the Cash Balance Benefit
Program, the amount to be transferred to the Gain and Loss Reserve
from investment earnings of the plan each year with respect to the
Cash Balance Benefit Program, and a strategy for the amortization of
any unfunded actuarial obligation.
(e) Recommend to the board transfers of amounts between the Gain
and Loss Reserve and the Annuitant Reserve with respect to the Cash
Balance Benefit Program.
(f) Perform any other actuarial services that may be required for
the administration of the plan with respect to the Cash Balance
Benefit Program, as requested by the board.

26212. The board shall maintain all data necessary for the
actuarial investigation of the demographic and economic experience of
the Cash Balance Benefit Program, and for the actuarial valuation of
the assets and liabilities of the plan with respect to the Cash
Balance Benefit Program.

26213. The board shall adopt actuarial assumptions, rates, factors
and tables necessary to administer the Cash Balance Benefit Program
as an amendment to the plan.

26214. The board shall issue, after the end of the plan year, to
each participant having a balance in his or her employee account or
employer account, a statement setting forth the balance as of the
close of the plan year and amounts credited for the year, provided
that the employer or participant has informed the system of the
participant's current United States Postal Service mailing address.
If the participant indicates that he or she prefers to receive that
statement through the Web site of the system, the board may, in lieu
of mailing, issue the statement by secured access through the Web
site of the system. The board shall prescribe the form and content of
the account statement.

26215. (a) Information filed with the system by a participant or
beneficiary is confidential and shall be used by the system for the
sole purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this part. No
official or employee of the system who has access to the individual
records of a participant or beneficiary shall divulge any
confidential information concerning those records to any person
except in the following instances:
(1) To the participant or beneficiary to whom the information
relates.
(2) To the authorized representative of the participant or
beneficiary.
(3) To the governing board of the participant's current or former
employer.
(4) To any department, agency, or political subdivision of this
state.
(5) To other individuals as necessary to locate a person to whom a
benefit may be payable.
(6) Pursuant to subpoena.
(b) Information filed with the system in a beneficiary designation
form may be released after the death of the participant to those
persons who may provide information necessary for the distribution of
benefits.
(c) The information is not open to inspection by anyone except the
board and its officers and employees of the system, and any person
authorized by statute to make inspections.

26216. The board may administer the Cash Balance Benefit Program
through an agreement with a qualified third-party administrator that
shall provide custodial, recordkeeping, or other administrative
services specified under the agreement.