SECTIONS 50958-50963 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 50958-50963

50958. Only members may accumulate service credit in the award
system. A volunteer becomes a member when he or she satisfies the
minimum requirements for membership, as established by the board, and
the minimum service requirements as certified by a qualifications
review commission. Membership shall terminate on the day prior to the
effective date of an award pursuant to Section 50962.

50959. (a) The award system shall be funded by contributions paid
by contracting departments and income from the fund. The award system
is a noncontributory system, and no contributions shall be required
from members of the award system.
(b) As determined by actuarial valuation reported to the
contracting department by the award system, each contracting
department shall make contributions annually, not later than October
1 of each year, sufficient to meet the prescribed amount with respect
to volunteers of the contracting department, in accordance with the
conditions provided in its contract under the award system.
(c) Contributions of all contracting departments shall be applied
by the board during each fiscal year to meet the obligations of all
departments collectively, pursuant to the following order:
(1) In an amount equal to the liabilities accruing on account of
awards payable on account of current service.
(2) The balance of contributions on any other liability incurred
under this chapter.

50960. (a) Only those volunteers who have been certified by their
contracting department as having satisfactorily completed a service
year shall be credited with current service for that year. A member
is not required to qualify in consecutive years.
(b) Members of departments contracting on or after the effective
date of this chapter may initially be credited with a full service
year if the board authorizes credit for that service and the member
and his or her department satisfy the other requirements established
by the board, including, but not limited to, certification by the
department's qualifications review commission.
(c) A satisfactory service year credit shall be determined by a
member's active participation in all of the following fire department
activities.
(1) Training drills.
(2) Responses to emergency calls.
(3) Attendance at official department and association meetings.
(d) Contracting departments shall maintain adequate records to
show that a credited member was a participating member of the
department during the year of certification. The records may include,
but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Department run logs.
(2) Department training records.
(3) Certificates of training.
(4) Records of exposures to hazardous products.
(5) Minutes of departmental or association meetings.

50961. (a) The governing body of each contracting department shall
establish a qualifications review commission that shall include the
fire chief, one member of the governing body appointed by the
governing body, and one volunteer elected by the volunteers employed
by the contracting department.
(b) The qualifications review commission shall review the list of
department members each year, and prior to October 1 of each year
shall certify to the board those volunteers who have qualified.
(c) In no event shall a member be credited with more than the
maximum number of years of service allowed in the award system, as
established by the rules and regulations of the board.
(d) With respect to each contracting department that provides
benefits for prior service credit, the qualifications review
commission shall promulgate and publish guidelines for computing
prior service credit. The guidelines shall require the prior service
credit to be verified and certified and, in the event that there are
no records in existence, the members of the commission and the
volunteer shall sign an affidavit certifying that the prior service
met the criteria prescribed in Section 50960. The affidavit shall be
signed under penalty of perjury. Thereafter, the qualifications
review commission shall certify to the board certified prior service
credit that has been earned by each member.

50962. When the member's application for an award is received by
the board, an award shall be granted to accrue and become effective
pursuant to the terms, conditions, and eligibility requirements
established by the board.

50963. The board shall determine the terms, conditions, and
eligibility requirements for all of the following:
(a) The amount of an award payable under the award system.
(b) If a member is entitled to a cost-of-living adjustment and the
amount of that cost-of-living adjustment.
(c) If a member is entitled to receive an award and the amounts of
supplemental payments based upon that award.
(d) Any death benefits payable to a member's designated
beneficiary or the estate of the member.
(e) All other benefits authorized by the board under this chapter.