SECTIONS 75500-75508 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 75500-75508

75500. (a) This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the
Judges' Retirement System II Law.
(b) Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 75000) shall not apply to
this chapter and shall not apply to judges, as defined in Section
75502.

75501. Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions and
general provisions set forth in this article govern the construction
of this chapter.

75502. (a) "Judge" means a justice of the Supreme Court or of a
court of appeal, or a judge of a superior court, municipal court, or
justice court who is first elected or appointed to judicial office on
or after November 9, 1994, and is not a member of the Judges'
Retirement System pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section
75000). A retired judge does not acquire status as a judge for the
purposes of this chapter by reason of designation as a temporary
judge of, or assignment by the Chairperson of the Judicial Council
to, any of these courts.
A former member of the Judges' Retirement System under Section
75002 who withdrew his or her contributions upon leaving office, and
who takes judicial office on or after November 9, 1994, becomes a
member of the system existing under Chapter 11 (commencing with
Section 75000) and does not become a member of the Judges' Retirement
System II. No person shall be a member of the Judges' Retirement
System II who is or ever has been a member of the Judges' Retirement
System pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 75000).
(b) "System" means the Judges' Retirement System II established by
this chapter.
(c) "Service" means the period of time a judge received a salary
and made contributions to the system by reason of holding office as a
judge of any one or more of the courts of this state specified in
subdivision (a), computed in years and fractions of years.
(d) "Final compensation" means the average monthly salary of a
judge during the 12 months immediately preceding his or her
retirement from or otherwise leaving judicial office and as limited
by Section 75572.
(e) "Benefit factor" means the percentage used in calculating a
judge's monthly retirement allowance under Section 75522.
(f) "Contributions" means the accumulated deductions from the
judge's salary under Sections 75601 and 75602. References to payment
to a judge of his or her contributions or to the determination of a
judge's and spouse's shares in the contributions include both the
contributions and interest thereon at the rates determined by the
Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System.
(g) "Salary" means the compensation received by a judge as the
emolument of the office of judge, but does not include any additional
compensation received by reason of designation as a temporary judge
or assignment by the Chairperson of the Judicial Council or the
additional compensation pursuant to Section 68203.1.
(h) "Board" means the Board of Administration of the Public
Employees' Retirement System.
(i) "Fund" or "retirement fund" means the Judges' Retirement
System II Fund established pursuant to Section 75600.

75505. (a) This chapter shall be administered and governed pursuant
to the Public Employees' Retirement Law to the same extent and with
the same effect as if those provisions are contained in this chapter,
except for those provisions that provide for the payment of an
allowance or other benefit and except for those provisions that
conflict with any provision of this chapter.
(b) All payments from the Judges' Retirement System II Fund shall
be made upon warrants drawn by the Controller upon demands by the
Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System.

75506. The board shall, annually, send each judge a member
statement which shall include information regarding accrued service
credit, accrued monetary credits, retirement eligibility dates, and
other pertinent information.

75506.5. (a) Any judge may elect, by written election filed with
the board at any time prior to retirement, to make contributions, and
receive service credit for, all of the time he or she served as a
full-time subordinate judicial officer, as defined in Section 71601,
prior to becoming a judge, excluding any period of time for which the
judge is receiving, or is entitled to receive, a retirement
allowance from any other public retirement system.
(b) A judge electing to receive credit for service pursuant to
this section shall, at the time of filing his or her election, pay
into the Judges' Retirement Fund II, a sum equal to the actuarial
present value of the increase in benefits due to the additional
service. The amount shall be determined by the board in accordance
with this section.

75506.6. (a) A judge may elect, in writing filed with the Judges'
Retirement System II, to make contributions and receive service
credit in this system for active service, performed prior to entering
this system, of not less than one year in the Armed Forces of the
United States or not less than one year in the Merchant Marine of the
United States prior to January 1, 1950, excluding any period of that
active service for which the judge is receiving, or is entitled to
receive, a retirement allowance from any other retirement system
supported wholly or in part by public funds. The service credit for
that service shall be granted on the basis of one year of credit for
each year of credited service in this system, but may not exceed a
total of four years of service credit regardless of the number of
years of either that service or subsequent judicial service. A judge
electing to receive credit for that service shall have at least one
year of judicial service credited on the date of the election or the
date of retirement. If the service described in this subdivision
terminated with a dishonorable discharge, service credit in the
system may not be granted under this section.
(b) For purposes of this section, a judge means a judge as defined
under Section 75502 or a judge who has retired under Section 75521
or 75522.
(c) The retirement allowance of a retired judge who elects to
receive service credit pursuant to this section shall be increased
only with respect to the allowance payable on and after the date of
election.
(d) A judge who elects to receive credit for service pursuant to
this section shall contribute to the Judges' Retirement Fund II a sum
equal to the actuarial present value of the increase in benefits due
to the additional service, as determined by the chief actuary and
approved by the board.
(e) An election by a judge to receive credit for service under
this section shall be effective only if accompanied by a lump-sum
payment or an authorization for payment, other than a lump-sum
payment, in accordance with regulations adopted by the board.

75506.7. (a) A judge may receive service credit for the purposes of
retirement under Section 75522 or 75560, or for purposes of
calculating survivor benefits under Section 75590, for the time
during which he or she was absent from his or her position as a judge
by reason of service with the uniformed services, if the judge
returns to judicial office within six months of separation from an
eligible period of service in the uniformed services, as prescribed
in Chapter 43 (commencing with Section 4301) of Title 38 of the
United States Code, and the judge elects and satisfies the
requirements of subdivision (b).
(b) In order to receive service credit under subdivision (a) a
judge shall contribute an amount equal to the member contributions
that would have been made by the judge during the absence as required
under Sections 75061 and 75602. The judge's contributions shall be
made prior to the judge's retirement and shall be effective only if
accompanied by a lump-sum payment of the contributions due for the
period during which the judge was absent due to service with the
uniformed services. The judge's payment of contributions shall not
exceed the amount the judge would have been required to contribute
had the judge not served in the uniformed services and remained in
judicial office continuously throughout the eligible period of
service in the uniformed services.
(c) Upon satisfaction of the requirements of subdivisions (a) and
(b), the judge shall be credited with the service that would have
accrued had the judge remained continuously employed and not
undertaken service in the uniformed services.
(d) Upon satisfaction of the requirements of subdivisions (a) and
(b), the judge shall receive the monetary credits that would have
accrued under Section 75520 if the member had not served in the
uniformed services and had remained in judicial office continuously.
(e) The system shall comply with Chapter 43 (commencing with
Section 4301) of Title 38 of the United States Code, as that chapter
may be amended from time to time.
(f) For the purposes of this section:
(1) "Uniformed services" means the Armed Forces, the Army National
Guard and the Air National Guard when engaged in active duty for
training, inactive duty training, or full-time National Guard duty,
the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service, and any other
category of persons designated by the President in time of war or
national emergency.
(2) "Service in the uniformed services" means the performance of
duty on a voluntary or involuntary basis in a uniformed service under
competent authority and includes: active duty, active duty for
training, initial active duty for training, inactive duty training,
full-time National Guard, or a period for which a person is absent
from a position of employment for the purpose of an examination to
determine the fitness of the employment for the purpose of performing
funeral honors duty as provided in Section 12503 of Title 10 or
Section 115 of Title 32 of the United States Code.

75506.8. When a judge that satisfies the requirements of Section
75506.7 makes the contributions required to receive service credit
for service with the uniformed services, the state shall contribute
an amount equal to the contributions that would have been made by the
state during the judge's absence. The state's contribution shall be
based upon the judge's compensation earnable and the contribution
rates in effect at the commencement of the absence.

75507. (a) Any allowance payable to a retired judge or to a
surviving spouse or to an eligible surviving child that has accrued
and remained unpaid at the time of the death of the judge or the
death of a surviving spouse or surviving child, or any unclaimed
warrant issued prior to the date of death and returned to the board,
shall be paid pursuant to the following order:
(1) The survivor entitled to an allowance payable by the board.
(2) The beneficiary designated by the surviving spouse, eligible
surviving child, or retired judge if there is no eligible survivor.
(3) The estate of the deceased, if there is no one entitled to
payment under paragraph (1) or (2). The payment to the estate shall
be paid to either the estate of the deceased or the duly authorized
representative or representatives of the estate when this system
receives a court order appointing an executor, administrator, or
personal representative.
(4) If the estate does not require probate and the deceased has a
trust, the payment may, in the judgment of the board, be paid to the
successor trustee named in the trust.
(5) If the estate does not require probate and the deceased does
not have a trust, the payment may, in the judgment of the board, be
paid to the beneficiary or beneficiaries of the deceased named in a
valid will.
(b) If there is no qualifying beneficiary pursuant to paragraphs
(1) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a), the payment shall be paid
to the surviving next of kin of the deceased pursuant to the order of
distribution specified in Section 21493.

75508. The surviving spouse or eligible surviving child of a
deceased judge who is receiving a monthly allowance from the system,
or a retired judge, if there is no spouse or eligible child, may
designate a beneficiary to receive the pro rata allowance remaining
payable in the month of his or her death. The designation may be
made, changed, or revoked at any time, and shall be in writing and
filed with the system.