19-17-106. Pension trust fund established -- restrictions on use. - Montana Statutes

     19-17-106. Pension trust fund established -- restrictions on use. (1) A pension trust fund is established and maintained for payment of claims and benefits provided under the Volunteer Firefighters' Compensation Act and the volunteer firefighters' pension plan.
     (2) The pension trust fund must be funded on an actuarially sound basis. For purposes of this subsection, "actuarially sound basis" means that contributions must be sufficient to pay the full actuarial cost of the fund. The full actuarial cost includes both the normal cost of providing benefits as they accrue in the future and the cost of amortizing unfunded liabilities over a scheduled period of no more than 30 years.
     (3) Except as provided in this section, a member or an employee of the department or the board of investments may not:
     (a) have any interest, direct or indirect, in the making of any investment or in the gains or profits accruing from the pension trust fund;
     (b) directly or indirectly, for the member or employee or as an agent or partner of others, borrow from the pension trust fund or deposits;
     (c) in any manner use the pension trust fund except to make current and necessary payments that are authorized by the board; or
     (d) become an endorser or surety as to or in any manner an obligor for investments for the pension trust fund.
     (4) The assets of the pension trust fund may not be used for or diverted to any purpose other than for the exclusive benefit of members, their surviving spouses, their dependent children, and qualified fire companies and for paying the reasonable administrative expenses of administering this chapter.
     (5) Upon the termination of the pension trust fund, the substantial reduction in the number of members that would constitute a partial termination of the pension trust fund, or the complete discontinuance of contributions to the pension trust fund, the pension benefit accrued to each member directly affected by the occurrence becomes fully vested and nonforfeitable to the extent that the benefit is funded.

     History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 175, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 91, Ch. 562, L. 1999; amd. Sec. 120, Ch. 99, L. 2001.