|
House Bill 3347 |
House Author: Truitt et al. |
|
Effective: 9-1-09 |
Senate Sponsor: Duncan |
House Bill 3347 amends the Government Code to update certain statutes governing the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) to conform to applicable provisions of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The bill provides, to the extent required by applicable provisions of that code, for the treatment of differential wage payments received by an individual from an employer on or after January 1, 2009, while the individual is performing qualified military service, as "salary and wages" when determining member compensation subject to contributions and credit in TRS and provides for the treatment of an individual receiving such wages as being employed by that employer. To the extent required by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the bill also makes the designated beneficiary of a member who dies on or after January 1, 2007, while performing qualified military service eligible to receive additional benefits to the same extent as if the member had resumed employment and been employed at the time of death.
House Bill 3347 authorizes an individual eligible to participate in the employees uniform insurance benefits program for employees of The University of Texas System or The Texas A&M University System to direct TRS to deduct the amount of the member's contribution and any other qualified health insurance premium from the individual's regular monthly service or disability retirement annuity payment if the individual is eligible to receive a monthly annuity from TRS greater than the authorized deduction and is eligible under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or a similar law to exclude from annual gross income up to $3,000 of distributions from a retirement plan used for qualified health insurance premiums.
The bill makes an otherwise eligible portion of a rollover distribution made on or after January 1, 2002, and consisting of after-tax contributions that are not includable in gross income eligible for direct rollover from TRS but only to an individual retirement account (IRA), annuity, or qualified defined benefit plan, or to an annuity contract that agrees to separately account for amounts transferred and the earnings on those amounts, as those IRAs, annuities, plans, and contracts are described in applicable Internal Revenue Code provisions. For a distribution made on or after January 1, 2002, or one made on or after January 1, 2008, the bill adds to the types of eligible retirement plans a plan maintained by a state or other governmental entity that agrees to separately account for amounts transferred into the plan from TRS, an annuity contract, and a Roth IRA in accordance with applicable Internal Revenue Code provisions.
House Bill 3347 revises the definition of "distributee" for purposes of an eligible rollover distribution from TRS to clarify that, in accordance with certain Internal Revenue Code definitions, the term includes a former spouse who is the alternate payee under a qualified domestic relations order and, with respect to a distribution made on or after January 1, 2007, also includes a designated beneficiary who is not the employee's or former employee's spouse, surviving spouse, or alternate payee. The bill makes a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer on behalf of a distributee beneficiary who is not a spouse eligible for a rollover, but a non-spouse distributee beneficiary may roll over the distribution only to an IRA or individual retirement annuity that is established for the purpose of receiving the distribution and is considered an inherited account or annuity to which applicable Internal Revenue Code provisions apply. The bill requires a trust maintained for the benefit of one or more designated beneficiaries to be treated in the same manner as a trust maintained for a designated beneficiary, to the extent provided by federal law.
The bill requires TRS to make a one-time supplemental payment of a retirement or death benefit to each eligible annuitant not later than January 2010.