By Telford                                      H.B. No. 1893

      75R8082 T                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to eligibility for service retirement through the Teacher

 1-3     Retirement System.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 824.202 is amended to read as follows:

 1-6           (a)  A member is eligible to retire and receive a standard

 1-7     service retirement annuity if the member has at least five years of

 1-8     service credit in the retirement system and:

 1-9                 (1)  is at least 60 [65] years old [and has at least

1-10     five years of service credit in the retirement system]; or

1-11                 (2)  has any combination of age and years of service

1-12     credit totaling 80 [is at least 60 years old and has at least 20

1-13     years of service credit in the retirement system; or]

1-14                 [(3)  is at least 50 years old and has at least 30

1-15     years of service credit in the retirement system].

1-16           (b)  If a member is at least 55 years old and has at least

1-17     five years of service credit in the retirement system, the member

1-18     is eligible to retire and receive a service retirement annuity

1-19     reduced from the standard service retirement annuity available

1-20     under Subsection (a)(1), to a percentage derived from the following

1-21     table:

 2-1                          Age at Date of Retirement

 2-2     Years of   55    56    57    58    59    60    [61   62    63    64   65]

 2-3     Service

 2-4     at least

 2-5     5 but

 2-6     less

 2-7     than

 2-8     20         67%   73%   80%   87%   93%   100%  [73%  80%   87%   93%  100%]

 2-9                [47%  51%   55%   59%   63%   67%]

2-10           (c)  If a member is at least 55 years old and has at least 20

2-11     years of service credit in the retirement system, the member is

2-12     eligible to retire and receive a service retirement annuity reduced

2-13     from the standard service retirement annuity available under

2-14     Subsection (a)(2), to a percentage derived from the following

2-15     table: 

2-16     Years of Service                  Age at Date of Retirement

2-17                                     55     56     57     58     59     60

2-18     at least 20 but less than 21    90%    92%    94%    96%    98%    100%

2-19     at least 21 but less than 22    92%    94%    96%    98%    100%   100%

2-20                                                                 [98%]

2-21     at least 22 but less than 23    94%    96%    98%    100%   100%   100%

2-22                                                          [98%   98%]

2-23     at least 23 but less than 24    96%    98%    100%   100%   100%   100%

2-24                                                   [98%    98%   98%]

2-25     at least 24 but less than 30    98%    100%   100%   100%   100%   100%

2-26                                            [98%    98%    98%   98%]

2-27     30 or more                      100%   100%   100%   100%   100%   100%

 3-1           (d)  If a member has at least 30 years of service credit in

 3-2     the retirement system, the member is eligible to retire regardless

 3-3     of age and receive a service retirement annuity consisting of a

 3-4     percentage of the standard service retirement annuity available

 3-5     under Subsection (a)(2), derived from the table in Subsection (c).

 3-6     The board of trustees shall extend the table in Subsection (c) to

 3-7     ages earlier than 55 years by decreasing the percentages by two

 3-8     percent for each year of age under 55 years.

 3-9           (e)  The board of trustees may adopt tables for reduction of

3-10     benefits for early retirement by each month of age, but the range

3-11     of percentages in the tables within a year must be limited to the

3-12     range provided between two years of age by this section.

3-13           (f)  Except as provided by the proportionate retirement

3-14     program in Subtitle A,  a member is not eligible to receive service

3-15     retirement benefits from the retirement system unless the member

3-16     has at least five years of service credit in the retirement system

3-17     for actual services in public schools.

3-18           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

3-19           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

3-20     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

3-21     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

3-22     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

3-23     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.