SRC-VRA H.B. 258 78(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   H.B. 258
78R8842 EBy: Pickett (Madla)
Intergovernmental Relations
4/14/2003
Engrossed


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Currently, large retirement systems such as the Employees Retirement
System of Texas have adequate procedures in place to verify annuity
payments are correct.  Smaller public retirement systems and independent
pension funds of firefighters and police officers do not.  As proposed,
H.B. 258 sets a three-year limit on reimbursement sought from recipients
of public retirement systems and firefighter and police officer pension
funds, with the exclusion of cases of fraud and prior agreements. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to
a state officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 802, Government Code, by adding
Section 802.1024, as follows: 
 
Sec. 802.1024.  CORRECTION OF ERRORS.  (a)  Requires the governing body of
the retirement system, except as provided by Subsection (b), if an error
in the records of a public retirement system results in a person receiving
more or less money than the person is entitled to receive under this
subtitle, to correct the error and so far as practicable adjust any future
payments so that the actuarial equivalent of the benefit to which the
person is entitled is paid.  Authorizes the governing body of the system,
if no future payments are due, to recover the overpayment in any manner
that would be permitted for the collection of any other debt. 
 
  (b)  Provides that except as provided by Subsection (c), a public
retirement   system: 

(1)  may correct the overpayment of benefits to a person entitled to
receive payments from the system by the method described by Subsection (a)
only for an overpayment made during the three years preceding the date the
governing body of the system discovers or discovered the overpayment; and 

(2)  may not recover from the recipient any overpayment made more than
three years before the discovery of the overpayment. 
 
(c)  Provides that Subsection (b) does not apply to an overpayment a
reasonable person should know the person is not entitled to receive. 
 
SECTION 2.  Amends Article 6243n, V.T.C.S., to make a conforming change.
 
SECTION 3.  Amends Article 6243n-1, V.T.C.S., to make a conforming change.
 
SECTION 4.  Amends Article 6243o, V.T.C.S., to make a conforming change.
 
 SECTION 5.  Provides that this Act applies to an underpayment or
overpayment of benefits by a public retirement system made by the
governing body of the system regardless of whether the underpayment or
overpayment was made before the effective date of this Act, except that it
does not apply to an overpayment that has been resolved by agreement made
before the effective date of this Act between the governing body of a
public retirement system and the recipient of the overpayment. 
 
SECTION 6. Effective date:  upon passage or September 1, 2003.