Financially sound systems exempt from minimum funding standards

The minimum funding standards specified by Code Section 47-20-10 shall not apply to a retirement system which holds actuarial assets in excess of 150 percent of the actuarial present value of the accumulated retirement system benefits. (Code 1981, § 47-20-13, enacted by Ga. L. 1983, p. 1368, § 1.) ARTICLE 3 ENFORCEMENT OF STANDARDS IN LOCAL RETIREMENT SYSTEMS 47-20-20. Freezing of benefits and other provisions; amount of annual employer contribution. (a) In the case of a retirement system of a political subdivision, unless excepted by Code Section 47-20-13, neither the local governing authority by 652 47-20-21 ordinance or resolution or other action nor the retirement system administrator shall take any action on or after January 1, 1984, to grant a benefit increase under any retirement system of the political subdivision until annual employer contributions to each retirement system of the political subdivision are in conformity with the minimum funding standards specified by Code Section 47-20-10. The local governing authority of a political subdivision shall not take any action after January 1, 1984, to create or establish any new retirement system until all existing retirement systems of that political subdivision are being funded in conformity with the minimum funding standards specified by Code Section 47-20-10. This limitation shall not prohibit a local governing authority from creating or establishing a new retirement system as a successor to the existing retirement system or systems of the political subdivision if the resulting new system and the remaining obligations under the previously existing system or systems are funded in accordance with the minimum funding standards specified by Code Section 47-20-10. The membership of such a successor retirement system need not be confined to the membership of the previously existing retirement system or systems. (b) Unless excepted by Code Section 47-20-13, after January 1, 1984, the annual employer contribution to each retirement system of a political subdivision shall be in an amount equal to or greater than the minimum annual employer contribution required by Code Section 47-20-10. (Code 1981, § 47-20-20, enacted by Ga. L. 1983, p. 1368, § 1; Ga. L. 2010, p. 1207, § 58/SB 436.) The 2010 amendment, effective July 1, 2010, deleted ‘‘and subject to the provisions of Code Section 47-20-11’’ following ‘‘Section 47-20-13’’ near the beginning of subsection (b). Editor’s notes. — Ga. L. 2010, p. 1207, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: ‘‘The intent of this Act is to repeal obsolete and inoperative provisions and to make certain stylistic corrections in Title 47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated. Nothing in this Act shall deny, abridge, increase, renew, revive, or on any way affect any right, benefit, option, credit, or election to which any person was entitled pursuant to such title on June 30, 2010, and the board of trustees of each public retirement system is authorized and directed to provide by regulation for the continuation of any such right, benefit, option, credit, or election not otherwise covered in this Act; provided, however, that any such right, benefit, option, credit, or election shall be subject to the statutory provisions in effect on June 30, 2010.’’ 47-20-21. Triennial actuarial investigations; penalties for violations shown; list of local systems not in conformance reported triennially. (a) The retirement system administrator of each retirement system of a political subdivision shall comply fully with the requirements of Code Section 47-1-3 requiring the employment of an actuary and the completion of actuarial investigations once every three years. In addition to the other requirements specified by Code Section 47-1-3 for such actuarial investigations, each such investigation shall express the actuary’s opinion, which 653 47-20-30 shall be supported by such analysis as the actuary determines necessary, of the status of the retirement system with regard to the minimum funding standards specified in Code Section 47-20-10. Each such actuarial investigation shall also include an analysis of each change in or amendment to the retirement system since the previous investigation and shall identify any change or amendment which granted a benefit increase. (b) If an actuarial investigation or a financial report which is submitted to the state auditor under Code Section 47-1-3 shows that an amendment or change was made in a retirement system of a political subdivision granting a benefit increase in violation of subsection (a) of Code Section 47-20-20 or shows that a retirement system of a political subdivision is not in conformity with the requirements of subsection (b) of Code Section 47-20-20, it shall be the duty of the state auditor to notify the state treasurer; and it shall be the duty of the state treasurer to withhold any state funds payable to the applicable political subdivision until the actuary of the applicable retirement system certifies to the state auditor and to the state treasurer that employer contributions to each retirement system of the political subdivision are in conformity with the minimum funding standards specified in Code Section 47-20-10. (c) The report on the condition of local retirement systems submitted to the Governor and to members of the General Assembly pursuant to Code Section 47-1-4 shall include a separate list of each retirement system of each political subdivision which is not in conformity with the minimum funding standards specified by Code Section 47-20-10 and a separate attachment giving a full explanation of any action taken pursuant to subsection (b) of this Code section. (Code 1981, § 47-20-21, enacted by Ga. L. 1983, p. 1368, § 1; Ga. L. 1993, p. 1402, § 18; Ga. L. 2010, p. 863, §§ 3, 4/SB 296.) The 2010 amendment, effective July 1, 2010, in subsection (b), substituted ‘‘state treasurer’’ for ‘‘director of the Office of Treasury and Fiscal Services’’ in the middle and substituted ‘‘state treasurer’’ for ‘‘director’’ twice. ARTICLE 4 RETIREMENT BILLS IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY Part 1 General Provisions 47-20-30. Definitions.