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H0243.........................................................by STATE AFFAIRS
TEACHERS - RETIREMENT BENEFITS - Amends existing law to require enrollment and
cost experience reports by the insurance carrier to the school district.
02/11 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/12 Rpt prt - to St Aff
02/18 Rpt out - Ref'd to Bus
|||| LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ||||
Fifty-seventh Legislature First Regular Session - 2003
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 243
BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO RETIREMENT BENEFITS FOR SCHOOL DISTRICT EMPLOYEES; AMENDING SEC-
3 TION 33-1228, IDAHO CODE, TO REQUIRE ENROLLMENT AND EXPERIENCE REPORTS.
4 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
5 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1228, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
6 amended to read as follows:
7 33-1228. SEVERANCE ALLOWANCE AT RETIREMENT. (1) Upon separation from pub-
8 lic school employment by retirement in accordance with chapter 13, title 59,
9 Idaho Code, an employee's unused sick leave shall be determined based on accu-
10 mulated sick leave earned subsequent to July 1, 1976, as provided by section
11 33-1218, Idaho Code, and shall be reported by the employer to the public
12 employee retirement system. A sum equal to one-half (1/2) of the monetary
13 value of such unused sick leave, calculated at the rate of pay for such
14 employee at the time of retirement, shall be transferred from the sick leave
15 account provided by subsection (2) of this section and shall be credited to
16 such employee's retirement account. Such sums shall be used by the Idaho pub-
17 lic employees' retirement board to continue to pay:
18 (a) Premiums for the retiree and the retiree's dependents at the rate for
19 the active employee's group health, accident and dental insurance programs
20 as maintained by the employer for the active employees until the retiree
21 and/or the retiree's spouse becomes eligible for medicare at which time
22 the district shall make available a supplemental program to medicare for
23 the eligible individual. Upon the death of the retiree the surviving
24 spouse's health coverage shall be available and continued under the same
25 terms and conditions as the retiree. Coverage may be continued for the
26 retiree's surviving dependent spouse and dependents until remarriage of
27 the spouse or until the retiree's surviving dependent spouse is eligible
28 for a group health program by an employer. The medicare supplement program
29 will provide the same premium and benefits for all retirees of all the
30 employers served by the same insurance carrier. However, a school district
31 may make available to all retirees from that district other benefits in
32 addition to the medicare supplement program and the retiree or the dis-
33 trict shall pay for such additional benefits. Because both retirees and
34 active employees are to be covered by the same insurance carrier, the car-
35 rier shall provide enrollment and cost experience reports to the school
36 district on a regular basis.
37 (b) Premiums at the time of retirement for the retiree for the life
38 insurance program maintained by the employer which may be reduced to a
39 minimum of five thousand dollars ($5,000) of coverage.
40 (2) The retiree may continue to pay the premiums for the health, acci-
41 dent, dental and life insurance to the extent of the funds credited to the
42 employee's account pursuant to this section and when these funds are expended
43 the premiums may be deducted from the retiree's allowance. Upon a retiree's
2
1 death, any unexpended sums remaining in the retiree's account shall revert to
2 the sick leave account. If funds are not available for payment by the Idaho
3 public employee retirement system from the retiree's surviving dependent
4 spouse's allowance, the insurance carrier shall implement a direct billing
5 procedure to permit the retiree's surviving spouse to continue coverage.
6 (3) Each employer shall contribute to a sick leave account maintained by
7 the public employee retirement system exclusively for the purpose of the pro-
8 visions of this section. The rate of such contribution each pay period shall
9 consist of a percentage of employees' salaries as determined by the board, and
10 such rate shall remain in effect until next determined by the board. Any
11 excess balance in the sick leave account shall be invested, and the earnings
12 therefrom shall accrue to the sick leave account except the amount required by
13 the board to defray administrative expenses. All moneys payable to the sick
14 leave account are hereby perpetually appropriated to the board, and shall not
15 be included in its departmental budget.
16 (4) For purposes of this section public school employment shall be
17 defined to permit inclusion of employees of organizations funded by school
18 districts or of contributions of employees of school districts.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 12680 C1
This bill amends Section 33-1228 of the Idaho Code, to require
insurers to regularly provide enrollment and cost experience data
to school districts for their covered retiree population. School
districts in Idaho are required to maintain retiree and active
employees under the same insurance carrier contract. The
information on the school district's retirees is necessary for
the district to be able to obtain the most cost effective
coverage for their employees and retirees. In today's environment
of rapidly escalating health care costs, school districts need
data on their entire covered population in order to obtain
competitive bids. Presently, there is no incentive for insurers
to provide this necessary census information to districts, which
ties their hands in seeking options for the active employees, and
retirees.
FISCAL IMPACT
This proposed legislation will have no fiscal impact on the
state's General Fund. The requirements of the legislation relate
only to the school district and their insurance carrier.
Contact
Name: Rep. Elaine Smith
Phone: 332-1130
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE H 243