Fort Walton Beach Ordinance — 2219-Amending COO Section 2.09 Police Officers' Retirement Fund Board — reading text

participants electing the flat interest rate return plus any monthly periodic additions made to the DROP account subsequent to the end of the previous quarter, or month, as applicable, and prior to distribution. d. If a member fails to terminate employment after participating in the DROP for the permissible period of DROP participation, then beginning with the member' s first month of employment following the last month of the permissible period of DROP participation, the member' s DROP account will no longer be credited with earnings or interest, nor will monthly benefits be transferred to the DROP account. All such non- transferred amounts shall be forfeited and continue to be forfeited while the member is employed by the City, and no cost-of-living adjustments shall be applied to the member' s credit during such period of continued employment. A member employed by the City after the permissible period of DROP participation will still not be eligible for pre- retirement death or disability benefits and will not accrue additional credited service except as provided for in section. 4) Distribution of DROP Accounts on Termination ofEmployment. a. Eligibility for Benefits. A Member must take distribution of the balance in their DROP Account in accordance with the provisions of this subsection 14) upon their termination of employment as a Police Officer. No amounts shall be paid to a Member from the DROP prior to their termination of employment as a Police Officer. b. Form ofDistribution. 1. Distribution of a Member' s DROP Account shall be made in a lump sum, subject to the direct rollover provisions set forth in subsection ( 4) f. Elections under this paragraph shall be in writing and shall be made in such time or manner as the Board shall determine. 2. Notwithstanding the preceding, if a Member dies before their benefit is paid, the Member' s DROP Account shall be paid to their Beneficiary. If no Beneficiary designation is made, the DROP Account shall be distributed to the Member' s estate. c. Date of Payment ofDistribution. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection ( 4), distribution of a Member' s DROP Account shall be made as soon as administratively practicable following the Member' s termination of employment. Distribution of the amount in a Member' s DROP account will not be made unless the Member completes a written request for distribution and a written election, on forms designated by the Board, to either receive a cash lump sum or a rollover of the lump sum amount. d. Proof of Death and Right of Beneficiary or Other Person. The Board may require and rely upon such proof of death and such evidence of the right of any Beneficiary or other person to receive the value of a deceased Member' s DROP Account as the Board may deem proper and its determination of the right of that Beneficiary or other person to receive payment shall be conclusive. e. Distribution Limitation. Notwithstanding any other provision of subsection ( 4), all distributions from the DROP shall conform to the Minimum Distribution of Benefits" provisions as provided for herein.  f. Direct Rollover of Certain Distributions. This subsection applies to distributions made on or after January 1, 2002. Notwithstanding any provision of the DROP to the contrary, a distributee may elect to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid in a direct rollover as otherwise provided under the System in Section 2. 09. 03( x). 5) Administration ofDROP. a. Board Administers the DROP. The general administration of the DROP. the responsibility for carrying out the provisions of the DROP and the responsibility of overseeing the investment of the DROP' s assets shall be placed in the Board. The members of the Board may appoint from their number such subcommittees with such powers as they shall determine: may adopt such administrative procedures and regulations as they deem desirable for the conduct of their affairs; may authorize one or more of their number or any agent to execute or deliver any instrument or make any payment on their behalf; may retain counsel, employ agents and provide for such clerical, accounting, actuarial and consulting services as they may require in carrying out the provisions of the DROP; and may allocate among themselves or delegate to other persons all or such portion of their duties under the DROP, other than those granted to them as Trustee under any trust agreement adopted for use in implementing the DROP, as they, in their sole discretion, shall decide. A Trustee shall not vote on any question relating exclusively to themself. b. Individual Accounts. Records and Reports. The Board shall maintain records showing the operation and condition of the DROP, including records showing the individual balances in each Member' s DROP Account. and the Board shall keep in convenient form such data as may be necessary for the valuation of the assets and liabilities of the DROP. The Board shall prepare and distribute to Members participating in the DROP and other individuals or file with the appropriate governmental agencies. as the case may be, all necessary descriptions, reports, information returns, and data required to be distributed or filed for the DROP pursuant to the Code and any other applicable laws. c. Establishment ofRules. Subject to the limitations of the DROP. the Board from time to time shall establish rules for the administration of the DROP and the transaction of its business. The Board shall have discretionary authority to construe and interpret the DROP ( including but not limited to determination of an individual' s eligibility for DROP participation, the right and amount of any benefit payable under the DROP and the date on which any individual ceases to be a participant in the DROP). The determination of the Board as to the interpretation of the DROP or its  determination of any disputed questions shall be conclusive and final to the extent permitted by applicable law. d. Limitation of Liability. 1. The Trustees shall not incur any liability individually or on behalf of any other individuals for any act or failure to act, made in good faith in relation to the DROP or the funds of the DROP. 2. Neither the Board nor any Trustee of the Board shall be responsible for an reports furnished by any expert retained or employed by the Board, but they shall be entitled to rely thereon as well as on certificates furnished by an accountant or an actuary, and on all opinions of counsel. The Board shall be fully protected with respect to any action taken or suffered by it in good faith in reliance upon such expert, accountant, actuary or counsel, and all actions taken or suffered in such reliance shall be conclusive upon any person with any interest in the DROP. 6) General Provisions. a. The DROP Is Not a Separate Retirement Plan. Instead, it is a program under which a Member who is eligible for normal retirement under the System may elect to accrue future retirement benefits in the manner provided in this Section 2. 09. 03( dd) for the remainder of their employment, rather than in the normal manner provided under the plan. Upon termination of employment, a Member is entitled to a lump sum distribution of their DROP Account balance or may elect a rollover. The DROP Account distribution is in addition to the Member' s monthly benefit. b. Notional Account. The DROP Account established for such a Member is a notional account, used only for the purpose of calculation of the DROP distribution amount. It is not a separate account in the System. There is no change in the System' s assets, and there is no distribution available to the Member until the Member' s termination from the DROP. The Member has no control over the investment of the DROP Account. c. No Employer Discretion. The DROP benefit is determined pursuant to a specific formula which does not involve employer discretion. d. IRC Limit. The DROP Account distribution. along with other benefits payable from the System, is subject to limitation under Internal Revenue Code Section 415( b). e. Amendment of DROP. The DROP may be amended by an ordinance of the City at any time and from time to time, and retroactively if deemed necessary or appropriate, to amend in whole or in part any or all of the provisions of the DROP. However, except as otherwise provided by law, no amendment shall make it possible for any part of the DROP' s funds to be used for, or diverted to, purposes other than for the exclusive benefit of persons entitled to benefits under the DROP. No amendment shall be made which has the effect of decreasing the balance of the DROP account of any Member. f. Facility of Payment If a Member or other person entitled to a benefit under the DROP is unable to care for their affairs because of illness or accident or is a minor, the Board shall direct that any benefit due the Member shall be made only to a duly appointed legal representative. Any payment so made shall be a complete discharge of the liabilities of the DROP for that benefit. g. Information. Each Member, Beneficiary or other person entitled to a benefit, before any benefit shall be payable to them or on their account under the DROP, shall file with the Board the information that it shall require to establish their rights and benefits under the DROP. h. Written Elections, Notification. 1. Any elections, notifications or designations made by a Member pursuant to the provisions of the DROP shall be made in writing and filed with the Board in a time and manner determined by the Board under rules uniformly applicable to all employees similarly situated. The Board reserves the right to change from time to time the manner for making notifications, elections or designations by Members under the DROP if it determines after due deliberation that such action is justified in that it improves the administration of the DROP. In the event of a conflict between the provisions for making an election, notification or designation set forth in the DROP and such new administrative procedures, those new administrative procedures shall prevail. 2. Each Member or Retiree who has a DROP Account shall be  responsible for furnishing