§ 21. Qualified Pension Fund.

The City intends the pension fund to be a qualified plan under Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended, and that the trust be an exempt organization under Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code. The board of trustees shall administer the pension fund so as to fulfill this intent, including, but not limited to the following:

1)

In the event the pension fund should terminate, or if there were to be a complete discontinuance of contributions to the fund, the rights of all employees to benefits accrued to the date of such termination or discontinuance, to the extent then funded, shall be nonforfeitable.

2)

Distributions from the pension fund will comply with the requirements of Section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations thereunder, including the following specific requirements:

a)

Distribution of a member's benefits will begin no later than the later of April 1 of the calendar year following the calendar year in which the employee attains age 70½ or April 1 of the calendar year following the calendar year in which the member retires.

b)

If distribution of a member's benefits has commenced prior to the member's death, any remaining benefits will be distributed at least as rapidly as under the method of distribution used as of the date of the member's death.

c)

If distribution of a member's benefits has not commenced prior to the member's death, any portion of his or her benefits payable after the member's death shall:

1.

If payable to the member's surviving spouse, begin no later than the end of the calendar year following the calendar year in which the member would have attained age 70½; or

2.

If payable to the member's designated beneficiary, begin no later than the end of the calendar year following the calendar year in which the member died and extend over a period not extending beyond the life expectancy of the eldest beneficiary; or

3.

Otherwise, be distributed within 5 years of the member's death.

3)

Notwithstanding any other provision in this retirement system, all benefits distributed from the pension fund shall comply with the limitations set forth in Section 415 of the Internal Revenue Code, and applicable regulations thereunder. For this purpose, compensation shall be determined in accordance with Code Section 415(b).

4)

This subsection applies to distributions made on or after January 1, 1993. Notwithstanding any provision of the plan to the contrary that would otherwise limit a distributee's election under this subsection, a distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the Board, to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly to an eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee in a direct rollover. The following definitions shall apply with regard to this subsection.

a)

Eligible rollover distribution is any distribution of all or any portion of the balance to the credit of the distributee, except that an eligible rollover distribution does not include any distribution that is one of a series of substantially equal periodic payments (not less frequently than annually) made for the life (or life expectancy) of the distributee or the joint lives (or joint life expectancies) of the distributee and the distributee's designated beneficiary, or for a specified period of 10 years or more, any distribution to the extent such distribution is required under Section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code, and the portion of any distribution that is not includable in gross income.

b)

Eligible retirement plan is an individual retirement account described in Section 408(a) of the Code, an individual retirement annuity described in Section 408(b) of the Code, an annuity plan described in Section 403(a) of the Code, a plan described in Section 457(b) of the Code, or a qualified trust described in section 401(a) of the Code, that accepts the distributee's eligible rollover distribution. However, in the case of an eligible rollover distribution to the surviving spouse, an eligible retirement plan is an individual retirement account or individual retirement annuity.

c)

Distributee: A distributee includes an employee or former employee. In addition, the employee's or former employee's surviving spouse and the employee's or former employee's spouse or former spouse who is the alternate payee under a qualified domestic relations order, as defined in Section 414(p) of the Code, are distributees with regard to the interest of the spouse or former spouse.

d)

Direct rollover is a payment by the plan to the eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee.

(e)

Notice of eligible rollover distribution: Within a reasonable period of time before making an eligible rollover distribution, the Board of Trustees shall provide a written explanation to the recipient of such distribution explaining the following: (1) the provisions under which the recipient may have the distribution directly transferred to an eligible retirement plan and that the automatic distribution by direct transfer applies to certain distributions in accordance with § 401(a)(31)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code, (2) the provision which requires the withholding of tax on the distribution if it is not directly transferred to an eligible retirement plan, (3) the provisions under which the distribution will not be subject to tax if transferred to an eligible retirement plan within 60 days after the date on which the recipient received the distribution, (4) the provisions under which distributions from the eligible retirement plan receiving the distribution may be subject to restrictions and tax consequences which are different from those applicable to distributions from the plan making such distribution. For the purposes of this Subsection, the term "reasonable period of time" shall have the meaning assigned to it under § 401(a)(31) of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations thereunder.

(Laws of Fla. ch. 95-482, § 21; Ord. No. 2017-22, § 4, 4-24-2017, Doc. #1704241202)