Article 11. Optional Retirement Allowances of California Government Code >> Division 4. >> Title 3. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 3. >> Article 11.

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), until the first payment of any retirement allowance is made, a member or retired member, in lieu of the retirement allowance for the member's life alone, may elect to have the actuarial equivalent of his or her retirement allowance as of the date of retirement applied to a lesser retirement allowance payable throughout life in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article.
  (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a member who applies for disability and is subsequently granted a service retirement pending a determination of entitlement to disability may change the type of optional or unmodified allowance that he or she elected at the time the service retirement was granted, subject to the provisions of Section 31725.7.

Upon the death of any member after retirement for service or non-service-connected disability from a retirement system established in a county subject to the provisions of Section 31676.1, 60 percent of his or her retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, shall be continued throughout life to his or her surviving spouse. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to an allowance hereunder or if she or he dies before every natural or adopted child of the deceased member attains the age of 18 years, then the allowance which the surviving spouse would have received had she or he lived, shall be paid to his or her natural or adopted child or children under that age collectively, to continue until every child dies or attains that age; provided, that no child shall receive any allowance after marrying or attaining the age of 18 years. No allowance, however, shall be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless she or he was married to the member at least one year prior to the date of his or her retirement. The right of a child or children of a deceased member to receive an allowance under this section, in the absence of an eligible surviving spouse, shall not be dependent on whether the child or children were nominated by the deceased member as the beneficiary of any benefits payable upon or by reason of the member's death, and shall be superior to and shall supersede the rights and claims of any other beneficiary so nominated. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to those children through the age of 21 if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school as determined by the board. If at the death of any retired member there is no surviving spouse or minor children eligible for the 60-percent continuance provided in this section, and the total retirement allowance income received by him or her during his or her lifetime did not equal or exceed his or her accumulated normal contributions, his or her designated beneficiary shall be paid an amount equal to the excess of his or her accumulated normal contributions over his or her total retirement allowance income. The superseding rights pursuant to this section shall not affect benefits payable to a named beneficiary as provided under Section 31789, 31789.01, 31789.1, 31789.12, 31789.13, 31789.2, 31789.3, 31789.5, or 31790.

Notwithstanding Section 31760.1, upon the death after retirement of any member covered under Section 31751, 60 percent of the member's retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, shall be continued throughout life to the member's spouse if the spouse is designated as the beneficiary. No allowance, however, shall be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless she or he was married to the member at least one year prior to the date of the member's retirement. If there is an eligible spouse, in addition to the above, 20 percent of the member's unmodified retirement allowance shall be paid to each of the member's children. The maximum family benefit under this section shall be 100 percent of the member's retirement allowance. If, on the death after retirement of any member covered under Section 31751, there is no spouse eligible for the 60 percent continuance but there is at least one eligible child, or if there was an eligible spouse and the spouse dies while there is at least one eligible child, the child, or children collectively, shall be entitled to the 60 percent continuance of the member's unmodified allowance. As used in this section, "child" means a member's child who is dependent upon such member at the time of his or her retirement and while such child is unmarried and:
  (a) Under 18 years of age, or
  (b) Whether under or over 18 years of age, totally disabled and such disability occurred prior to such child attaining the age of 18 years, or
  (c) Eighteen years of age or over, but has not attained the age of 22 years, and is enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited school, as determined by the board. If, at the death of any retired member, there is no surviving spouse or children eligible for the continuance of the allowance provided in this section, and the total retirement allowance income received by the member during the member's lifetime did not exceed the member's accumulated normal contributions and cost-of-living contributions, the member's designated beneficiary shall be paid an amount equal to the excess of such contributions at retirement date over the total amount of the retirement allowance income received by the member.

Notwithstanding Section 31760.1, each survivor allowance paid pursuant to Section 31760.1 on account of a member who retires on or after the operative date of this section shall be equal to 65 percent of the member's monthly retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article. This section shall only be applicable to Los Angeles County and shall not become operative until the board of supervisors of that county elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding Section 31760.1, each survivor allowance paid on or after the operative date of this section pursuant to Section 31760.1 on account of a member who retires before the operative date of this section shall be equal to 65 percent of the member's monthly retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, as adjusted for the net cost-of-living percentage increase, if any, awarded to that survivor prior to the operative date of this section.
  (b) This section shall only be applicable to Los Angeles County and shall not become operative until the board of supervisors of that county elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding Section 31481 or 31760.1, upon the death of any member after retirement for service or non-service-connected disability from a retirement system established in a county pursuant to this chapter, 60 percent of his or her retirement allowance, if not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, shall be continued to his or her surviving spouse for life. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to an allowance under this section or if she or he dies before every child of the deceased member attains the age of 18 years, then the allowance that the surviving spouse would have received had he or she lived, shall be paid to his or her child or children under that age collectively, to continue until each child dies or attains that age. However, no child may receive any allowance after marrying or attaining the age of 18 years.
  (b) No allowance may be paid under this section to a surviving spouse unless he or she was married to the member at least two years prior to the date of death and has attained the age of 55 years on or prior to the date of death.
  (c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to the children through the age of 21 years if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school, as determined by the board.
  (d) If at the death of any retired member there is no surviving spouse or minor children eligible for the 60-percent continuance provided in this section and the total retirement allowance income received by the retired member during his or her lifetime did not equal or exceed his or her accumulated normal contributions, the retired member's designated beneficiary shall be paid an amount equal to the excess of his or her accumulated normal contributions over his or her total retirement allowance income.
  (e) No allowance may be paid pursuant to this section to any person who is entitled to an allowance pursuant to Section 31760.1.
  (f) The superseding rights pursuant to this section do not affect benefits payable to a named beneficiary as provided under Section 31789, 31789.01, 31789.1, 31789.12, 31789.13, 31789.2, 31789.3, 31789.5, or 31790.
  (g) This section is not applicable in any county until the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county. The board's resolution may designate a date, which may be prior or subsequent to the date of the resolution, as of which the resolution and this section shall be operative in the county.

The sole purpose of this section is to notify the current spouse of the selection of benefits or change of beneficiary made by a member. Nothing in this section is intended to conflict with community property law. An application for a refund of the member's accumulated contributions, an election of optional settlement, or a change in beneficiary designation shall contain the signature of the current spouse of the member, unless the member declares, in writing under penalty of perjury, any of the following:
  (a) The member is not married.
  (b) The current spouse has no identifiable community property interest in the benefit.
  (c) The member does not know, and has taken all reasonable steps to determine, the whereabouts of the current spouse.
  (d) The current spouse has been advised of the application and has refused to sign the written acknowledgment.
  (e) The current spouse is incapable of executing the acknowledgment because of incapacitating mental or physical condition.
  (f) The member and the current spouse have executed a marriage settlement agreement pursuant to Part 5 (commencing with Section 1500) of Division 4 of the Family Code which makes the community property law inapplicable to the marriage. This section shall not be operative in any county until such time as the board of supervisors shall, by resolution adopted by majority vote, make this section applicable in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding Section 31760 and in lieu of the retirement allowance and the continuing or survivor allowance, if any, otherwise payable to a retired member and his or her surviving spouse pursuant to this article, a member may elect in writing to have the actuarial equivalent of these benefits, as of the date of retirement, applied to a lesser amount payable throughout the retired member's life, and to an increased survivor allowance as approved by the board, upon the advice of the actuary, that, upon the death of the retired member, shall be continued throughout the life of and paid to his or her surviving spouse. To qualify for benefits under this section, the surviving spouse must be married to the member at least one year prior to the date of retirement. If there is no surviving spouse entitled to this allowance, or if the surviving spouse dies before every child of the deceased retired member, including every stepchild and adopted child, attains the age of 18 years, then the increased survivor allowance that the spouse would have received had he or she survived shall be paid to the deceased retired member's child or children under the age of 18 years. If the increased survivor allowance is to be paid to surviving children, it shall be divided among the children in equal shares. However, the right of any child to share in the allowance shall cease upon his or her death, marriage, or attaining the age of 18 years.
  (b) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the allowance otherwise payable to the children of the deceased retired member shall be paid through the age of 21 years if the children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in any accredited school as determined by the board.
  (c) The election under this section may not, in the opinion of the board and the actuary, place any additional burden upon the retirement system. If a member elects to be subject to this section, the retirement allowance that would otherwise be payable to the member shall be reduced by the additional cost to the system resulting from the increased survivor allowance. The actuarial cost of the survivor allowance payable under this section shall be calculated taking into account the life expectancy of the member's surviving spouse.
  (d) This section is only applicable to Los Angeles County and is not operative unless and until the board of supervisors of the county elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county. This section applies only to those members who retire after the operative date of this section.

(a) A retired member, in order to provide for his or her domestic partner, shall be entitled to elect or change any optional retirement allowance pursuant to this article, if all of the following criteria are satisfied:
  (1) The member retired on or before January 1, 2006.
  (2) At retirement, the member elected an unmodified retirement allowance or one of the optional settlements specified in this article naming his or her domestic partner as beneficiary.
  (3) At the time of election under this section, the retired member and domestic partner are registered as domestic partners with the Secretary of State, and provide a copy of their Certificate of Registered Domestic Partnership to the retirement system.
  (4) The retired member and domestic partner sign an affidavit under penalty of perjury stating that at least one year prior to the member's service retirement effective date or at the disability retirement date the member and partner would have qualified to be registered as domestic partners pursuant to Section 297 of the Family Code.
  (b) The retirement system has no obligation to locate or otherwise contact retired members who may qualify for allowances under the terms of this section.
  (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, if a retired member elects to change his or her retirement election pursuant to this section, the member's allowance shall be adjusted prospectively only. The adjusted retirement allowance shall be effective on the first day of the month following receipt of the member's signed election. The member shall not be eligible to recover payment retroactively for any period between his or her retirement effective date and the date of election under this section.
  (d) This section does not apply to members who are required to provide a continuing benefit to a former spouse pursuant to court order.
  (e) The right of a member to make an election pursuant to this section shall expire on January 1, 2007.

(a) Notwithstanding Section 31782, a retired member, in order to provide for his or her spouse, shall be entitled to revise the designated beneficiary of an optional settlement elected pursuant to Section 31762, 31763, or 31764 at the time of retirement, if all of the following criteria are satisfied:
  (1) The member retired on or before the date the board made Section 31760.2, 31785.1, or 31786.1 applicable in the county.
  (2) At retirement, the member was unmarried or had been married less than one year.
  (3) The member's spouse is at least 55 years of age and is older than the originally designated beneficiary.
  (4) The member's application satisfies the requirements described in subdivisions (b) and (c).
  (b) (1) An application for a revision of an optional settlement pursuant to this section shall include the signature of the designated beneficiary of the optional settlement acknowledging the revision or shall include a written declaration of one or more of the following as may be applicable to the member:
  (A) The beneficiary has no identifiable community property interest in the benefit.
  (B) The member does not know, and has taken all reasonable steps to determine, the whereabouts of the beneficiary.
  (C) The beneficiary has been advised of the application and has refused to sign the written acknowledgment.
  (D) The beneficiary is incapable of executing the acknowledgment because of an incapacitating mental or physical condition.
  (2) The purpose of this subdivision is to notify the beneficiary of the revision of an optional settlement made by a member that may affect the entitlement of the beneficiary.
  (3) A person who knowingly provides false information in the written declaration submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) and not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), in addition to any civil remedies available to the board. An action to impose a civil penalty pursuant to this paragraph may be brought by any public prosecutor in the name of the people of the state.
  (c) In addition to the requirements of subdivision (b), if the originally designated beneficiary of the optional settlement is a former spouse or domestic partner of the member, the application for revision of an optional settlement shall also evidence agreement to the revision by the former spouse or domestic partner.
  (d) After revision, the member's retirement allowance shall remain the same as provided by the optional settlement, adjusted by any cost-of-living increases that have been added to the retirement allowance.
  (e) The retirement system has no obligation to locate or otherwise contact retired members who may qualify for a revision under this section.
  (f) No actions taken pursuant to this section excuse the obligation of a member to provide a continuing benefit to a former spouse or other person pursuant to court order.
  (g) This section is not applicable in any county until the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county. The board's resolution may designate a date, which may be prior or subsequent to the date of the resolution, as of which the resolution and this section shall be operative in the county.

Optional settlement 1 consists of the right to elect in writing to have a retirement allowance paid him or her until his or her death and, if he or she dies before he or she receives in annuity payments the amount of his or her accumulated contributions at retirement, to have the balance at death paid to his or her estate or to the person, having an insurable interest in his or her life, as he or she nominates by written designation duly executed and filed with the board.

Optional settlement 2 consists of the right to elect in writing to have a retirement allowance paid to him or her until his or her death, and thereafter to the person, having an insurable interest in his or her life, as he or she nominates by written designation duly executed and filed with the board at the time of his or her retirement.

Optional settlement 3 consists of the right to elect in writing to have a retirement allowance paid him or her until his or her death, and thereafter to have one-half of his or her retirement allowance paid to the person, having an insurable interest in his or her life, as he or she nominates by written designation duly executed and filed with the board at the time of his or her retirement.

Optional settlement 4 consists of the right to elect in writing to have a retirement allowance paid him or her until his or her death and thereafter to have other benefits as are approved by the board, upon the advice of the actuary, continued throughout the life of and paid to the persons, having an insurable interest in his or her life, as he or she nominates by written designation duly executed and filed with the board at the time of his or her retirement. The designation shall not, in the opinion of the board and the actuary, place any additional burden upon the retirement system.

(a) At retirement, a member who elects an optional settlement pursuant to Section 31762, 31763, or 31764 may elect to reduce his or her allowance to provide that if the named beneficiary predeceases the member, the member's allowance shall be adjusted to the amount he or she would have been entitled to receive at retirement if his or her benefit had not been modified by an optional settlement, adjusted by any cost-of-living increases that would have been added to the monthly allowance. The adjusted allowance shall be effective on the first day of the month following the month in which notification of the beneficiary's death is received by the board.
  (b) This section may not become operative if, in the opinion of the retirement board and the actuary, the allowances payable under this section would place an additional financial burden on the retirement system.
  (c) This section may not become operative until the board of supervisors elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding Sections 31481 and 31760, optional settlement 5 consists of a retired member's right to elect in writing to have his or her retirement allowance reduced and to designate his or her spouse who is not otherwise eligible to receive a survivor allowance. The survivor allowance shall be determined on an actuarial basis by the reduction in the member's allowance and may not, in the opinion of the board and the actuary, place any additional financial burden on the retirement system.
  (b) A member who elected to receive an optional settlement under Section 31762, 31763, or 31764, involving a life contingency of a beneficiary, may elect optional settlement 5 if the beneficiary predeceases the member or, if a former spouse was named, in the event of a dissolution or annulment of the marriage or a legal separation in which the judgment dividing the community property awards the total interest in the retirement system to the retired member.
  (c) A member who married at least 12 months prior to the date this section becomes operative may file an election with the board of retirement within 60 days after the operative date. The election shall become effective the first day of the month following receipt of the election by the board. A member who fails to elect within that 60-day period shall retain the right to make an election under this section subject to the waiting period provided in subdivision (d).
  (d) Except as provided in subdivision (c), the election under this section shall become effective 12 months after the date it is filed with the board, provided that neither the member nor his or her spouse dies prior to the effective date of the election.
  (e) An election under this section is irrevocable.
  (f) This section may not become operative until the board of supervisors elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, if a retired member elects to have his or her retirement allowance reduced pursuant to Section 31764.6 and if, thereafter, the member's spouse predeceases the member, the member's allowance shall be adjusted to the amount he or she received at retirement, adjusted by any cost-of-living increases that were or would have been added to the monthly allowance. The adjusted allowance shall be effective on the first day of the month following the month in which notification of the spouse's or beneficiary's death is received by the board.
  (b) This section may not become operative if, in the opinion of the retirement board and the actuary, the allowances payable under this section would place an additional financial burden on the retirement system.
  (c) This section may not become operative until the board of supervisors elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

Upon the death of a member who was eligible to retire, in circumstances in which a death benefit is payable under Article 12, if the deceased member has designated as beneficiary his spouse who survives him by not less than 30 days, such surviving spouse may elect, at any time before acceptance of any benefits from the retirement system, to receive, in lieu of the death benefit otherwise payable under Article 12, the same retirement allowance as that to which such spouse would have been entitled had such member retired on the day of his death and selected Optional Settlement 3. Such surviving spouse may elect in writing, before the first payment of any allowance is made, to receive in a lump sum payment all or any part of the member's accumulated additional contributions. The sum so paid shall not be included in the calculation of the annuity of the surviving spouse. If, at the death of such spouse, she or he is survived by one or more unmarried children of such member, under the age of 18, such retirement allowance shall continue to such child or children, collectively, until every child dies, marries, or attains age 18. If such spouse dies, either before or after the death of such member without either making such election or receiving any portion of the death benefit, and no part of the death benefit has been paid to any person, prior to the payment of any benefits, the legally appointed guardian of such children shall make the election herein provided for on behalf of such surviving children as in his judgment may appear to be in their interest and advantage and the election so made shall be binding and conclusive upon all parties in interest. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to such children through the age of 21 if such children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school as determined by the board.

Upon the death of any member of a retirement system established in a county subject to the provisions of Section 31676.1 or Section 31695.1, eligible for retirement pursuant to Article 7.5, 8, or 8.7 who leaves a spouse designated as beneficiary, such surviving spouse may, in lieu of the death benefit provided for in Article 12, elect to receive a retirement allowance equal to 60 percent of the amount to which the member would have been entitled had the member retired on the date of his death with a retirement allowance not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in Article 11. Such surviving spouse may elect in writing, before the first payment of any allowance is made, to receive in a lump sum payment all or any part of the member's accumulated additional contributions. The sum so paid shall not be included in the calculations of the annuity of the surviving spouse. If, at the death of such spouse, she or he is survived by one or more unmarried children of such member, under the age of 18, such retirement allowance shall continue to such child or children, collectively, until every child dies, marries, or attains age 18. If such spouse dies, either before or after the death of such member without either making such election or receiving any portion of the death benefit, and no part of the death benefit has been paid to any person, prior to the payment of any benefits, the legally appointed guardian of such children shall make the election herein provided for on behalf of such surviving children as in his judgment may appear to be in their interest and advantage and the election so made shall be binding and conclusive upon all parties in interest. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the benefits otherwise payable to the children of the member shall be paid to such children through the age of 21 if such children remain unmarried and are regularly enrolled as full-time students in an accredited school as determined by the board.

Notwithstanding Sections 31765 and 31765.1, upon the death of any member covered under Section 31751 who was either eligible for retirement or would have been entitled to disability retirement but died prior to such retirement and who leaves a spouse, such surviving spouse may, in lieu of the death benefit provided for in Article 12 (commencing with Section 31780), elect to receive a retirement allowance equal to 60 percent of the amount to which the member would have been entitled had the member retired on the date of death with a retirement allowance not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article. If there is an eligible spouse, in addition to the above, 20 percent of the allowance to which the member would have been entitled shall be paid to each of the member's children. The maximum family benefit under this section shall be 100 percent of the amount to which the member would have been entitled had the member retired on the date of death with a retirement allowance not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article. If there is no spouse eligible for the 60 percent allowance, but there is at least one eligible child, or if the spouse of the member dies either before or after the death of such member without either making such election or receiving any portion of the death benefit, and no part of the death benefit has been paid to any person, prior to the payment of any benefits, the legally appointed guardian of such child or children shall make the election herein provided for on behalf of such surviving child or children as the guardian's judgment may appear in their interest and advantage and the election so made shall be binding and conclusive upon all parties in interest. If an election is made to receive the 60 percent allowance, the child, or children collectively, shall be entitled to 60 percent of the retirement allowance the member would have received. As used in this section, "child" shall be as defined in Section 31760.11. The provisions of this section also shall apply to the surviving spouse and children of any employee who dies as the result of injury or disease arising out of and in the course of employment prior to the first day of the calendar month when the employee normally would become a member. The rights and privileges conferred by this section upon the surviving spouse and children of such deceased member or employee shall not be dependent upon whether they, or any of them, have been nominated by the deceased member or employee as the beneficiary of any benefits payable upon or by reason of death, but they shall be superior to, and shall supersede, the rights and claims of any other beneficiary so nominated.

Notwithstanding Section 31765.1, each survivor allowance paid pursuant to Section 31765.1 on account of a member who dies on or after the operative date of this section shall be equal to 65 percent of the monthly retirement allowance to which the deceased member would have been entitled if he or she had retired on the date of death with a retirement allowance not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article. This section shall only be applicable to Los Angeles County and shall not become operative until the board of supervisors of that county elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

(a) Notwithstanding Section 31765.1, each survivor allowance paid on or after the operative date of this section pursuant to Section 31765.1 on account of a member who dies before the operative date of this section shall be equal to 65 percent of the monthly retirement allowance to which the deceased member would have been entitled if he or she had retired on the date of death with a retirement allowance not modified in accordance with one of the optional settlements specified in this article, as adjusted for the net cost-of-living percentage increase, if any, awarded to that survivor prior to the operative date of this section.
  (b) This section shall only be applicable to Los Angeles County and shall not become operative until the board of supervisors of that county elects, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, to make this section operative in the county.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, the board may, by a resolution adopted, pursuant to both this section and Section 31792, by a majority vote and with respect only to persons who first become members on or after the effective date of the resolution, elect to increase, by 33 1/3 percent, the amounts payable pursuant to any one or more of Sections 31760.1, 31760.2, and 31765.1. This section shall apply only to a county of the first class, as defined by Section 28020, as amended by Chapter 1204 of the Statutes of 1971, and Section 28022, as amended by Chapter 43 of the Statutes of 1961.