Section 31789.5 Of Article 12. Death Benefit From California Government Code >> Division 4. >> Title 3. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 3. >> Article 12.
31789.5
. (a) Upon the death of any person after retirement and
while receiving a retirement allowance from this system, or any
superseded system, there shall be paid to his or her estate, or to
the beneficiary as he or she shall nominate by written designation
duly executed and filed with the board, an amount determined by the
board of supervisors. The board of supervisors shall, by resolution
adopted by majority vote, fix and determine an amount that may not
exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000).
(b) This section applies to every member who dies after this
section becomes operative whether he or she has retired before or
after the operative date or effective date of this section.
(c) The death benefit provided by this section shall be paid in
lieu of a payment under Section 31789 or 31789.1 and may be paid in
part, from contributions of the county or district in accordance with
Section 31789, and in part, from surplus earnings of the retirement
system in accordance with Section 31789.1.
(d) The death benefit provided by this section may, at the
election of the board of retirement, be provided through a group life
insurance policy if the cost of that policy to the system is the
same or less than the cost to the system, county, or district of
other methods of providing the benefit.
(e) This section may not be operative in any county until the
board of supervisors, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes
this section applicable in the county and the board of retirement,
by resolution adopted by a majority vote, determines that its portion
of the cost of the benefits may be financed from surplus earnings of
the retirement fund.
(f) Upon adoption, by any county providing benefits pursuant to
this section, of Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 31610), only
that portion of those benefits that is paid from surplus earnings
described in Section 31592.2 shall be paid, instead, from the
Supplemental Retiree Benefits Reserve established pursuant to Section
31618.