CHAPTER 5. County Fire Service Retirement Law

Chapter 5 added by Stats. 1947, Ch. 424.

§§ 32200–32365 · 86 sections

1. ARTICLE 1. General §§ 32200–32211 · 13 sections

   • § 32200 This chapter may be cited as the County Fire Service Retirement Law.
   • § 32201 The purpose of this chapter is to recognize a public obligation to employees in the public service whose duties expose them to more than ordinary risks and to…
   • § 32202 This chapter shall be given a liberal interpretation with a view of carrying out its purpose and shall not be construed as a local measure or one intended as a…
   • § 32203 Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions and general provisions contained in this article govern the construction of this chapter.
   • § 32204 “County foresters, firewardens and firemen” include all county foresters, county firewardens, deputy or assistant county foresters, deputy or assistant county…
   • § 32204.5 Any person who enters service as a “county forester, firewarden, or fireman” and has reached his fortieth birthday, shall be ineligible to become a member…
   • § 32205 “Terminal salary” means the average salary earnable by any member during (a) the last three years, or (b) the last five years prior to the date of his…
   • § 32206 “Board” and “board of retirement” mean the County Foresters, Firewardens, and County Fire Protection District Firemen’s Retirement Board.
   • § 32207 “Fund” means the County Foresters, Firewardens, and Firemen’s Retirement Fund.
   • § 32208 “System” means the retirement system provided for in this chapter or its predecessor. The retirement system for county foresters, fire wardens, and county fire…
   • § 32209 “Member” means any person included in the membership of the system, and includes retired members.
   • § 32210 The title to all property acquired pursuant to this chapter shall be taken in the name of the county. The title to any money which becomes due to any member…
   • § 32211 The board of supervisors may levy a special tax to be used for the payment of pensions and annuities under such pension, retirement, and benefit systems or…
2. ARTICLE 2. Retirement System §§ 32230–32236 · 8 sections

   • § 32230 This chapter shall become effective in any county, upon its acceptance by ordinance passed by four-fifths vote of the board of supervisors, and shall become…
   • § 32231 By the adoption of an ordinance passed by a four-fifths (4/5) vote, the board of supervisors may abolish a system theretofore established pursuant to this…
   • § 32232 If any such system is abolished in any county, each active member as of the date of the abolishment shall be paid a refund of all contributions made by him to…
   • § 32233 The system established pursuant to this chapter or its predecessor is exclusive, and persons entitled to membership in this system shall not participate in any…
   • § 32234 Except as provided in this article, all county foresters, firewardens, and firemen shall be included in and be subject to this chapter on the first day of the…
   • § 32235 Any county forester, firewarden, or fireman may elect to be excluded from this chapter at any time within 30 days after it becomes operative in any county. Any…
   • § 32235.5 Any employee of the county or any special district thereof who is a member of another retirement system, and who through transfer or appointment becomes…
   • § 32236 Upon election by any qualified person to come within this chapter, he shall be excluded from any other retirement system established under the laws of this…
3. ARTICLE 3. Board of Retirement §§ 32250–32272 · 23 sections

   • § 32250 The management of the system is vested in a county foresters, fire wardens, and fire protection district foremen’s retirement board, consisting of five members.
   • § 32251 One member of the board shall be the county treasurer, acting in an ex officio capacity.
   • § 32252 The second member shall be a member of the county forester and firewarden department and a member of the system. He shall be elected by the members of that…
   • § 32253 The third member shall be a member of the county fire protection districts personnel and a member of the system. He shall be elected by the members of the…
   • § 32254 If any county has all of its fire protective personnel under the jurisdiction of a single fire protection district or a series of fire protection districts and…
   • § 32255 If any county has all of its fire protective personnel under the jurisdiction of a general county forester or firewarden, or both, and has no fire protective…
   • § 32256 The fourth and fifth members shall be qualified electors of the county who are not connected with county government in any capacity, appointed by the board of…
   • § 32257 The first persons elected or appointed as the second and fourth members shall serve for two years from the operative date, and the third and fifth members so…
   • § 32258 The first, second, and third members of the board shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed out of the funds of the county for any expense or…
   • § 32259 The fourth and fifth members of the board shall each receive as compensation for his services ten dollars ($10) for each meeting of the board at which he is in…
   • § 32260 The board shall organize by choosing one of its number as chairman. Thereafter the officers shall be chosen biennially by the board.
   • § 32261 The board shall meet for the transaction of business at least once every three months in each calendar year and at other times as it or a majority of its…
   • § 32262 A majority of the members may transact any business of the board provided that the second or third member is present.
   • § 32263 The board may compel witnesses to attend and testify before it, upon all matters connected with the operation of this chapter, in the same manner as is…
   • § 32264 The board may appoint a secretary and provide for the payment from the fund of all its necessary expenses, including secretary hire and printing.
   • § 32265 The board may make regulations not inconsistent with this chapter. The regulations shall become effective when approved by the board of supervisors.
   • § 32266 The board shall report annually in January to the board of supervisors the condition of the fund and the receipts and disbursements on account of the fund with…
   • § 32267 The board shall annually prepare a budget of the cost of maintaining the pension fund. For this purpose it may employ an actuary to assist it in preparing the…
   • § 32268 The board shall cause an actuarial investigation and valuation of the system to be made immediately after the first year of operation and thereafter at not to…
   • § 32269 After the receipt of the recommendation the board of supervisors shall adjust the rate of interest, the rates of contributions of members, and county…
   • § 32270 The board has charge and control of the funds of the system and shall administer them and shall order payments therefrom in accordance with this chapter.
   • § 32271 The board shall invest and reinvest the funds of the system, and may from time to time sell and invest and reinvest the proceeds of any securities held by it…
   • § 32272 Whenever securities belonging to or held for the system are sold, the county treasurer shall deliver the securities sold upon receiving the proceeds and may…
4. ARTICLE 4. Retirement Fund §§ 32300–32303 · 4 sections

   • § 32300 For the purpose of providing and maintaining a fund to meet the payments of demands drawn for the payment of pensions and the expenses of the board, a trust…
   • § 32301 All transfers or payments to the fund and all withdrawals and other cash transactions shall be accounted upon the books of the auditor and treasurer in and out…
   • § 32302 All warrants drawn on the fund shall be signed by the treasurer and at least one other member of the board, who shall be designated by the board. No warrant is…
   • § 32303 Payments provided for in this chapter shall be made monthly upon proper vouchers.
5. ARTICLE 5. Contributions §§ 32320–32342 · 24 sections

   • § 32320 The normal rates of contribution of members shall be based on the age at the nearest birthday at the time of entrance into the system.
   • § 32321 The normal rates of contribution shall be such as will provide an average annuity at the lowest age at which the respective members are eligible for service…
   • § 32322 Until revised pursuant to Sections 32268 and 32269, the rate of contribution of each member is that percentage of the salary actually paid to him, disregarding…
   • § 32323 The normal rate of contribution established for age 40 is the rate for any member who has attained a greater age before entrance into the system, and that…
   • § 32324 The rate of contribution of any member shall apply only to so much of the salary actually paid to him, plus the monetary value as determined by the board of…
   • § 32325 Payment of salaries and wages less the contribution is full and complete discharge and acquittance of all claims and demands whatsoever for service rendered by…
   • § 32326 Upon election by any person to come within this chapter any sums due him under any other system shall be paid to him as in the case of separation from the…
   • § 32327 Any person electing to come within this chapter who elects to secure credit for prior service as a forester, firewarden, or fireman under this chapter, if he…
   • § 32328 Any person electing to secure credit for prior service as a forester, firewarden, or fireman under this chapter who has to his credit in any other pension…
   • § 32329 Any person electing to come within this chapter may elect not to claim full credit for his prior service, but may elect to receive credit for only a fractional…
   • § 32330 The board of supervisors shall determine and appropriate each year an amount sufficient, together with the contributions of the member to meet all of the…
   • § 32330.5 The board of supervisors may appropriate an additional amount, not to exceed the sum which would result from a tax levy upon all of the property in the county…
   • § 32331 In the preparation and adoption of the county or county fire protection districts budget, the board of supervisors shall add to and include in the…
   • § 32332 The county auditor shall certify to the board of supervisors at the end of each month the total amount of contributions paid by members to the fund, and the…
   • § 32333 All contributions and deposits shall bear simple interest at a rate to be fixed by the board with the approval of the board of supervisors, not to exceed 4…
   • § 32334 Any member of the system who is separated from the service of the county before retirement for any cause other than death or permanent disability, shall have…
   • § 32335 Upon the death before retirement of any member for any cause other than an injury received during the performance of his duty or sickness caused by the…
   • § 32336 Any member may redeposit in the fund, within one year after his reentrance into the service, an amount equal to that which he withdrew at the last termination…
   • § 32337 Any member who enters the armed forces of the United States during war or national emergency proclaimed by the President or an act of Congress providing for…
   • § 32338 If any member is compelled to be absent from his employment because temporarily incapacitated for the performance of duty as the result of injury or disease…
   • § 32339 Notwithstanding the provisions of this article, the board of supervisors and the board of supervisors as a governing body of the fire protection districts, may…
   • § 32340 If the board of supervisors elects to contribute as provided in Section 32339: (a) Any such member who exercises or did exercise the right to contribute to the…
   • § 32341 When the compensation of a member is a factor in any computation to be made under this chapter, there shall be excluded from such computation for any period of…
   • § 32342 A member subject to the provisions of Section 32341, who, either before or after the effective date of the 1951 amendment to this section elects to make the…
6. ARTICLE 6. Benefits §§ 32350–32365 · 14 sections

   • § 32350 Whenever this chapter becomes operative in any county, the board shall order that any person who has been duly appointed, selected, or elected and qualified…
   • § 32351 Any person retiring for service shall receive a pension payable in equal monthly installments during his lifetime, equal to one-half of his terminal salary,…
   • § 32352 Any member shall be retired for disability regardless of age or amount of service, if incapacitated for the performance of duty as the result of an injury or…
   • § 32353 If a member who has served 15 years or more develops heart trouble, it shall be presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, in any proceeding under…
   • § 32354 Upon retirement of a member for service connected disability, he shall receive an annual pension, payable in equal monthly installments, equal to one-half of…
   • § 32355 Whenever any member is killed, or dies, as a result of any injury received during the performance of his duty, or from sickness caused by the discharge of such…
   • § 32356 Upon retirement of a member for nonservice connected disability, he shall receive an annual pension, payable in monthly installments, dependent upon the…
   • § 32357 The board may require any member retired for disability, under age 50, to undergo medical examination. The examination shall be made by a physician, appointed…
   • § 32358 If the board determines that the retired member is not so incapacitated, his pension shall be canceled forthwith, and pursuant to regulations adopted by the…
   • § 32359 If the pension is canceled, there shall be immediately paid to the member out of the fund, the amount of his accumulated contributions as of the date of his…
   • § 32360 If the retired member reenters county service and is eligible for membership in this system, his rate of contribution for future years is that established for…
   • § 32361 At any time before the first payment of any pension is made, a member or beneficiary may elect to receive the actuarial equivalent at that time of his pension…
   • § 32361.5 Any member may file with the board a written statement nominating one or more beneficiaries, jointly, contingently, or both. If joint beneficiaries are named,…
   • § 32365 If, after the effective date of this section a member who retired at any time after January 1, 1945, pays into the fund the difference between what he did…