2012 Massachusetts General Laws
PART I ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOVERNMENT(Chapters 1 through 182)
TITLE IV CIVIL SERVICE, RETIREMENTS AND PENSIONS
CHAPTER 32B CONTRIBUTORY GROUP GENERAL OR BLANKET INSURANCE FOR PERSONS IN THE SERVICE OF COUNTIES, CITIES, TOWNS AND DISTRICTS, AND THEIR DEPENDENTS
Section 20 Other Post Employment Benefits Liability Trust Fund; local option; funding schedule

[ Text of section effective until July 1, 2011. For text effective July 1, 2011, see below.]

Section 20. A city, town, district, county or municipal lighting plant that accepts this section, may establish a separate fund, to be known as an Other Post Employment Benefits Liability Trust Fund, and a funding schedule for the fund. The schedule and any future updates shall be designed, consistent with standards issued by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, to reduce the unfunded actuarial liability of health care and other post-employment benefits to zero as of an actuarially acceptable period of years and to meet the normal cost of all such future benefits for which the governmental unit is obligated. The schedule and any future updates shall be: (i) developed by an actuary retained by a municipal lighting plant or any other governmental unit and triennially reviewed by the board for a municipal lighting plant or by the chief executive officer of a governmental unit; and (ii) reviewed and approved by the actuary in the public employee retirement administration commission.

The board of a municipal lighting plant or the legislative body of any other governmental unit may appropriate amounts recommended by the schedule to be credited to the fund. Any interest or other income generated by the fund shall be added to and become part of the fund. Amounts that a governmental unit receives as a sponsor of a qualified retiree prescription drug plan under 42 U.S.C. 1395w-132 may be added to and become part of the fund.

The custodian of the fund shall be: (i) a designee appointed by the board of a municipal lighting plant; or (ii) the treasurer of any other governmental unit. Funds shall be invested and reinvested by the custodian consistent with the prudent investor rule set forth in chapter 203C.

This section may be accepted in a city having a Plan D or Plan E charter by vote of the city council; in any other city by vote of the city council and approval of the mayor; in a town by vote of the town at a town meeting; in a district by vote of the governing board; in a municipal lighting plant by vote of the board; and in a county by vote of the county commissioners.

Chapter 32B: Section 20. Other Post-Employment Benefits Liability Trust Fund

[ Text of section as amended by 2011, 68, Sec. 57 effective July 1, 2011. See 2011, 68, Sec. 221. For text effective until July 1, 2011, see above.]

Section 20. (a) A city, town, district, county or municipal lighting plant that accepts this section may establish an Other Post-Employment Benefits Liability Trust Fund, and may appropriate amounts to be credited to the fund. Any interest or other income generated by the fund shall be added to and become part of the fund. Amounts that a governmental unit receives as a sponsor of a qualified retiree prescription drug plan under 42 U.S.C. section 1395w-132 may be added to and become part of the fund. All monies held in the fund shall be segregated from other funds and shall not be subject to the claims of any general creditor of the city, town, district, county or municipal lighting plant.

(b) The custodian of the fund shall be (i) a designee appointed by the board of a municipal lighting plant; (ii) the treasurer of any other governmental unit; or (iii) if designated by the city, town, district, county or municipal lighting plant in the same manner as acceptance prescribed in this section, the Health Care Security Trust board of trustees established in section 4 of chapter 29D, provided that the board of trustees accepts the designation. The custodian may employ an outside custodial service to hold the monies in the fund. Monies in the fund shall be invested and reinvested by the custodian consistent with the prudent investor rule established in chapter 203C and may, with the approval of the Health Care Security Trust board of trustees, be invested in the State Retiree Benefits Trust Fund established in section 24 of chapter 32A.

(c) This section may be accepted in a city having a Plan D or Plan E charter, by vote of the city council; in any other city, by vote of the city council and approval of the mayor; in a town, by vote of the town at a town meeting; in a district, by vote of the governing board; in a municipal lighting plant, by vote of the board; and in a county, by vote of the county commissioners.

(d) Every city, town, district, county and municipal lighting plant shall annually submit to the public employee retirement administration commission, on or before December 31, a summary of its other post-employment benefits cost and obligations and all related information required under Government Accounting Standards Board standard 45, in this subsection called "GASB 45'', covering the last fiscal or calendar year for which this information is available. On or before June 30 of the following year, the public employee retirement administration commission shall notify any entity submitting this summary of any concerns that the commission may have or any areas in which the summary does not conform to the requirements of GASB 45 or other standards that the commission may establish. The public employee retirement administration commission shall file a summary report of the information received under this subsection with the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and means, the secretary of administration and finance and the board of trustees of the Health Care Security Trust.