2023 Texas Statutes › Vernon's Civil Statutes › Title 109 - Pensions › Article 6243h. Municipal Pension System in Cities of 1,500,000 or More › Section 6. Group C Membership, Service Requirements, and Benefits

Sec. 6.  GROUP C MEMBERSHIP, SERVICE REQUIREMENTS, AND BENEFITS.  (a)  A group C member is subject to the provisions that apply to group A members under this Act, except as otherwise provided by this section.
(b)  In this section:
(1)  "Credited service" means the number of whole and fractional years of a member's eligible service in group C as an executive official after the executive official's effective date of participation in group C for which member and employer contributions are on deposit with the pension fund.
(2)  "Effective date of participation in group C" means September 1, 1999, except that for an employee who first becomes an executive official and whose contributions to group C begin after that date, the effective date of participation in group C is the first date on which the employee qualifies as an executive official and for which applicable contributions are made for service in group C as an executive official.
(3)  "Executive official" means a person in one of the following categories:
(A)  the chief administrative officer of the city;
(B)  the executive director of the pension system; or
(C)  a full-time appointed director of a department of the city as designated by the governing body of the city and approved by the pension board, other than a director who is covered by another pension system to which the city contributes or an acting director or the equivalent.
(4)  "Group C" means the executive officials' plan established under Chapter 358, Acts of the 48th Legislature, Regular Session, 1943 (Article 6243g, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), and reenacted and continued under this Act.
(c)  An executive official becomes a member of group C on the official's effective date of participation in group C, except that a group A or group B member who is participating in the DROP under Section 12 of this Act is ineligible to become a member of group C.
(d)  A group C member receives two times the number of actual years of credited service in group C solely for the purpose of fulfilling the eligibility requirements for a deferred or normal retirement pension in group C as provided by Subsection (e) of this section.  For all other computations under this Act, the actual years of credited service in group C are used.
(e)  A group C member who ceases to be an executive official is eligible for a deferred or normal retirement pension beginning on the member's effective retirement date when the member separates from service and:
(1)  fulfills the requirement for years of age and years of credited service for a normal retirement pension under Section 10(b) of this Act; or
(2)  attains 65 years of age with any amount of group C credited service.
(f)  For purposes of group C service under this section, the amount of the monthly:
(1)  normal retirement pension for a group C member equals the member's average monthly salary multiplied by two times the benefit accrual rate in effect for group A members and that product multiplied by the group C member's actual years of credited service in group C;
(2)  deferred retirement pension for a group C member is computed under Subdivision (1) of this subsection, but based on the member's average monthly salary and actual years of credited service as of the member's last day of credited service and subject to the provisions of this Act in effect on the member's last day of credited service;
(3)  ordinary disability pension for a group C member under Section 13 of this Act is computed under Subdivision (1) of this subsection;
(4)  service disability pension for a group C member under Section 13 of this Act is the greater of:
(A)  the amount computed under Subdivision (1) of this subsection; or
(B)  the amount computed under Section 13(b) of this Act; and
(5)  survivor benefit for any eligible survivor of a deceased group C member under Section 14(b) of this Act is computed under Section 14(b), but based on the ordinary disability benefit as computed under Subdivision (3) of this subsection.
(g)  Any previous service of a group C member in group A or group B is governed by the applicable group A or group B provisions of this Act and may not be credited to group C, except as provided in Subsection (i) of this section.  Group C service may not be credited to group A or group B.
(h)  This section applies to a member only while the member is an eligible executive official.  A member who ceases to be an executive official and transfers to or is rehired into a municipal position covered by group A participates in group A, does not forfeit group C service, and remains eligible for normal retirement for group C service as provided under Subsection (e) of this section.  A former group C member is not eligible to participate in group B.
(i)  A group C member who has at least two years of continuous credited service in group C is eligible to receive credited service in group C, on application in a manner determined by the pension board, for all periods of service before the group C member's effective date of participation in group C in which the member has otherwise met the definition of "executive official" under Subsection (b)(3) of this section, provided that:
(1)  if the service was in group A, the group C member may not have received a refund of contributions unless the group C member repaid refunded contributions under Sections 7(c), (d), (e), and (f) of this Act or Section 5(j), Chapter 358, Acts of the 48th Legislature, Regular Session, 1943 (Article 6243g, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes); and
(2)  if service was in group B, the group C member must elect, at a time and in a manner determined by the pension board, to purchase the service into group C and must purchase the service in the same manner as the service would be purchased into group A under Section 5(f) of this Act.
(j)  If payments under Subsection (i)(1) of this section are not timely made, the group C member may not receive credited service in group C under this section for group A service.  If required payments under Subsection (i)(2) of this section are not timely made, the group C member may not receive credited service in group C under this section for group B service.
(k)  Notwithstanding any other law, including Subsection (b)(3) of this section, Subsections (a) through (j) of this section do not apply to any employee on or after January 1, 2005.  An employee who meets the definition of "executive official" under Subsection (b)(3) of this section is a group A member beginning January 1, 2005, for credited service earned on or after January 1, 2005, or a member of the applicable group under Section 5 of this Act.  This subsection does not affect:
(1)  any credited service or benefit percentage accrued in group C before January 1, 2005;
(2)  any group C benefit that a deferred participant or retiree is eligible to receive that was earned before January 1, 2005; or
(3)  the terms of any obligation to purchase service credit or convert service credit to group C that was entered into before January 1, 2005.
(l)  A group C member who terminates employment before January 1, 2005, is subject to the retirement eligibility requirements in effect on the date of the member's termination from employment.  A group C member who becomes a group A member under Subsection (k) of this section on January 1, 2005, is subject to the retirement eligibility requirements under Section 10 of this Act.