Opinion ID: 1803409
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Creation of the FRS

Text: The FRS was created by the legislature pursuant to Acts 1979, No. 434, ง 1, consisting of La. R.S. 33:2151 through La. R.S. 33:2165, effective January 1, 1980. The FRS was established to provide retirement allowances and other benefits to firefighters employed by any municipality, parish or fire protection district in the state. [3] The FRS is administered through a board of trustees whose members are designated by the legislature. [4] The board members are authorized by the legislature to designate an actuary who serves as the technical advisor to the board of trustees regarding the operation of the FRS. [5] The legislature placed the FRS and its board of trustees in the Department of the Treasury. [6] The FRS is a defined benefit plan. [7] In other words, the benefits to which an employee is entitled upon retirement are defined, in this case by statute, and the participant can depend upon that value upon retirement. [8] The FRS is not a defined contribution plan. In a defined contribution plan, the contributing parties, typically the employer and employee, contribute fixed amounts to the plan, and at the time of retirement, the participant in the plan receives the accumulated balance in the account. [9] The FRS has three main sources of funding: (1) employee contributions, (2) employer contributions and (3) dedicated tax revenues from the state. [10] These FRS assets are credited to one of five sub-funds which comprise the retirement system. [11] Only two of the five sub-funds are important to this analysis. [12]