HB 1959

Abstract

Amends the General Assembly and Judges Articles of the Illinois Pension Code. Allows persons who first became or become employees in the affected Systems on or after January 1, 2011 to elect to participate in a self-managed program of retirement benefits instead of the program of reformed retirement benefits currently offered. Provides that a self-managed plan shall authorize a participant to accumulate assets for retirement through a combination of employer and employee contributions that may be invested at the participant's direction in mutual funds, collective investment funds, or other investment products and used to purchase annuity contracts. Requires the affected Systems to make the self-managed plan available within 6 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that, to the extent that the changes made by the amendatory Act are determined to be a new benefit increase under the new benefit increase provisions, the changes are exempt from the 5-year expiration provision. Effective immediately.