(a) This section shall apply in all cities in this state which have a population of not less than 175,000 nor more than 275,000 according to the last or any subsequent federal decennial census.
(b)(1) All employees of any such city (except members of the police or fire departments thereof) who have heretofore been covered by the benefits established by the provisions of Acts 1951, No. 773, Regular Session 1951 (Acts 1951, p. 1342), as amended, and who by action of the city commission or like governing body of such city become eligible to participate in the state employees pension plan, shall be entitled to receive the following benefits from the city, to be calculated as of the effective date of becoming eligible to participate in the state employees pension plan:
a. Any employee eligible for retirement, upon retiring or otherwise leaving the employ of such city and becoming eligible to receive retirement benefits under Act 773, shall receive monthly an amount equal to the monthly benefits provided by Act 773.
b. Any employee not eligible to receive benefits under Act 773, upon retiring or otherwise leaving the employ of said city, and upon reaching his or her sixtieth birthday, shall receive monthly an amount equal to two and one-half percent of his or her monthly wages, multiplied by the number of years (including any fractional part of a year) of employment with such city, prior to the date when he or she became eligible to participate in the state employees retirement plan.
c. Any employee may elect to not share in the benefits established by Act 773 and in the benefits guaranteed by subsections (a) and (b) at any time prior to his or her becoming eligible to receive retirement benefits, and upon filing with the governing body of the city written notice of such election shall be reimbursed all sums theretofore contributed to the pension plan established by said Act 773, as amended, and shall not thereafter receive any pension benefits from such city.
d. The payments by such city pursuant to Act 773 or pursuant to the terms of this section, when added to the retirement benefits from any other source to which the city shall have contributed, excluding Social Security benefits and any portion of such retirement benefits resulting from United States military service, shall not serve to make the aggregate retirement benefit higher than the benefits to which such employee would have been entitled had Act 773 continued in force and effect.
(2) It is further provided that when the monthly compensation received by any such employee as salary at the time of his or her retirement is utilized in computing the payment made by the city pursuant to Act 773, or pursuant to the terms of this section, there shall be included in such monthly salary one-twelfth of the amount of the employee’s annual incentive pay at the time of retirement.
(c) All laws or parts of laws which conflict with this section are repealed, and upon the governing body of any city to which this section applies placing its employees under the State Employees Retirement Act, as amended, the provisions of Acts 1951, No. 773, Regular Session 1951 (Acts 1951, p. 1342) as amended, shall not thereafter apply to such city or its employees; provided, that nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to alter or terminate any benefits being received by any retired employee pursuant to Act 773, as amended.
Last modified: May 3, 2021