HB 2160 -- POLICE CHIEFS' AND OFFICERS' RETIREMENT

CO-SPONSORS:  Britt, Kreider, Ross, McKenna, Green (15), Jolly,
Johnson (90), Hosmer, Dolan, Wagner, Boucher

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Public
Safety, Law Enforcement and Veterans Affairs by a vote of 19 to
1.

This bill creates the Police Chiefs and Officer's Retirement
System and the Police Chiefs' and Officers' Retirement Fund.  The
bill outlines the qualifications, term of office, and duties of
the directors who will administer and invest the fund.  Funding
for the fund will come from a surcharge of 50 cents per month on
all automobile insurance polices.  The Department of Insurance is
required to collect the surcharge and disburse the surcharge to
the fund.  All persons employed full-time as elected marshals or
chiefs of police, all appointed police chiefs, and municipal
police officers, except police chiefs and officers in St. Louis
and Kansas City, are members of the system.  A member is eligible
for benefits at age 55 with 15 years of service or at age 62 with
10 years of service.  A normal annuity of a retired member is
$1,000 per month or $12,000 per year.  In addition, a member may
receive up to $450 for medical insurance premiums.  Any eligible
member who becomes a member of the system on the effective date
of the establishment of the system will be given credit for five
years if the member is 45 years old.  The bill allows for a
deferred annuity for certain eligible members.

The bill also allows for a death benefit of $10,000 to be paid to
the designated beneficiary of every active member upon his or her
death.  No benefits will be paid from this system until four
years after the effective date of the bill.  The bill outlines
other technical aspects of the system.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Net Cost to Insurance Dedicated Fund of
$71,987 in FY 2003, $79,746 in FY 2004, and $81,776 in FY 2005.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the bill will assist smaller,
rural police departments in attracting and keeping officers by
being able to offer a retirement plan that is competitive with
larger departments and will help to reward police officers that
serve to protect the state's citizens.  Supporters also say that
the citizens and taxpayers of the state will benefit by saving
the extensive cost of replacing and training officers to replace
those that leave because of poor pay and benefits.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Britt; Missouri
Police Chiefs Association; Brookfield Police Department; City of
Maryville Public Safety Department; Moberly Police Department;
Missouri State Lodge Fraternal Order of Police; Missouri Union of
Law Enforcement; AFL-CIO-IUPA; Springfield Police Officers
Association; Missouri Municipal League; Lake Saint Louis Police
Department; Bonne Terre Police Department; Union Police
Department; Raytown Police Department; and Sunset Hills Police
Department.

OPPONENTS:  Those who oppose the bill say that they feel it is
unfair to single out the insurance industry to fund this program
and may discourage people from carrying automobile insurance.
Opponents are also concerned about Missouri-domiciled insurance
companies having to pay a surcharge, known as a "retaliatory
tax," to other states with lower tax rates which will put these
companies at a competitive disadvantage when writing policies in
other states.

Testifying against the bill were Shelter Insurance Company; State
Farm Insurance Companies; Missouri Insurance Coalition; Columbia
Insurance Group; National Association of Independent Insurers;
American Insurance Association; and American Family Insurance
Company.

Dana Estes, Legislative Analyst

Missouri House of Representatives
Last Updated October 11, 2002 at 9:03 am