AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE OTHER POST EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS TRUST FUND OF THE TOWN OF BELMONT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:
SECTION 1. Chapter 97 of the acts of 2007 is hereby amended by striking out sections 2 and 3, and inserting in place thereof the following 2 sections:-
Section 2. (a) There shall be, in the town of Belmont a special trust fund to be known as the Belmont Other Post Employment Benefits Trust Fund. The Belmont treasurer shall transfer funds to that trust fund as such funds are appropriated or those received from other sources specifically dedicated to OPEB purposes become available. The trust fund shall be irrevocable as required by GASB 43 and 45. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the town of Belmont may appropriate funds in order to offset the anticipated cost of premium or direct payments for OPEB to be made to retired employees of the town and to any eligible surviving spouse or dependents of deceased employees of the town.
(b) Beginning in fiscal year 2008, the trust fund shall be credited with all amounts appropriated or otherwise made available by the town to meet the current and future OPEB costs payable by the town. Interest or other income earned by the trust fund shall be added to and become part of the trust fund. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this act, amounts expended from the trust fund shall be expended only for the costs payable by the town for OPEB.
(c) The Belmont contributory retirement board shall be the custodian of the trust fund and may employ an outside custodial service to hold the monies in the fund. The retirement board and the custodian shall be bonded and the bonding costs shall be paid for out of the trust fund. The Belmont contributory retirement board may invest and re-invest the monies held in the trust fund not required for current disbursement under the investment powers granted to retirement boards under paragraph (g) of subdivision (2) of section 23 of chapter 32 of the General Laws, under the regulations of the public employees retirement administration commission and with any applicable general laws. Monies held in the trust fund shall be segregated from other funds held by the Belmont retirement board and by the town. Trust fund monies shall not be subject to the claims of the town's general creditors. The trust fund shall be subject to the public employee retirement commission's triennial audit and the town's contributory retirement system annual audit.
(d) The Belmont contributory retirement board may employ any qualified bank, trust company, corporation, firm or person to provide advice on the investment of amounts held in the trust fund and may pay for the advice from amounts held in the fund. Procurement for these services shall be subject to the procurement procedures and rules followed by the Belmont contributory retirement board for services to the town's contributory retirement system.
(e) If a civil action is brought against a member of the retirement board, the defense or settlement of which action is made by an attorney employed by the retirement board, the member shall be indemnified for all expenses incurred in the defense of the action and shall be indemnified for damages to the same extent as provided for public employees in chapter 258 of the General Laws if the claim arose out of acts performed by the member while acting within the scope of the member’s official duties; provided, however, that a member of a retirement board shall not be indemnified for expenses incurred in the defense of an action, or damages awarded in an action, in which there is shown to be a breach of fiduciary duty, an act of willful dishonesty or an intentional violation of law by the member. Such indemnification shall be paid from amounts held in the fund.
Section 3. (a) The town shall engage an actuary, who shall be a member of the American Academy of Actuaries, to perform an actuarial valuation of the town's OPEB liabilities and funding schedule, as of January 1, 2006, and no less frequently than every second year thereafter. The determinations shall be made in accordance with generally accepted actuarial standards and shall conform to the requirements of GASB 43 and 45 and the actuary shall make a report of the determinations to the town meeting and include it in the town report. The report shall, without limitation, detail the demographic and economic actuarial assumptions used in making the determinations and each report after the first report shall also include an explanation of the changes, if any, in the demographic and economic actuarial assumptions employed and the reasons for the changes. The cost of the biennial actuarial evaluation shall be at the town's expense.
(b) Beginning in fiscal year 2008, payments for the purposes of meeting the town's cost of OPEB under this act may be made from the trust fund.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved, December 1, 2010.