Second Session, 45th General Assembly

54 Elizabeth II, 2005

BILL 9

AN ACT TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SERVICE PENSIONS ACT, 1991, TEACHERS' PENSIONS ACT AND UNIFORMED SERVICES PENSIONS ACT, 1991

Received and Read the First Time

Second Reading

Committee

Third Reading

Royal Assent

HONOURABLE LOYOLA SULLIVAN

Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board

Ordered to be printed by the Honourable House of Assembly

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Bill would amend the Public Service Pensions Act, 1991 , the Teachers' Pensions Act and the Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991 to allow employees joining the pension plan under any of these Acts to transfer pensionable service credits and termination benefits from former pension plans. The proposed amendments would apply where the former pension plan is not subject to a reciprocal transfer agreement or the Portability of Pensions Act .

The pensionable service to be credited under the proposed amendments would be the actuarial reserve cost of the service calculated by the pension plan's actuary at the date of the election to transfer. In the event of a deficiency, employees would be allowed to either remedy the deficiency or to be credited with only a proportionate period of service.

A BILL

AN ACT TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SERVICE PENSIONS ACT, 1991, TEACHERS' PENSIONS ACT AND UNIFORMED SERVICES PENSIONS ACT, 1991

Analysis

PUBLIC SERVICE PENSIONS ACT, 1991

1. S.14.1 Added

Transfer

TEACHERS' PENSIONS ACT

2. S.16.1 Added

Transfer

UNIFORMED SERVICES PENSIONS ACT, 1991

3. S.13.2 Added

Transfer

Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows:

PUBLIC SERVICE PENSIONS ACT, 1991

SNL1991 c12 as amended

1. The Public Service Pensions Act, 1991 is amended by adding immediately after

section 14 the following:

Transfer

14.1

(1) A person who, before becoming an employee, made contributions to a pension plan that is registered as a pension plan under the Income Tax Act (Canada), other than a pension plan

(

a) to which the Portability of Pensions Act applies; or

(

b) that is the subject of a reciprocal agreement under

section 14

may, upon becoming an employee, elect to have that pensionable service transferred directly from the exporting pension plan to the pension plan in accordance with this section.

(2) Subsection (1) shall apply only where the employee has terminated his or her membership in the exporting pension plan and has not received a termination benefit from the exporting pension plan.

(3) An election made under subsection (1) is irrevocable.

(4) The pensionable service to be credited under the pension plan shall be determined with reference to the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of the election under subsection (1) as calculated by the pension plan's actuary.

(5) Upon an election under subsection (1), the exporting pension plan shall transfer to the pension plan a lump-sum amount that is the lesser of

(

a) the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of election; and

(

b) the value of the termination benefit to which the person is entitled.

(6) Where the lump-sum amount transferred under subsection (5) is insufficient to finance the actuarial cost of the full period of pensionable service that has been transferred under subsection (1), the employee may elect

(

a) to pay the amount required to make up the deficiency; or

(

b) to be credited with the proportionate period of pensionable service that can be financed by the lump-sum amount.

(7) The amount of a deficiency shall be paid in the prescribed manner.

(8) For the purpose of this

section "actuarial cost" means the cost of the service to be credited as determined at the date of the election and calculated with reference to the assumptions from the most recent actuarial valuation for funding purposes.

TEACHERS' PENSIONS ACT

SNL1991 c17

as amended

2. The Teachers' Pensions Act is amended by adding immediately after

section 16 the following:

Transfer

16.1

(1) A person who, before becoming a teacher, made contributions to a pension plan that is registered as a pension plan under the Income Tax Act (Canada), other than a pension plan

(

a) to which the Portability of Pensions Act applies; or

(

b) that is the subject of a reciprocal agreement under

section 16

may, upon becoming a teacher, elect to have that pensionable service transferred directly from the exporting pension plan to the pension plan in accordance with this section.

(2) Subsection (1) shall apply only where the teacher has terminated his or her membership in the exporting pension plan and has not received a termination benefit from the exporting pension plan.

(3) An election made under subsection (1) is irrevocable.

(4) The pensionable service to be credited under the pension plan shall be determined with reference to the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of the election under subsection (1) as calculated by the pension plan's actuary.

(5) Upon an election under subsection (1), the exporting pension plan shall transfer to the pension plan a lump-sum amount that is the lesser of

(

a) the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of election; and

(

b) the value of the termination benefit to which the teacher is entitled.

(6) Where the lump-sum amount transferred under subsection (5) is insufficient to finance the actuarial cost of the full period of pensionable service that has been transferred under subsection (1), the teacher may elect

(

a) to pay the amount required to make up the deficiency; or

(

b) to be credited with the proportionate period of pensionable service that can be financed by the lump-sum amount.

(7) The amount of a deficiency shall be paid in the prescribed manner.

(8) For the purpose of this

section "actuarial cost" means the cost of the service to be credited as determined at the date of the election and calculated with reference to the assumptions from the most recent actuarial valuation for funding purposes.

UNIFORMED SERVICES PENSIONS ACT, 1991

SNL1991 c19

as amended

3. The Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991 is amended by adding immediately after

section 13.1 the following:

Transfer

13.2

(1) A person who, before becoming an employee, made contributions to a pension plan that is registered as a pension plan under the Income Tax Act (Canada), other than a pension plan to which the Portability of Pensions Act applies, may, upon becoming an employee, elect to have that pensionable service transferred directly from the exporting pension plan to the pension plan in accordance with this section.

(2) Subsection (1) shall apply only where the employee has terminated his or her membership in the exporting pension plan and has not received a termination benefit from the exporting pension plan.

(3) An election made under subsection (1) is irrevocable.

(4) The pensionable service to be credited under the pension plan shall be determined with reference to the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of the election under subsection (1) as calculated by the pension plan's actuary.

(5) Upon an election under subsection (1), the exporting pension plan shall transfer to the pension plan a lump-sum amount that is the lesser of

(

a) the actuarial cost of the pensionable service at the date of election; and

(

b) the value of the termination benefit to which the person is entitled.

(6) Where the lump-sum amount transferred under subsection (5) is insufficient to finance the actuarial cost of the full period of pensionable service that has been transferred under subsection (1), the employee may elect

(

a) to pay the amount required to make up the deficiency; or

(

b) to be credited with the proportionate period of pensionable service that can be financed by the lump-sum amount.

(7) The amount of a deficiency shall be paid in the prescribed manner.

(8) For the purpose of this

section "actuarial cost" means the cost of the service to be credited as determined at the date of the election and calculated with reference to the assumptions from the most recent actuarial valuation for funding purposes.

©Earl G. Tucker, Queen's Printer