§ 16-53. Limitation on benefits.

(a) The benefit of any member may not exceed the annual benefit authorized by section 415(b) IRC. For purposes of determining whether a member's benefit exceeds the limitations of this section, the following shall apply:

(1) Adjustment if benefit not a straight life annuity.

a. If the form of benefit is other than a straight life annuity, such benefit shall be adjusted actuarially to the equivalent of a straight life annuity to determine whether the limitations set forth in this section are met.

b. For the purposes of this section, no adjustment shall be taken into account for any ancillary benefit which is not directly related to retirement income benefits.

(2) Adjustment if benefit commences before age sixty-two (62).

a. If the benefit distribution commences before age sixty-two (62), the actual retirement benefit shall not exceed the adjusted dollar limitation. The adjusted dollar limitation shall be the equivalent, determined in a manner consistent with reduction of benefits for early retirement under section 415(b)(2)(E) IRC, of one hundred sixty thousand dollars ($160,000.00), as of January 1, 2002, adjusted annually pursuant to section 415(d) IRC, commencing at age sixty-two (62). For purposes of this adjustment, survivor benefits, that portion of a joint and survivor annuity which is the survivor benefit, and any other ancillary benefits shall not be taken into account.

b. No adjustment shall be required under this subsection if the member is a "qualified participant," as that term is defined in section 415(b)(2)(H) IRC.

c. No adjustment shall be required under this subsection if the benefit is payable due to the member's disability or preretirement death.

(3) If the benefit distribution commences after age sixty-five (65), the adjusted dollar limitation shall be the equivalent, determined in a manner consistent with the adjustments under section 415(b)(2)(E) IRC, of one hundred sixty thousand dollars ($160,000.00), as of January 1, 2002, adjusted annually pursuant to section 415(d) IRC, commencing at age sixty-five (65). For purposes of this adjustment, survivor benefits, that portion of a joint and survivor annuity which is the survivor benefit, and any other ancillary benefits shall not be taken into account.

(b) The maximum retirement benefit payable under this section to any member who has completed less than ten (10) years of credited service shall be the number determined under subsection (a) multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which shall be the number of years of service, and the denominator of which shall be ten (10).

(c) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the benefit payable to a member shall not be deemed to exceed the limits of this section if the total benefits payable to a member under all defined benefit plans maintained by the city do not exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) and the city has never maintained a defined contribution plan in which the member has participated.

(Ord. No. 2013-08, § 1, 5-21-13)

Editor's note

Ord. No. 2013-08, § 1, adopted May 21, 2013, amended the Code by repealing former § 16-53 which pertained to maximum pension and derived from Ord. No. 99-02, § 2, adopted May 4, 1999.