§ 411.5 — Administration

Iowa § 411.5

• Jurisdiction: Iowa
• Title IX: LOCAL GOVERNMENT
• Ch. 411: RETIREMENT SYSTEM FOR POLICE OFFICERS AND FIRE FIGHTERS

Text

1. Board. The general responsibility for the establishment and proper operation of the
retirement system is vested in the board of trustees created by section 411.36. The system
shall be administered under the direction of the board.

2. Compensation. The trustees, other than the secretary, shall serve without
compensation, but they shall be reimbursed from the fire and police retirement fund for
all necessary expenses which they may incur through service on the board, as provided
pursuant to section 411.36.
3. Rules. Subject to the limitations of this chapter, the board of trustees shall adopt rules
fortheestablishmentandadministrationofthesystemandthefireandpoliceretirementfund
created by this chapter, and for the transaction of its business.
4. Organization — employees. The board of trustees shall elect from its membership a
chairperson, and shall, by majority vote of its members, appoint a secretary who may, but
need not, be one of its members. The system shall engage such actuarial and other services
as are required to transact the business of the retirement system. The compensation of all
persons engaged by the system and all other expenses of the board of trustees necessary for
the operation of the retirement system shall be paid at such rates and in such amounts as the
board of trustees approves.
5. Data. The system shall keep in convenient form such data as is necessary for
actuarial valuation of the fire and police retirement fund and for checking the experience
of the retirement system.
6. Records — reports.
a. The board of trustees shall keep a record of all its proceedings, which record shall
be open to public inspection. It shall submit an annual report to the governor, the general
assembly, and the city council of each participating city concerning the financial condition
of the retirement system, its current and future liabilities, and the actuarial valuation of the
system. The board of trustees shall submit a certified audit report prepared by a certified
public accountant to the auditor of state annually. The system shall comply with the filing fee
requirement of section 11.6, subsection 10.
b. (1) The system shall maintain records, including but not limited to names, addresses,
ages, and lengths of service, salaries and wages, contributions, designated beneficiaries,
benefit amounts, if applicable, and other information pertaining to members as necessary in
the administration of this chapter, as well as the names, addresses, and benefit amounts of
beneficiaries. For the purpose of obtaining these facts, the system shall have access to the
records of the participating cities and the cities shall provide such information upon request.
(2) The following records maintained under this chapter are not public records for the
purposes of chapter 22:
(a) Records containing social security numbers.
(b) Records specifying amounts accumulated in members’ accounts and supplemental
accounts.
(c) Records containing names or addresses of members or their beneficiaries.
(d) Records containing amounts of payments to members or their beneficiaries.
(e) Records containing financial or commercial information that relates to the investment
of retirement system funds if the disclosure of such information could result in a loss to the
retirement system or to the provider of the information.
(3) Summary information concerning the demographics of the members and general
statistical information concerning the system is subject to chapter 22, as well as aggregate
information by category.
c. Notwithstanding any provision of chapter 22 to the contrary, the system’s records
may be released to any political subdivision, instrumentality, or agency of the state solely
for use in a civil or criminal law enforcement activity pursuant to the requirements of this
paragraph. To obtain the records, the political subdivision, instrumentality, or agency of the
state shall, in writing, certify to the system that the activity is authorized by law, provide a
written description of the information desired, and describe the law enforcement activity for
which the information is sought. The system shall not be civilly or criminally liable for the
release of records in accordance with the requirements of this paragraph.
7. Legal advisor. The system may employ or retain an attorney to serve as the system’s
legal advisor and to represent the system. The costs of an attorney employed or retained by
the system shall be paid from the fire and police retirement fund created in section 411.8.
8. Medical board. The board of trustees shall designate a single medical provider

network as the medical board for the system. The medical board shall arrange for and pass
upon all medical examinations required under the provisions of chapter 400 and this chapter
and shall assist the system in all aspects of the comprehensive disability program described
in section 411.1A. For examinations required because of disability, a physician from the
medical board specializing in occupational medicine, and a second physician specializing
in an appropriate field of medicine as determined by the occupational medicine physician,
shall pass upon the medical examinations required for disability retirements and shall report
to the system in writing their conclusions and recommendations upon all matters referred to
the medical board. Each report of a medical examination under section 411.6, subsections 3
and 5, shall include the medical board’s findings in accordance with section 411.6 as to the
extent of the member’s physical impairment.
9. Duties of actuary.
a. The actuary shall be the technical advisor of the system on matters regarding the
operation of the fire and police retirement fund and shall perform such other duties as are
required in connection with the operation of the system.
b. The actuary shall make such investigation of anticipated interest earnings and of the
mortality, service, and compensation experience of the members of the system as the actuary
recommends, and on the basis of the investigation the system shall adopt such tables and
such rates as are required in subsection 11.
10. Actuarial investigation — tables — rates. At least once in each five-year period, the
actuary shall make an actuarial investigation into the mortality, service, and compensation
experience of the members and beneficiaries of the retirement system, and the interest and
other earnings on the moneys and other assets of the retirement system, and shall make a
valuation of the assets and liabilities of the fire and police retirement fund, and on the basis
of the results of the investigation and valuation, the system shall adopt for the retirement
system such actuarial methods and assumptions, interest rate, and mortality and other tables
as are deemed necessary to conduct the annual actuarial valuation of the system.
11. Annual actuarial valuation.
a. On the basis of the actuarial methods and assumptions, rate of interest and tables
adopted, the actuary shall make an annual valuation of the assets and liabilities of the fire
and police retirement fund created by this chapter. As a result of the annual actuarial
valuation, the system shall do all of the following:
(1) Certify the rates of contribution payable by the cities in accordance with section 411.8.
(2) Certify the rates of contributions payable by the members in accordance with section
411.8.
b. Effective with the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2008, the annual actuarial valuation
required to be conducted shall include information as required by section 97D.5.
12. Requirements related to the Internal Revenue Code.
a. As used in this subsection, unless the context otherwise requires, “Internal Revenue
Code” means the federal Internal Revenue Code as defined in section 422.3.
b. The fund established in section 411.8 shall be held in trust for the benefit of the
members of the system and the members’ beneficiaries. No part of the corpus or income of
the fund shall be used for, or diverted to, purposes other than for the exclusive benefit of
the members or the members’ beneficiaries or for expenses incurred in the operation of the
fund. A person shall not have any interest in, or right to, any part of the corpus or income of
the fund except as otherwise expressly provided.
c. Notwithstandinganyprovisionofthischaptertothecontrary, intheeventofacomplete
discontinuance of contributions, for reasons other than achieving fully funded status upon an
actuarially determined basis, or upon termination of the fund established in section 411.8, a
member shall be vested, to the extent then funded, in the benefits which the member has
accrued at the date of the discontinuance or termination.
d. Benefits payable from the fund established in section 411.8 to members and members’
beneficiaries shall not be increased due to forfeitures from other members. Forfeitures shall
be used as soon as possible to reduce future contributions by the cities to the fund, except
that the rate shall not be less than the minimum rate established in section 411.8.
e. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, all benefits under this

chapter shall commence no later than the required beginning date specified under section
401(a)(9) of the federal Internal Revenue Code and shall comply with the required minimum
distribution provisions of that section.
f. The maximum annual benefit payable to a member by the system shall be subject to the
limitations set forth in section 415 of the federal Internal Revenue Code, and any regulations
promulgated pursuant to that section.
g. The annual compensation of a member taken in account for any purpose under this
chapter shall not exceed the applicable amount set forth in section 401(a)(17) of the federal
Internal Revenue Code, and any regulations promulgated pursuant to that section.
13. Voluntary benefit programs. The board of trustees shall be responsible for the
administration of the voluntary benefit programs established under section 411.40. The
board may take any necessary action, including the adoption of rules, for purposes of
administering the programs.
14. Medical records. A physician or surgeon, physician assistant, advanced registered
nurse practitioner, or mental health professional who provides records to the system in
connection with the application by a member for disability retirement under this chapter
shall be entitled to charge a fee for production of the records. The fee for copies of any
records shall not exceed the reasonable cost of production.
15. Closed sessions. In addition to the reasons provided in section 21.5, subsection 1, the
board may hold a closed session pursuant to the requirements of section 21.5 of that portion
of a board meeting in which financial or commercial information is provided to or discussed
by the board if the board determines that disclosure of such information could result in a loss
to the retirement system or to the provider of the information.
16. Benefits and financing review. At least every two years, the board shall review the
benefits and finances provided under this chapter. The board shall make recommendations
to the general assembly concerning this review, which shall include recommendations
concerning the long-term financing and benefits policy of the system.

Legislative History

[C35, §6326-f5; C39, §6326.07; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §411.5; 82 Acts, ch 1261, §28, 29]