Public employees: annuities and mutual fund custodial accounts.

Existing law prohibits state and local agencies from negotiating life and disability insurance or requiring the placing of that insurance through particular agents, brokers, or companies, except to the extent that the state has a direct financial interest in the subject of the insurance, as specified. Existing law excepts from these provisions a tax-sheltered annuity under an annuity plan that meets the requirements of Section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code to be placed or purchased for an employee, as specified. Existing law requires an annuity contract and custodial account as described in Section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code to be offered to all employees of any state agency who are members of the State Teachers' Retirement Plan, any employee of a local public agency or political subdivision of the state that employs persons to perform creditable service subject to coverage by the plan, and eligible state employees of a state employer under the uniform state payroll system, excluding the California State University System. The Teachers' Retirement Law provides a registration process for information relating to tax-deferred retirement investment products. This bill, until January 1, 2018, would authorize a pilot project that would allow the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles Community College District to select specific 403(b) products offered by 4 or more vendors of tax-deferred retirement investment products described in Section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code or establish a list of preferred vendors that are recommended to employees, through a due diligence and competitive review process, as specified. The bill would make a related statement of legislative intent.