Public employee benefits: local appointed and elected officials.

Existing law authorizes the creation of retirement systems for public employees by counties, cities, and districts. Existing law creates the Public Employees' Retirement System and the State Teachers' Retirement System, which provide a defined benefit to their members based on age at retirement, service credit, and final compensation. Existing law establishes the criteria for membership in the various public employee retirement systems and may exclude certain employment classifications from membership. The California Constitution provides for the division of the state into counties and requires that a county have an elected sheriff, elected district attorney, elected assessor, and elected governing body. Existing law provides for the incorporation of cities in various forms and requires that certain city offices be filled pursuant to elections, as prescribed. Existing law provides for the creation of districts, the governing bodies of which may be elected. This bill would prohibit a person who is appointed or publicly elected to a local office of any kind that is less than full time, as defined, on and after January 1, 2013, from becoming a member of a retirement system by virtue of that service or acquiring any retirement right or benefit for serving in that elective office. The bill would except from this prohibition a person who obtained membership by virtue of holding an appointive or elective local public office prior to January 1, 2013, and remains in that office or is reappointed or reelected to it. The Public Employees' Medical and Hospital Care Act (PEMHCA) provides that an employee or annuitant is eligible to enroll in an approved health benefit plan, as specified. PEMHCA authorizes a contracting agency, as specified, to elect to become subject to the act, along with the agency's employees and annuitants. PEMHCA authorizes a contracting agency to provide benefits to part-time permanent or regular employees who have an appointment of 6 months or longer. The bill would prohibit a contracting agency to provide any benefits under PEMHCA to any person who is first appointed or publicly elected to a local office of any kind that is not full time, on and after January 1, 2013. The bill would also prohibit the legislative body of a public or municipal corporation or district from providing specified benefits to a person who is first appointed or publicly elected to a local office of any kind that is not full time, on and after January 1, 2013, including retirement benefits, health insurance, allowances for a car or home office, and professional or other membership dues.