(a) The monthly allowance provided by Sections 21629 and 21630 shall be paid on account of retired school members who did not at retirement elect the optional settlement in Section 21456, 21457, 21459, 21475, 21475.5, 21476, 21476.5, or 21477 or an optional settlement involving life contingency in Section 21458.
(b) Upon receipt of a written application for benefits at the office of the board, the benefits provided by this section shall be payable to eligible survivors of retired school members who are not receiving a monthly allowance on account of miscellaneous service as a state member.
(c) When there are no records in the board’s possession that contain necessary data for determining the retirement benefit claimed, the applicant or applicants for the benefit shall be required to establish entitlement to the benefit upon evidence satisfactory to the board. That data, at a minimum, shall be sufficient to establish the date of the retired member’s death and the amount of the retired member’s monthly allowance payable at the time of his or her death. The net benefit payable to the retired school member at the date of death may be determined by the board on the basis of the evidence submitted or upon other evidence if that evidence allows the board to determine the unmodified allowance payable on the date of death. The board shall use available evidence, whether from information provided by the applicant, partial records in possession of the board, or from other sources, as the basis for assumptions that are necessary in order to calculate the allowance payable to the eligible survivor or survivors.
(d) The benefits provided by this section shall be subject to the same eligibility and termination provisions that apply to members at their retirement and shall be paid commencing on the first day of the month succeeding the month in which the application for the benefits of this section is received by the board.
(e) The board has no duty to identify, locate, or notify any survivor of a retired school member who may potentially be eligible for the benefits of this section. The board has no duty to provide the name or address of any potential survivor to any person, agency, or entity for the purpose of notifying survivors who may potentially be eligible for the benefits of this section.
(f) The cost of the additional benefits provided pursuant to the trial court decision in California State Employees Association, et al. v. Board of Administration of the Public Employees’ Retirement System et al. (Sacramento County Superior Court, Case No. 332315) shall be paid out of the reserve against deficiencies established by Section 20174.
(Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 199, Sec. 36. (AB 2404) Effective January 1, 2017.)