(a) The board of supervisors in any county under the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 may provide, effective on a date determined by the board, for cost-of-living payments, in addition to those payable under Articles 16.5 and 16.6, to members of this system or a superseded system who retired and to their surviving beneficiaries who are receiving allowances under this system, provided the following conditions are met:
(1) On January 1 of the year of adoption or readoption of this section, the accumulations established by Section 31870, 31870.1, or 31870.2, as applicable, shall, for any member, equal or exceed 25 percent in order for that member to be eligible for such cost-of-living payment.
(2) The payments shall be made either quarterly or monthly to those members and survivors eligible for the first payment.
(3) The amount of each payment is equal to the product of a sum determined by the board of supervisors, but not to exceed fifteen dollars ($15) times the member’s full years of county service not exceeding 30 years.
(b) The payments made pursuant to this section and Section 31739.5 shall be made only during the lifetimes of the members or their survivors receiving allowances and to no other person.
(c) The payments made pursuant to this section and Section 31739.5 shall not be considered as a part of the monthly retirement allowance, optional death allowance, or annual death allowance, nor shall any such payments be construed as guaranteeing any similar payments in any subsequent year.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the payments to beneficiaries of members pursuant to Section 31760.1, 31765.1, 31781.1, or 31785 or to beneficiaries who elected a combined benefit pursuant to Section 31781.3 shall be 60 percent of the payments which otherwise would have been payable under subdivision (a) to the members.
(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the payments to beneficiaries of members who elected optional settlement 3 pursuant to Section 31763 shall be 50 percent of the payments which otherwise would have been payable under subdivision (a) to the member.
(f) This section shall not be operative in any county in any year, unless it is adopted or readopted in any year by the board of supervisors. Any such adoption or readoption in any particular year shall not be construed to require any adoption or readoption in any subsequent year.
Before adoption by the board of supervisors in any year, the cost of the payments authorized by this section and Section 31739.5 shall be determined by a qualified actuary and the board of supervisors shall, with advice of the actuary, provide for the payment of such cost in such manner as to fully fund the benefits on a sound actuarial basis, including use of available funds in the reserves provided in Section 31592.2 with the approval of the retirement board, or an increase in the employer rates of contributions, or a combination of these sources of payments. This actuarial determination shall be made only upon authorization by the board of supervisors.
Upon adoption by any county providing benefits pursuant to this section, of Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 31510) of this chapter, the board of retirement shall, instead, pay those benefits from the Supplemental Retiree Benefits Reserve established pursuant to Section 31510.8.
(Amended by Stats. 1988, Ch. 76, Sec. 1.)