(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), the court shall make whatever orders are necessary or appropriate to ensure that each party receives the party’s full community property share in any retirement plan, whether public or private, including all survivor and death benefits, including, but not limited to, any of the following:

(1) Order the disposition of retirement benefits payable upon or after the death of either party in a manner consistent with Section 2550.

(2) Order a party to elect a survivor benefit annuity or other similar election for the benefit of the other party, as specified by the court, when a retirement plan provides for that election, provided that no court shall order a retirement plan to provide increased benefits determined on the basis of actuarial value.

(3) Upon the agreement of the nonemployee spouse, order the division of accumulated community property contributions and service credit as provided in the following or similar enactments:

(A) Article 2 (commencing with Section 21290) of Chapter 9 of Part 3 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

(B) Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 22650) of Part 13 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code.

(C) Article 8.4 (commencing with Section 31685) of Chapter 3 of Part 3 of Division 4 of Title 3 of the Government Code.

(D) Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 75050) of Chapter 11 of Title 8 of the Government Code.

(E) Chapter 15 (commencing with Section 27400) of Part 14 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code.

(4) Order a retirement plan to make payments directly to a nonmember party of the nonmember party’s community property interest in retirement benefits.

(b) A court shall not make an order that requires a retirement plan to do either of the following:

(1) Make payments in a manner that will result in an increase in the amount of benefits provided by the plan.

(2) Make the payment of benefits to a party at any time before the member retires, except as provided in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a), unless the plan so provides.

(c) This section shall not be applied retroactively to payments made by a retirement plan to a person who retired or died prior to January 1, 1987, or to payments made to a person who retired or died prior to June 1, 1988, for plans subject to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a).

(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 115, Sec. 22. (AB 1817) Effective January 1, 2020.)