§784. Payment of benefits

A. The retirement system shall pay all benefits in accordance with a good faith interpretation of the requirements of Section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code as applicable to a governmental plan within the meaning of Section 414(d) of the Internal Revenue Code. The payment of benefits to or on behalf of a member shall commence not later than April first following the calendar year in which the member retires, or attains age seventy and one-half years, whichever is later.

B.(1) Unless the member has elected otherwise on or before December 31, 1983, the entire benefit of a member shall be distributed over a period not longer than the longest of the following periods:

(a) The member's life.

(b) The life of the member's designated beneficiary.

(c) The member's life expectancy.

(d) The joint life and last survivor life expectancy of the member and his designated beneficiary.

(2) If the member is married and his spouse survives him, the designated beneficiary for at least a qualified joint and survivor annuity and fifty percent of his Deferred Retirement Option Plan Account shall be his spouse, unless such spouse has consented to the contrary in writing before a notary public, or such spouse cannot be located and the member submits an original affidavit signed by him before a notary public and evidencing good faith efforts to locate the spouse. For purposes of this Paragraph, "spouse" shall mean that person who is married to the member under a legal regime of community of acquets and gains on his effective date of retirement or effective date of participation in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan, whichever is earlier.

(3) If the member was a member on or before December 31, 1983, he shall be deemed to have made the election referred to herein. If a member dies after the commencement of his benefits, the remaining portion of his benefit shall be distributed at least as rapidly as before his death. Payment of survivor benefits shall not be considered to violate this provision.

C.(1) If the member dies before his benefit has commenced, the remainder of such interest shall be distributed to the member's beneficiary within five years after the date of such member's death.

(2) Paragraph (1) of this Subsection shall not apply to any portion of a member's benefit which is payable to or for the benefit of a designated beneficiary or beneficiaries, over the life of or over the life expectancy of such beneficiary, so long as such distributions begin not later than December thirty-first of the calendar year immediately following the calendar year of the member's death, or, in the case of the member's surviving spouse, December thirty-first of the calendar year in which the member would have attained the age of seventy and one-half years. If the designated beneficiary is the member's surviving spouse and if the surviving spouse dies before the distribution of benefits commences, then Paragraph (1) of this Subsection shall be applied as if the surviving spouse were the member. If the designated beneficiary is a child of the member, for purposes of satisfying the requirement of Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, any amount paid to such child shall be treated as if paid to the member's surviving spouse if such amount would become payable to such surviving spouse, if alive, upon the child's reaching age eighteen or, if later, upon the child's completing a designated event. For purposes of the preceding sentence, a designated event shall be the later of the date the child no longer has a disability or the date the child ceases to be a full-time student, or attains age twenty-three, if earlier.

(3) Paragraph (1) shall not apply if the distribution of the member's interest has commenced and is for a term certain over a period permitted in Subsection B.

(4) Paragraph (1) shall not apply if the member has elected otherwise on or before December 31, 1983 (or such later date to which such election period shall be subject under Internal Revenue Code Section 401(a)).

D. As to any benefit payable by the retirement system which is not optional as of December 31, 1983, the member shall be considered to have made the election referred to in B and C above, if he were a member on or before such time.

E. If by operation of law or by action of the board of trustees a survivor benefit is payable to a specified person or persons, the member shall be considered to have designated such person as an alternate beneficiary hereunder. If there is more than one such person, then the youngest child with a disability shall be considered to have been so designated, or, if none, then the youngest person entitled to receive a survivor benefit shall be considered to have been so designated. The designation of a designated beneficiary hereunder shall not prevent payment to multiple beneficiaries but shall only establish the permitted period of payments.

F. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section or the provisions of the Treasury Regulations, any benefit option may continue so long as the option satisfies Section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code based on a reasonable and good faith interpretation of that section.

G. This Section shall be effective for members of the system who complete any service under the system on or after July 1, 1988, with employers contributing to the system.

Acts 1987, No. 591, §1; Acts 1989, No. 203, §1; Acts 1991, No. 356, §1, eff. July 1, 1991; Redesignated from R.S. 17:643 by Acts 1991, No. 74, §§3, 5, eff. June 25, 1991; Acts 1995, No. 586, §1, eff. July 1, 1995; Acts 2014, No. 727, §1, eff. July 1, 2014; Acts 2014, No. 811, §4, eff. June 23, 2014.

NOTE: Acts 2014, No. 811 changed terminology referring to persons with disabilities throughout the La. Revised Statutes and codes of law, and included a listing of terms that were deleted and their respective successor terms (See Acts 2014, No. 811, §36). The Act provides that it is not the intent of the legislature that changes in terminology effected therein alter or affect in any way the substance, interpretation, or application of any law or administrative rule; further provides that nothing in the Act shall be construed to expand or diminish any right of or benefit for any person provided by any law or administrative rule (See Acts 2014, No. 811, §35(C) and (D)).