Article IV. SPECIAL ACTS 1949, ACT NO. 423—PENSIONS FOR EMPLOYEES OF BOROUGH  

An act concerning pensions for employees of the Borough of Naugatuck.

Section 1. Definitions. As used in this act, the following terms, unless a different interpretation is plainly required by the context, shall be defined as follows: "Retirement system" shall mean the plan for retirement of borough employees as established by this act; "retirement board" and "board" shall mean the board herein created for the administration of the retirement system; "pension" shall mean a payment made to an employee, other than a return of contributions; "retirement fund" shall mean the fund derived from contributions made as herein provided for the payment of pensions; "fiscal year" shall mean the twelve months from April first of any year to March thirty-first of the following year; "pay" shall mean the salary or wages, exclusive of expenses allowed, of an employee for services rendered to the borough. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 1; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 2. Retirement board. There shall be a retirement system for the employees of the Borough of Naugatuck, the management of which shall be vested in the board of mayor and burgesses. The board shall employ such medical, clerical and other services as may be necessary for the proper operation of the retirement system. The board shall render, on April first of each year, a statement of the pension funds in its possession and of the cost of administration of this act. The board shall be the trustee of the retirement fund and shall have full control and management thereof, with power to invest the same in accordance with the laws governing the investment of trust funds. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 2; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 3. Employees to whom this act applies. The terms of this act shall apply to all full-time employees of the Borough of Naugatuck, but not to officers of the borough elected by popular vote, not to employees covered by the state teachers' retirement system except as hereinafter indicated. Each eligible employee in the service of the borough September 1, 1949, shall be required to participate in the retirement system unless, within three months following, he shall notify the retirement board in writing of his intention not to do so. Following such written notice, the employee shall not thereafter be admitted to the retirement system unless he shall make a new application to participate within on[e] year after September 1, 1949, and such employee shall then be admitted only with the unanimous consent of the board after a prescribed physical and medical examination and upon payment of an amount equal to the contributions he would have been required to make from September 1, 1949. All employees who shall enter the service of the borough at any time after September 1, 1949, shall, within six months after beginning such service, apply for the right to participate in the retirement system and, provided such employee shall pass a prescribed physical and medical examination, he shall be granted such right. Failure of any such new employee to apply within six months shall not be a condition of his continued employment, but he shall thereafter be deprived of the right to participate in the retirement system. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 3; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 4. Contributions by the borough. The Borough of Naugatuck shall be liable for such amount, or amounts, on account of future pensions representing services of employees rendered prior to the inception of the retirement system as may be determined by the retirement board. The borough shall also pay to the retirement board such amounts determined by it as necessary, in addition to the contributions of its employees to provide future pensions on account of services rendered by employees subsequent to the date upon which each shall begin participation in the retirement system. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 4; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 5. [Employee contributions]. The rate of contribution to be made by each employee participating in said retirement system shall be one and one-half per cent on the first forty-two hundred dollars of his pay and four per cent on the excess over forty-two hundred dollars, if any, except that the rate of contribution to be made by each policeman and fireman shall be four per cent of his pay. Contributions shall be collected as deductions from pay and transmitted immediately to the retirement fund. In the event of withdrawal of the employees from the retirement system, the board shall pay to him an amount equal to his contributions under this section plus regular interest thereon compounded annually. In no event shall an employee have a vested interest in any funds of the retirement system other than in an amount equal to his own contributions plus regular interest thereon. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 5; Special Laws 1957, Act No. 624, § 1; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 6. Qualifications for retirement. Any member of the retirement system who has completed fifteen years of continuous service as an employee of the Borough of Naugatuck and has attained the age of sixty-five years shall be eligible for retirement for super-annuation under the provisions of this act. Any such eligible member may retire from service by filing with the retirement board a written application duly attested, setting forth at what time he desires to retire. All members of the retirement system eligible for retirement who shall have attained the age of seventy in the case of men, or age sixty-eight in the case of women, shall be retired on the day following attainment of such age. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 6; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 7. Retirement for disability. Any member of the retirement system shall be eligible for retirement and for a retirement pension who has completed ten years of continuous service if he becomes permanently and totally disabled from engaging in any gainful employment in the service of the borough. If such disability is shown to the satisfaction of the retirement board to have arisen out of the and in the course of his employment, as defined by the workmen's compensation act, he shall be eligible for retirement irrespective of the duration of his employment. Such retirement pension shall continue during the period of such disability. In order to obtain retirement pension under this section a member shall apply in writing for such pension within six months after incurring the disability, and the allowance shall be made retroactive to the date at which the pay of the disabled employee ceased. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 7; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 8. Continuity of service. Continuous service, for the purposes of this act, shall mean uninterrupted employment; but absence from employment for any reason, followed by reinstatement within one year thereafter, shall not be considered as breaking the continuity of the service. Reinstatement of an employee in the retirement system shall be conditioned upon such medical examination as the board may prescribe and upon payment to the retirement fund of contributions previously withdrawn. In computing years of service to determine eligibility for retirement, no year shall be included in which the employee hasn't been in actual service for at least nine months. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 8; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 9. [Monthly retirement pension.] After retirement, in accordance with the provisions of this act, each member, except a policeman, fireman and teacher shall receive, during lifetime, a retirement pension payable monthly at an annual rate amounting to five-sixth of one per cent of the first forty-two hundred dollars of his average pay for the seven years immediately preceding retirement plus one and two-thirds per cent of such average pay in excess of forty-two hundred dollars, if any, multiplied by the number of years of service. Each policeman and fireman shall receive, during lifetime, a retirement pension payable monthly at an annual rate amounting to one and two-thirds per cent of his average pay for the seven years immediately preceding retirement, multiplied by the number of years of service. The pension for permanent total disability arising out of and in the course of employment as defined in the workmen's compensation act, shall not be less than one-half of the member's annual pay at the time his disability was incurred. Any amount or amounts paid under the workmen's compensation act shall be deducted from such pension. In the event that a member, except fireman, policeman or teacher, retires under section 7 of number 423, of the Special Acts of 1949, before benefits under the Federal Social Security Act are available to him on account of age, the benefit of such member shall be computed at the rate of one and two-thirds per cent of his average annual pay up to forty-two hundred dollars until such time as he shall commence to receive social security payments. In the event that the primary social security for which any member participating in this system, excepting therefrom policemen, firemen and teachers, is eligible shall hereafter be increased, there shall be deducted from any pension payable to such member one-half of such increase. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 9; Special Laws, 1957, Act No. 624, § 2; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 10. [Reserved.]

Editor's note— Repealed by Special Laws 1965, Act No. 300. Section 10 provided:

Section 10. Suspension of retirement pension. If a member shall be retired under this act, he may not thereafter accept employment of any kind without the approval of the retirement board. This section shall not apply to members retiring for disability. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 10)

Section 11. Optional form of retirement pension. Any member may elect to receive a reduced retirement pension with the provision that such reduced retirement pension, minus ten per cent shall be continued after his death to his spouse named in such election so long as his surviving spouse lives. The member's retirement pension under this section shall not exceed fifty per cent of his average annual pay during the three years immediately preceding his retirement. A member shall file written notice of his election of this option with the board at least three years before he becomes eligible for retirement. No surviving spouse shall be entitled to the benefits of this section unless he or she shall have been married at least five years. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 11; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 12. Accidental death. If it shall be shown to the satisfaction of the retirement board that a member sustained bodily injuries effected directly and independently of all other causes through external, violent and accidental means, while engaged in essential duties pertaining to his employment by the Borough of Naugatuck, and that such injuries, independently and exclusively of all other causes, and within six months from the date of the accident, caused the death of such member, the widow or widower of such member shall be entitled to an annuity of seven hundred and fifty dollars, payment in monthly payments, during his or her legal status as such, for a period not to exceed ten years, the first payment to become due one month subsequent to the discontinuance of any payments for which the borough may be liable under the workmen's compensation act. In the event that no widow or widower shall survive, or in the case of the death of any such widow prior to his or her receipt of such annuity payments, the children of the deceased member if any there be shall be entitled to the annuity share and share alike provided no payment shall be made to any child after his attainment of eighteen years. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 12; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 13. [Teachers.] All full time teachers regardless of membership in the state teachers' retirement system if they comply with the requirements for membership hereinabove set forth shall be entitled to a limited participation in the retirement system. The rate of contribution to the retirement fund by each teacher shall be two percent of his pay which shall be deducted from his salary and transmitted to the retirement fund immediately. All teacher members of the retirement system as they hereinafter become eligible for retirement or for the benefits under section 12 shall in no instance be paid more than fifty per cent of the amounts paid to policemen and firemen, participating in this retirement system. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 6 of this act, any teacher member of the retirement system may elect to defer retirement under this act until attainment of the age of seventy, provided, if retirement would under the provisions of said section be otherwise mandatory at an earlier age, such teacher shall not be required to contribute to the retirement fund for employment beyond such earlier age nor shall further benefits accrue to such teacher under the provisions of this act for such extended employment. Upon written application, full-time teacher members of the retirement system with 15 years of continuous service with the borough may retire at a minimum retirement age of 55 with a reduced pension, to be determined actuarially, at no increased cost to the borough. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 13; Special Laws 1957, Act No. 624, ;s ; 3; Special Laws 1965, Act No. 299; Referendum of 5-5-1969; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 14. Police and fire departments. All members of the police and fire department now in the service of the borough as full-time employees are eligible for membership in the retirement system created by this act, provided they shall waive their rights under their present pension plans. The funds of any member of the firemen's pension plan who elects to join the retirement system shall be transferred immediately into the fund created by this act. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 14; Amd. of 11-8-94)

Section 15. Exemptions. The right of any person to a pension or to the return of contributions, any benefit or right accrued or accruing to any person under the provisions of this act and the cash and securities held hereunder shall be exempt from levy and sale garnishment, attachment or any other process, and shall be nonassignable. (Special Laws 1949, Act No. 423, § 15; Amd. of 11-8-94)