(3)Systems for Counties.(a) The contributory retirement system established in any county under the provisions of sections one to twenty-eight inclusive, or under corresponding provisions of earlier laws, shall be known and all of its business shall be transacted under a name which shall be designated by the board of such system and which shall include in its designation the name of such county.(b) Each such county system shall be managed by a retirement board which shall have the general powers and duties set forth in subdivision (5). Said board shall consist of five members as follows: the county treasurer, but if there is no county treasurer the director of finance, who shall be a member ex officio and serve as chairman; a second member appointed by the county commissioners; two members hereinafter referred to as the elected members; and one member of the county retirement board advisory council who shall be elected by a majority of those present and voting at a public meeting of said council, properly posted, called specifically for such election pursuant to paragraph (g). The election of the elected member shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (h). The elected member shall be an active or retired member of the county retirement system or one whose retirement is being reimbursed by that system in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (c) of subdivision (8) of section three. Each member of the board shall continue to serve in office until the expiration of his term, and the qualification of his successor. Upon the expiration of the term of office of any elected or appointed member, or in the event of a vacancy in either of said offices, his successor shall be elected as aforesaid for a term of three years, or for the unexpired portion thereof, as the case may be.
(c) The members of the board of any such county system shall serve without compensation, but they shall be reimbursed for any expense or loss of salary or wages which they may incur through service on such board from the expense fund of the system. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent any county treasurer from being compensated for services rendered in the active administration of the system, in his capacity as county treasurer but not as a member of the board, provided, that such compensation shall not exceed fifteen hundred dollars per annum. (d) The retirement board chairman shall employ such clerical and other assistants as may be required to transact the business of the county retirement system. All such clerical and other assistants, whether permanent or temporary employees, shall be removed from office only upon the two thirds vote of the county retirement board. The county retirement board shall classify and approve its employees in accordance with the general personnel guidelines and pay scales adopted for county personnel. All permanent employees employed pursuant to this paragraph shall be members of the county retirement system, but shall not be eligible to be a member or candidate for election to the county retirement board. (e) Any such county retirement board may employ an attorney from time to time as required, but such attorney shall not be a member in service of the system or a member of the retirement board. (f) The board of any such county system and the treasurer of the county in which it is established shall respectively be and act as the board and treasurer-custodian of such system with respect to the employees of any town or district who become members of such system as provided for in paragraph (3) (b), (3) (c) or (4) (b) of section twenty-eight, or who have become members thereof under corresponding provisions of earlier laws. The treasurer or other disbursing officer of any such town or district, as the case may be, shall act as a liaison officer between the employees thereof and the board of such system. (g) There shall be a county retirement board advisory council, in this subdivision called the council, consisting of all the treasurers, elected or appointed, of each town, unit or district belonging to the county retirement system and the county treasurer. A chairman shall be elected from among the members. The council shall meet at the call of the chairman, but in no event less than twice in each year. The council shall supervise and certify the procedures involved in the election of the elected member of the county retirement board, as provided in paragraphs (b) and (h). Upon certification by the county retirement board and the council, the actuary of the division of insurance shall be furnished with an estimate of the expenses and costs of administration of the system for the ensuing year. The actuary shall, on or before December fifteenth in each year, specify by written notice to the council and the board the amounts so required to be paid from the pension fund, the annuity reserve fund, the military service fund, and the administration fund, as provided in subdivision (7) of section twenty-two. The actuary shall also advise and determine the amounts to be allocated to each governmental unit for the aforementioned amounts. The county retirement board advisory council, at a meeting called specifically for that purpose, shall elect one of its members as a member of the county retirement board at the expiration of the current appointed member's term, as provided in paragraph (b).
(h) The election of the elected member shall be supervised by the county retirement board advisory council, which shall serve as the election board. The council shall make available nomination papers to any member in or retired from service so requesting and shall require that such nomination papers be signed by the candidate, and returned to the office of the county retirement board for safekeeping until the election board shall meet. The county treasurer or his agent shall give a duplicate receipt for such nomination papers to each candidate. Completed nomination papers shall contain the signatures and addresses of at least five active or retired members of said retirement system. The election board shall determine whether each candidate has filed nomination papers containing the signatures and addresses of at least five active or retired members of said system. If, after investigation, the election board determines that a candidate has filed nomination papers containing less than five signatures as required, the election board shall declare said nomination papers invalid and shall notify said candidate of such determination. If, after investigation, the election board determines that only one candidate has filed the requisite number of signatures, the election board shall declare said candidate to be the elected member of the county retirement board. If, after investigation, the election board determines that more than one candidate has obtained the requisite number of valid signatures, the election board shall notify said candidates of such determination and shall immediately prepare election ballots, and set the date for the election, which shall be held within forty days. The election board shall mail ballots to all members of the retirement system, whether active or retired. The election board shall instruct each member to place an appropriate marking on the face of the printed ballot next to the name of one candidate, insert said ballot into a ballot envelope and said ballot envelope into the prestamped envelope, seal said prestamped envelope and mail said envelope to the election board in care of the county retirement board, within twenty days after they were mailed. Any envelope postmarked later than twenty days after such mailing shall not be used to determine the elected member. The election board shall notify each candidate of the time and location of the tabulation of the ballots and shall permit all such candidates to be present at said tabulation. At the specified time for tabulation, the election board shall assemble all envelopes and inspect said envelopes. Any envelope which has been opened prior to said date, or which has not been signed on the rear by the appropriate addressee shall be invalidated and shall not be used to determine the elected member. The election board shall assemble all properly signed, unopened envelopes and shall open each envelope and separate the enclosed ballot from said envelope. The election board shall assemble all ballots and shall tabulate the vote for each candidate. Any ballot which contains a marking for more than the number of vacancies shall be declared invalid.
The election board shall notify each candidate in writing of the results of said election. All envelopes and ballots received by the election board, including those determined to be invalid, shall be preserved by the election board for two years. The costs incurred by the election board in administering the election shall be paid from the county retirement system administration fund.
(4)Systems for cities and towns.(a) The contributory retirement system established in any city or town under the provisions of sections one to twenty-eight, inclusive, or under corresponding provisions of earlier laws, shall be known and all of its business shall be transacted under a name which shall be designated by the board of such system and which shall include in its designation the name of such city or town, as the case may be.(b) Each such city or town system shall be managed by a retirement board which shall have the general powers and duties set forth in subdivision (5). Such board shall consist of five members and shall be chosen in the following manner, except as provided in paragraph (c), the city auditor or town accountant or other officer having similar powers and duties who shall be a member ex officio, a second member appointed by the board of selectmen in a town, the mayor in a city, the city manager in a city having a Plan D or Plan E form of government, a third and fourth member who shall be elected by the members in or retired from service of such system from among their number in such manner and for such term, not exceeding three years, as the mayor in a city or the board of selectmen in a town shall determine, and a fifth member who shall not be an employee, a retiree, or official of the governmental unit and shall be chosen by the other four for a term of three years. If the fifth member is not chosen by the other four members within thirty days after the expiration of the term of the fifth member, said member shall be appointed in a city by the mayor, subject to confirmation by the city council, or in a town by the board of selectmen. Future elections of the third and fourth members shall be held under the supervision of such retirement board and the term of the third and fourth member shall be so arranged as not to expire in the year of expiration of the term of the fifth member. (c) In any city or town exercising the local option contained in this subsection shall upon the recommendation of the city manager with the approval of the city council or the board of aldermen in a Plan D or Plan E city, or the mayor with the approval of the city council or the board of aldermen in any other city, or board of selectmen with the approval of town meeting in a town may adopt the following method for selection of the members of the retirement board. Such board shall consist of five members and shall be chosen as follows: The city manager in a Plan D or Plan E city, the mayor in any other city, the board of selectmen in a town shall appoint two members for a period of three years, a third and fourth member who shall be elected by the members in or retired from service of such system from among their number in such manner and for such term, not exceeding three years, as mayor in a city, or city manager in a Plan D or Plan E city, or town council or board of selectmen in a town shall determine. The fifth member shall be appointed by the public employee retirement administration commission after being nominated by the other four members provided, however, in the event said four members cannot agree on such nominee to submit to the commission within ten days, then each member shall within five days submit a list of three names of individuals ready and willing to serve, and the commission shall then appoint the fifth member from such list who shall be a resident of such community and who shall not be a current or former member of the retirement system under this chapter or an official of the governmental unit. Each member of the city or town retirement board provided for in paragraphs (b) and (c) shall continue to hold office until the expiration of his term and until the qualification of his successor. Upon the expiration of the term of office of any elected or appointed member or in case of a vacancy in either of said offices, his successor shall be elected or appointed as aforesaid for a three-year term or for the unexpired portion thereof, as the case may be, except that in no event shall the term of the third and fourth member expire in the same year as the term of the fifth member. The mayor of a city, the board of selectmen of a town under the manager of a municipality having a town council form of government shall notify in writing all heads of departments of such city or town of any such vacancy in said board to be filled by election, and a notice of such vacancy and election shall be posted in a conspicuous place in such city or town.
(d) The members of the board of any such city or town system shall serve without compensation, but they shall be reimbursed from the expense fund of such system for any expense or loss of salary or wages which they may incur through service on such board. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent any city auditor, town accountant or other officer having similar powers and duties, or any other person who serves in the active administration of the system in lieu of the city auditor, town accountant or other officer having similar powers and duties, from being compensated for services rendered in the active administration of the system; provided, that the compensation for such services shall be not less than two hundred nor more than fifteen hundred dollars per annum, and shall be payable from the expense fund of the system.(d 1/2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (d), in any city or town which accepts the provisions of this paragraph, nothing shall prevent the city auditor, town accountant or other officer having similar powers and duties or any other person who serves in the active administration of the system in lieu of the city auditor, town accountant or other officer having similar powers and duties being compensated for services rendered in the active administration of the system; provided, that the compensation for such services shall be not less than two hundred nor more than three thousand dollars per annum, and shall be payable from the expense fund of the system. (e) Each such board by majority vote shall elect one of its members to serve as chairman until the election of his successor and shall appoint a secretary who may be, but need not be, one of its members. The board shall employ such clerical and other assistants as may be required to transact the business of such system. (f) The city solicitor or town counsel, or other officer having similar powers and duties, shall be the legal adviser of such board, except in such cases as such board deems necessary, it may employ a private attorney whose fees shall be paid from the expense fund of such board. In case there is no town counsel in a town, such board may employ an attorney from time to time as required. (g) A city or town treasurer, may be compensated for services rendered as custodian of the funds of the retirement system; provided, that the compensation for such services shall be not more than fifteen hundred dollars per annum, and shall be payable from the expense fund of the system. (h) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (g), in any city or town which accepts the provisions of this paragraph, nothing shall prevent a city or town treasurer from being compensated for services rendered as custodian of the funds of the retirement system; provided, that the compensation for such services shall not be more than three thousand dollars per annum, and shall be payable from the expense fund of the system.(7)Retirement Board Member Training. During each full term of service retirement board members shall undertake 18 hours of training; provided, however, that not less than 3 hours of such training shall take place each year and not more than 9 hours may take place in any single year; provided, however, that nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit such retirement board members from undertaking more than 18 hours of training. A board member may petition the commission for a waiver of the restrictions pertaining to training hours per year due to extenuating circumstances, provided that the member completes the required 18 hours of training during their term. Such training shall consist of 9 hours sponsored by the commission, which shall include, at a minimum, the topics of fiduciary responsibility, ethical conduct and conflict of interest and 9 hours of training on topics prescribed by the commission provided by the Massachusetts Association of Contributory Retirement Systems or other local, state, regional and national organizations recognized by the commission as having expertise in retirement issues of importance to retirement board members or other entities, as the commission may determine.
The commission shall arrange for at least 18 sessions during each year for members to complete this requirement. In addition, the commission shall schedule additional sessions or otherwise make accommodations to ensure that members are afforded the maximum opportunity to complete this requirement.
The commission shall annually provide retirement boards with a statement of completion of education form on or before December 31. The board shall provide the forms to their members. The form shall set forth the training as required by this subdivision the member has undertaken during that year. Board members shall submit the completed form to the commission by January 31 of the year following. The commission shall annually provide the member with a summary of the member's status regarding the completion of this requirement by March 1.
Failure to successfully complete the requirements of this subdivision shall prohibit a board member from serving beyond the conclusion of the term in which the failure took place. If the non-complying member is an ex-officio member or a second member, of a board the appointing authority for the second member shall appoint a different individual to serve on the board; provided, however, that the replacement of an ex-officio member shall be an individual experienced in the field of finance or auditing; and provided further, that in a regional retirement system non-complying members shall be replaced in the same manner as is set forth for the selection of the members.
Each retirement board shall notify all board members and prospective board members of the requirement to complete education requirements at the time of receiving information about seeking election to a retirement board or prior to being appointed to a retirement board.
The commission shall annually notify board members of the requirement to complete continuing education.