Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers Registered and Unregistered Pension Plans, Alta. Reg. 196/2001
| Citation: | Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers Registered and Unregistered Pension Plans, Alta. Reg. 196/2001 | |
| Enabling Statutes: | 3 Statutes | |
| URL: | http://www.canlii.org/ab/laws/regu/2001r.196/20050927/whole.html | |
| Version downloaded by CanLII on 2005-09-27 | ||
Warning: This document predates the last update of the collection. It might have been modified or omitted since this last update.
(Consolidated up to 118/2005)
ALBERTA
REGULATION 196/2001
Provincial
Court Act
Court of Queen’s Bench Act
Interpretation Act
PROVINCIAL
JUDGES AND MASTERS IN CHAMBERS
REGISTERED AND UNREGISTERED PENSION PLANS
Table
of Contents
Preamble
General Provisions
1 Division of Regulation
2 Interpretation
3 Transfer of assets held under temporary arrangements
4 Prevalence over repealed Regulations
5 Collection and disclosure of information
Schedule 1
Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers
(Registered) Pension Plan
1 Interpretation of Schedule 1
2 The
Plan
Part 1
Administration
3 Administration of the Plan
4 Fiscal year
5 Report
to the Legislative Assembly
Part 2
Participation
6 The
participants
Part 3
Funding
7 Registered pension plan fund
8 Actuarial valuation report
9 Fiduciary relationship and use of surplus
10 Contributions and accretion
11 Participant contributions
12 Government
contributions
Part 4
Pensionable Service
13 Computation
of pensionable service
Part 5
Benefits
14 Interpretation and application of Subdivisions A
15 Interpretation and application of Subdivisions B
16 Limitation of benefits where obtainable under
Subdivisions A and B
17 Vesting
based on all service
Division 1
Retirement Benefits
Subdivision A
For Service Before 1992
18 Limitation of benefits to meet tax rules
19 Normal pension based on age and service
20 Pension partner protection
21 Alternative forms of pension
22 Disability pensions
23 Disability pension adjustments
24 Postponement of pension
25 Failure
to select pension
Subdivision B
For Service After 1991
26 Tax rule limitations on benefits
27 Normal pension based on age and service
28 Pension partner protection
29 Alternative forms of pension
30 Pension on early retirement
31 Disability pensions
32 Disability pension adjustments
33 Postponement of pension
34 Failure
to select pension
Division 2
Death Benefits
35 Application
of Division
Subdivision A
For Service Before 1992
36 Pension partner’s benefit on death
before pension commencement
37 Benefits
to other beneficiaries
Subdivision B
For Service After 1991
38 Pension partner’s benefit on death
before pension commencement
39 Benefits
to other beneficiaries
Division 3
Benefits on Termination
Before Pension Eligibility
Subdivision A
For Service Before 1992
40 Vested
participants under 55
Subdivision B
For Service After 1991
41 Vested participants under 55
42 Non-vested
participants
Division 4
Miscellaneous Provisions on Benefits
43 Cost-of-living increases
44 Interest allowance
45 Pension commencement
46 Commencement of guaranteed term of years
47 Suspension of pension on employment
48 Suspension of pension on reappointment
49 Beneficiaries
50 Method of payment of pensions
51 Idem – conversion following death
52 Continuation
of existing pensions and pension rights
Part 6
Miscellaneous
53 Interest chargeable
54 Advance against pension
55 Actuarial formulas
56 Exercise of benefit choice
57 Prohibition against assignment, etc.
58 Matrimonial property orders
59 Liability of benefits to legal process
60 Liability of Government and prohibition against
extra‑legislative benefits or remedies
61 Rights and obligations under former Regulation
62 Overpayments and deficiencies
63 Return of money
64 Retentions for debt
65 Requirement of evidence
66 Appeals
67 Termination of the Plan, and surplus on wind‑up
68 Transitional – interest rates - 1998
69 Transitional – actuarial tables
70 Transitional
– pre‑April 1, 1998 service purchases
71.1 Transitional – election for certain judges
71.2 Transitional – interest relief for non‑electing judges
Subschedule
Forms
Schedule 2
Provincial Judges and Masters in
Chambers (Unregistered) Pension Plan
1 Interpretation of Schedule 2
2 Establishment
of the Plan
Part 1
Administration
3 Administration of the Plan
4 Fiscal year
5 Report
to the Legislative Assembly
Part 2
Participation
6 The
participants
Part 3
Funding
7 RCA fund
8 Actuarial valuation report
9 Payment of benefits and costs
10 Contributions and RCA taxes
11 Participant contributions
12 Government
contributions
Part 4
Pensionable Service
13 Computation
of pensionable service
Part 5
Benefits
15 Interpretation and application of Part 5
16 Limitation of benefits
16.1 Linking of benefit choices to those made under Registered Plan
17.1 Reduction
for Registered Plan benefits
Division 1
Retirement Benefits
27 Amount and form of pension
28 Spousal protection
29 Alternative forms of pension
31 Disability pensions
32 Disability pension adjustments
33 Postponement of pension
34 Failure
to select pension
Division 2
Death Benefits
35 Application of Division
36 Pension partner’s benefit for pre-1992
service
37 Benefits to other beneficiaries for
pre-1992 service
38 Pension partner’s benefit on death
before pension commencement
39 Benefits
to other beneficiaries
Division 3
Benefits on Termination
Before Pension Eligibility
41 Vested participants under 55
42 Non‑vested
participants
Division 4
Miscellaneous Provisions on Benefits
43 Cost-of-living increases
44 Interest allowance
45 Pension commencement
46 Commencement of guaranteed term of years
47 Suspension of pension on employment
48 Suspension of pension on reappointment
49 Beneficiaries
50 Method of payment of pensions
51 Idem
– conversion following death
Part 6
Miscellaneous
53 Interest chargeable
54 Advance against pension
55 Actuarial formulas
56 Exercise of benefit choice
57 Prohibition against assignment, etc.
58 Matrimonial property orders
59 Liability of benefits to legal process
60 Liability of Government and prohibition
against extra‑legislative benefits or remedies
62 Overpayments and deficiencies
63 Return of money
64 Retentions for debt
65 Requirement of evidence
66 Appeals
67 Termination of the Plan, and surplus on wind‑up
68 Transitional – interest
rates – 1998
71.1 Transitional – election for certain
judges
71.2 Transitional – interest relief for non‑electing
judges
72 Recalculation of past benefits
73 Forms
Preamble
WHEREAS the Supreme
Court of Canada recently decided certain questions on the subject‑matters
of benefits payable to provincial judges and judicial independence; and
WHEREAS
the 1998 and 2000 Judicial Compensation Commissions have made recommendations
respecting those benefits, including specifically pensions and other retirement
benefits, and also those for masters in chambers; and
WHEREAS
it is the intent of this Regulation generally to put into effect those
recommendations, so far as they relate to pensions and other retirement
benefits, and to bring the legislation into line with current income tax rules (so far as applicable) and,
as to structure and draftsmanship, other public sector pension legislation;
THEREFORE the Lieutenant Governor in Council enacts as
follows:
General
Provisions
Division
of Regulation
1 Apart from the
Preamble and sections 1 to 7, this Regulation is divided into
(a) Schedule 1, containing the Provincial Judges
and Masters in Chambers (Registered) Pension Plan continued by that Schedule,
and related provisions, and
(b) Schedule 2, containing the Provincial Judges
and Masters in Chambers (Unregistered) Pension Plan established by that
Schedule, and related provisions.
Interpretation
2 Expressions that
are used in sections 1 to 7 and defined in Schedules 1 and 2 have the corresponding
appropriate meanings given by those Schedules collectively.
Transfer of assets held under temporary arrangements
3 The Minister of
Finance shall, as soon as practicable, transfer all the assets held in the
Consolidated Cash Investment Trust Fund account under section 7 of the Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers
(Temporary Pension Arrangements) Regulation, 1998 (AR 177/98),
(a) to the extent that they consist of or derive
from contributions which, by virtue of Schedule 1, were liable to be made to
the pension plan continued by Schedule 1, to the pension fund continued by
section 7(1) of Schedule 1, and
(b) to the extent that they consist of or derive
from contributions which, by virtue of Schedule 2, were liable to be made to
the plan established by Schedule 2, to the fund established by section 7(1) of
Schedule 2,
and, notwithstanding the repeal of
that Regulation by section 6(2),
that account is to continue in force, so far as necessary but without any
further addition of contributions, until that transfer is made.
Prevalence over repealed Regulations
4 Notwithstanding
anything in section 35 of the Interpretation
Act, to the extent that this Regulation and the Regulations repealed by
section 6(1) and (2) are inconsistent with reference to anything occurring
before the making of this Regulation, this Regulation prevails over those
repealed ones.
AR
196/2001 s4;251/2001
Collection
and disclosure of information
5(1) In this
section, “judicial service information” means personal information within the
meaning of the Freedom of Information and
Protection of Privacy Act that
(a) relates to pensions and other benefits or to
participants’ and former participants’ service, and
(b) has a reasonable and direct connection to
the administration of pensions and other benefits.
(2) The Minister is
authorized to collect judicial service information from, and to disclose it to,
(a) the specific participant or former
participant to whom the information relates,
(b) an appeal board established under Schedule 1
or 2, where the information relates to the appellant or respondent, and
(c) the Minister of Justice and Attorney
General.
(3) The Minister of Justice
and Attorney General is authorized to collect judicial service information
from, and to disclose it to,
(a) a person or board referred to in subsection
(2)(a) or (b), and
(b) the Minister.
(4) The Minister may
require the Minister of Justice and Attorney General to provide to the
Minister, within the time specified by the Minister, information that is
required by the Minister to enable him
or her to fulfill his or her functions under this Regulation.
6, 7 Repealed
AR 118/2005 s2.
Schedule 1
Provincial Judges and Masters in
Chambers (Registered) Pension Plan
Interpretation
of Schedule 1
1 In
this Schedule,
(a) “actuarial equivalent” means the equivalent
in actuarial present value, calculated in accordance with demographic and
economic factors that are recommended by an actuary and approved by the
Minister;
(b) “actuary” means a Fellow of the Canadian
Institute of Actuaries;
(c) “benefit” means a retirement benefit, a
death benefit or a benefit on termination before pension eligibility, under
Part 5;
(d) “capped salary” means salary that is or was
compensation within the meaning of the tax rules, subject however to such
limitation as is or was necessary to ensure that the benefit accrual under the
tax rules for the taxation year does not or did not exceed the defined benefit
limit fixed by the tax rules for that year;
(e) “contributions” means contributions under
the Plan;
(f) “former Regulation” means the Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers
Pension Plan Regulation (AR 265/88) (repealed);
(g) “judge” means
(i) a judge of the Provincial Court appointed
under the Provincial Court Act and
includes a Chief Judge, Deputy Chief Judge and an Assistant Chief Judge, or
(ii) a master,
but
does not include a supernumerary judge of the Provincial Court or a part‑time
master;
(h) “judicial service” means periods of judicial
service as, or otherwise occupying the position of, a judge;
(i) “latest pension accrual date” means the last
date as of which the tax rules allow a participant to accrue pensionable
service;
(j) “leave without salary” means a period during
which a participant is or was, with due authorization, on leave from his or her
regular duties as a judge and is receiving no remuneration or remuneration that
is less than his or her regular remuneration, and includes any period
recognized as leave without pay under the former Regulation, but does not
include a period during which he or she is or was on LTDI;
(k) “master” means a master in chambers
appointed under the Court of Queen's
Bench Act;
(l) “matrimonial property order” means a
matrimonial property order within the meaning of the Matrimonial Property Act, or a similar order enforceable in
Alberta of a court outside Alberta, that affects the payment or distribution of
a person’s benefits;
(m) “maximum benefit accrual date” means, in
respect of a participant, the date on which the 70% benefit accrual percentage
referred to in section 11(3)(a) is reached;
(n) “Minister” means the member of the Executive
Council responsible for the administration of the Management Employees Pension
Plan;
(o) “on LTDI” means, in relation to a judge or
former judge, in receipt of money provided to a participant under and within
the meaning of the Long Term Disability Income Continuance Plan established by
Schedule 2 to the Provincial Court Judges
and Masters in Chambers Compensation Regulation (AR 176/98), and includes
his or her being in receipt of benefits under the Government’s Long Term
Disability Income Continuance Plan for management employees before the first‑mentioned
Plan came into effect;
(p) “participant” means a person who is a
participant of the Plan by virtue of section 6;
(q) “participant current service contributions”
means a participant’s contributions under section 11(1);
(r) “pension” means a pension under the Plan,
and “pensioner” means a person in receipt of such a pension and includes a
prospective pensioner;
(r.1) “pension
partner” means
(i) a person who, at the relevant time, was married to a participant
or former participant and
(A) was not judicially or otherwise separated
from him or her, or
(B) if so separated, was wholly or substantially
dependent on him or her,
(ii) if there is no person to whom subclause (i) applies, a person
who, as at and up to the relevant time, had lived with the participant or
former participant in a conjugal relationship
(A) for a continuous period of at least 3 years,
or
(B) of some permanence, if there is a child of
the relationship by birth or adoption,
and was, during
that period or that relationship, as the case may be, held out by the
participant or former participant in the community in which they lived as being
in that conjugal relationship, or
(iii) if there is no person to whom subclause (i) or (ii) applies, a
person who was married to but separated from the participant or former
participant and not wholly or substantially dependent on him or her at the
relevant time;
(s) “pension commencement” means the time
established by section 45 that constitutes the effective date for the
commencement of the relevant pension;
(t) “pensionable service” means any period to be
taken into account as pensionable service under section 13;
(u) “plan fund” means the pension fund continued
by section 7(1);
(v) “registered” means registered or accepted
for registration under the Income Tax Act
(Canada);
(w) “salary” means,
(i) subject to subclause (ii), a judge’s annual
salary under the Provincial Court Judges
and Masters in Chambers Compensation Regulation (AR 176/98) or any
predecessor of that Regulation, or both, as the case may be, or
(ii) in the case of a person who is or was on
LTDI or on leave without salary, the amount that would have been the annual
salary under subclause (i) had that person remained in active judicial service
in the capacity in which he or she served immediately before becoming disabled
or going on leave without salary, as the case may be,
but,
in respect of any period after a participant has reached the latest pension
accrual date, means $0;
(x) “service” means any period that is judicial
service or pensionable service or both;
(y) repealed AR 97/2002 s4;
(z) “tax rules” means those provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada) or of the
regulations under it, or of both, that apply to pension plans registered or to
be registered under that Act and includes any approval, certification or other
permission or any direction or order from the federal Minister of National
Revenue the absence of which or failure to comply with which may make the
Plan’s registration liable to revocation under that Act;
(aa) “termination” means a person’s ceasing to be
a participant under any circumstances other than death;
(bb) “the Plan” or “this Plan” means the pension
plan continued by section 2(1) as the Provincial Judges and Masters in Chambers
(Registered) Pension Plan;
(cc) “vested” means, in relation to a participant
or former participant, having accumulated at least 5 years’ pensionable service
or terminating or having terminated on or after reaching the latest pension
accrual date;
(dd) “years of pensionable service” means, in
respect of a participant or former participant, the number of complete years
and any fraction of a remaining year of pensionable service.
The Plan
2(1) The pension plan provided for by and under
the former Regulation is continued, subject to this Schedule, as the Provincial
Judges and Masters in Chambers (Registered) Pension Plan.
(2) It is the intent of
this Schedule that the Plan be and remain a registered pension plan under the Income Tax Act (Canada).
Part
1
Administration
Administration
of the Plan
3(1) The Minister is the administrator of the
Plan.
(2) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan except subsection (3), the Minister shall administer the
Plan in accordance with the tax rules.
(3) If in any respect the
Plan does not comply with the applicable tax rules, the Minister may administer
the Plan as if this Schedule were amended so to comply.
Fiscal year
4 The
fiscal year of the Plan is from April 1 in one year to March 31 in the next.
Report to the Legislative Assembly
5(1) The Minister shall prepare and lay before
the Legislative Assembly a report on the operation of the Plan with respect to
each fiscal year.
(2) The report must include
the most recent actuarial valuation report prepared under section 8 unless that
valuation report has already been included in a previous annual report.
Part
2
Participation
The
participants
6 The
persons who are to and are allowed to participate in the Plan are
(a) all judges, and
(b) all former judges who are on LTDI.
Part
3
Funding
Registered pension plan fund
7(1) The Provincial Judges and Masters in
Chambers Pension Fund referred to in section 21.2 of the Financial Administration Act is continued as the “Provincial Judges
and Masters in Chambers (Registered) Pension Plan Fund” for this Plan.
(2) The Minister of Finance
shall hold and administer the plan fund in accordance with this Schedule.
(3) The Minister of Finance
shall invest the assets of the plan fund in accordance with the Employment Pension Plans Act and the
regulations under it.
(4) All the assets of the
Plan are to be held in, and all its liabilities are to be assumed by, the plan
fund.
Actuarial valuation report
8 The
Minister shall have an actuarial valuation of the Plan performed, and a report
on that valuation prepared, by an actuary at least once every 3 years.
Fiduciary relationship and use of surplus
9(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister of
Finance shall hold the assets of the Plan in trust for the persons who are or
who become entitled to benefits, and for the payment of the costs of
administering the Plan.
(2) Without breaching the
trust under or being in any other manner affected by subsection (1), where the
total amount held under that subsection exceeds the amount that is actuarially
determined to be necessary to pay benefits and the costs of administering the
Plan, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may, with respect to any portion or
all of the excess,
(a) transfer it to the General Revenue Fund, or
(b) apply it towards reduction of the
contributions for which the Government is liable under section 12.
Contributions and accretion
10(1) All contributions to the Plan, with
interest if any, shall be made and remitted to the Minister of Finance, who
shall deposit them into the plan fund directly on receiving them.
(2) All income of and all
appreciation and depreciation in the value of the assets of the Plan accrue to
the plan fund.
Participant contributions
11(1) Subject to this section, a participant
shall, at intervals coinciding with the salary periods fixed by order of the
Minister, make contributions for current service at the rate of
(a) 9%, until March 31, 2000, and
(b) 7%, with effect from April 1, 2000,
of
the participant’s capped salary.
(2) A participant who is
about to enter into a period of leave without salary that does not exceed the 2‑year
maximum specified in section 13(3) may apply to have that period taken into
account as pensionable service and, if he or she wishes to have it so taken
into account, shall make and, to the extent, if any, necessary, remit
contributions, with respect to that leave,
(a) pursuant to subsection (1) for the period of
or periods aggregating one year less any periods of leave without salary
previously taken and falling within this clause or section 9(4)(b) of the
former Regulation, and
(b) pursuant to subsection (1), except at double
the rate set out in subsection (1), for any subsequent periods.
(3) Notwithstanding
anything in this section, participant current service contributions are not to
be made after a participant
(a) attains a benefit accrual percentage of 70%,
the benefit accrual percentage being equal to
(2% x
A) + (2.67% x B) + (3% x C)
where
A
= the participant’s years of pensionable
service before April 1, 1998,
B
= the years of pensionable service from
April 1, 1998 to March 31, 2000, and
C = the years of pensionable service after March 31, 2000,
or
(b) reaches the latest pension accrual date,
whichever
of those events occurs first.
(4) A participant shall not
make contributions while on LTDI except that, if a participant on LTDI is also
earning a salary under a rehabilitation employment program, he or she shall
make and remit contributions pursuant to subsection (1) in respect of that
salary.
(5) Subject to subsections
(2) and (4), the Government is liable for the remittance of the participant
current service contributions under subsection (1), for which purpose it may
withhold those contributions from remuneration payments.
Government contributions
12(1) The portion of the current service cost
for which the Government is liable is the cost of future benefit accruals after
taking into account participant current service contributions and any excess
amount applied towards a reduction of its contributions pursuant to section
9(2)(b).
(2) Subject to section
9(2), the Minister shall, if necessary, within a reasonable time after
receiving an actuarial valuation report under section 8 and following the
recommendations of the actuary in the report, in writing adjust the
Government’s contributions
(a) in respect of current service, to a rate,
determined by reference to a percentage of participants’ capped salaries, that
is sufficient to finance that portion of the current service cost that is
ascribed to the Government by subsection (1), and