PRINTER'S NO. 918
No. 759 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY ARMSTRONG, MUSTO, M. WHITE, O'PAKE, LEMMOND AND
STACK, JUNE 13, 2005
REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, JUNE 13, 2005
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 23 (Domestic Relations) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, further providing for decree of court
3 and for defined benefit retirement plans.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Sections 3323(d.1) and 3501(c) of Title 23 of the
7 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, added November 29, 2004
8 (P.L.1357, No.175), are amended to read:
9 § 3323. Decree of court.
10 * * *
11 (d.1) Death of a party.--[In]
12 (1) Subject to paragraph (2), in the event one party
13 dies during the course of divorce proceedings, no decree of
14 divorce has been entered and grounds have been established as
15 provided in subsection (g), the parties' economic rights and
16 obligations arising under the marriage shall be determined
17 under this part rather than under 20 Pa.C.S. (relating to
18 decedents, estates and fiduciaries).
1 (2) The State Employees' Retirement System, the Public
2 School Employees' Retirement System or the Pennsylvania
3 Municipal Retirement System shall not be obligated to issue
4 duplicate death benefit or retirement payments if the
5 original payments were made prior to receipt of an
6 appropriate court order directed to the affected retirement
7 system. Any person who receives a death benefit or retirement
8 payment to which he or she is not entitled by operation of
9 such order shall be solely liable to any person otherwise so
10 entitled, who shall have the right to seek further redress in
11 a court of competent jurisdiction. This paragraph shall apply
12 to all equitable distributions which are subject to the
13 provisions of this subsection.
14 * * *
15 § 3501. Definitions.
16 * * *
17 (c) Defined benefit retirement plans.--
18 (1) Notwithstanding subsections (a), (a.1) and (b):
19 [(1)] (i) In the case of the marital portion of a
20 defined benefit retirement plan being distributed by means of
21 a deferred distribution, the defined benefit plan shall be
22 allocated between its marital and nonmarital portions solely
23 by use of a coverture fraction. The denominator of the
24 coverture fraction shall be the number of months the employee
25 spouse worked to earn the total benefit and the numerator
26 shall be the number of such months during which the parties
27 were married and not finally separated. The benefit to which
28 the coverture fraction is applied shall include all
29 postseparation enhancements except for enhancements arising
30 from postseparation monetary contributions made by the
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1 employee spouse, including the gain or loss on such
2 contributions.
3 [(2)] (ii) In the case of the marital portion of a
4 defined benefit retirement plan being distributed by means of
5 an immediate offset, the defined benefit plan shall be
6 allocated between its marital and nonmarital portions solely
7 by use of a coverture fraction. The denominator of the
8 coverture fraction shall be the number of months the employee
9 spouse worked to earn the accrued benefit as of a date as
10 close to the time of trial as reasonably possible and the
11 numerator shall be the number of such months during which the
12 parties were married and not finally separated. The benefit
13 to which the coverture fraction is applied shall include all
14 postseparation enhancements up to a date as close to the time
15 of trial as reasonably possible except for enhancements
16 arising from postseparation monetary contributions made by
17 the employee spouse, including the gain or loss on such
18 contributions.
19 (2) This subsection shall apply to all equitable
20 distribution proceedings pending on or after January 28,
21 2005.
22 Section 2. The addition of 23 Pa.C.S. § 3323(d.1)(2) shall
23 apply retroactively to January 28, 2005.
24 Section 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
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