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12  A PROPOSITION to amend article 15 of the constitution of the state of
13    Kansas by adding a new section thereto, relating to public retirement
14    systems.
15
16  Be it resolved by the Legislature of the State of Kansas, two-thirds of the
17  members elected (or appointed) and qualified to the House of Repre-
18  sentatives and two-thirds of the members elected (or appointed) and
19  qualified to the Senate concurring therein:
20    Section 1.  The following proposition to amend the constitution of the
21  state of Kansas shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the state
22  for their approval or rejection: Article 15 of the constitution of the state
23  of Kansas is hereby amended by adding a new section 16 thereto to read
24  as follows:
25    ``(section) 16.  Public retirement systems. (a) Public retirement sys-
26  tems shall be funded on an actuarially sound basis. Public retire-
27  ment system assets, including income and actuarially required con-
28  tributions, shall not be encumbered, diverted, reduced or
29  terminated and shall be held in trust to provide benefits to partic-
30  ipants and participants' beneficiaries and to defray administrative
31  expenses.
32    (b)  The governing boards of public retirement systems shall
33  administer the system, including actuarial determinations, as fidu-
34  ciaries of system participants and participants' beneficiaries.''
35    Sec. 2.  The following statement shall be printed on the ballot with
36  the amendment as a whole:
37    ``Explanatory statement. This amendment would require public
38  retirement systems to be funded on an actuarially sound basis. The
39  assets shall be held in trust to provide benefits to participants and
40  beneficiaries and defray administrative costs and shall not be used
41  for any other purpose. The governing boards of public retirement
42  systems are fiduciaries for the participants and beneficiaries.
43    ``A vote for this proposition would provide constitutional protec-
HCR 5026
                                     

 1  tion for participants and beneficiaries of public retirement systems
 2  by requiring actuarially sound funding, trust nature of funds to pro-
 3  vide benefits and defray administrative costs and fiduciary respon-
 4  sibility of boards of public retirement systems.
 5    ``A vote against this proposition would retain the current status
 6  of law and not provide these additional constitutional protections to
 7  participants and beneficiaries of public retirement systems.''
 8    Sec. 3.  This resolution, if approved by two-thirds of the members
 9  elected (or appointed) and qualified to the House of Representatives, and
10  two-thirds of the members elected (or appointed) and qualified to the
11  Senate shall be entered on the journals, together with the yeas and nays.
12  The secretary of state shall cause this resolution to be published as pro-
13  vided by law and shall cause the proposed amendment to be submitted
14  to the electors of the state at the general election in the year 1998 unless
15  a special election is called at a sooner date by concurrent resolution of
16  the legislature, in which case it shall be submitted to the electors of the
17  state at the special election.