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Session of 2000
          House Concurrent Resolution No. 5072                           By Representative Garner, Alldritt, Ballard, Barnes, Burroughs, Crow,
                Dean, Feuerborn, Findley, Flaharty, Flora, Gatewood, Gilbert, Grant,
                Haley, Helgerson, Henderson, Henry, Johnston, Kirk, Klein, Kuether,
                Larkin, M. Long, McClure, McKechnie, McKinney, Minor, Nichols,
                O'Brien, Pauls, E. Peterson, Phelps, Reardon, Rehorn, Reinhardt,
                Ruff, Sharp, Showalter, Shriver, Spangler, Storm, Tedder, Thimesch,
                Toelkes, Weiland, Wells and Welshimer
                3-8                

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

2
  1       the amendment as a whole:
  2              ``Explanatory statement. This amendment would require public
  3             retirement systems to be funded on an actuarially sound basis. The
  4             assets shall be held in trust to provide benefits to participants and
  5             beneficiaries and defray administrative costs and shall not be used
  6             for any other purpose. The governing boards of public retirement
  7             systems are fiduciaries for the participants and beneficiaries. Mem-
  8             bership in a public retirement system would be an enforceable con-
  9             tractual relationship and accrued benefits could not be diminished
10             or impaired.
11              ``A vote for this proposition would provide constitutional protec-
12             tion for participants and beneficiaries of public retirement systems
13             by requiring actuarially sound funding, trust nature of funds to pro-
14             vide benefits and defray administrative costs, fiduciary responsibil-
15             ity of boards of public retirement systems and public retirement
16             system membership as an enforceable contractual relationship with
17             unimpairable accrued benefits.
18              ``A vote against this proposition would retain the current status
19             of law and not provide these additional constitutional protections to
20             participants and beneficiaries of public retirement systems.''
21             Sec.  3. This resolution, if approved by two-thirds of the members
22       elected (or appointed) and qualified to the House of Representatives, and
23       two-thirds of the members elected (or appointed) and qualified to the
24       Senate shall be entered on the journals, together with the yeas and nays.
25       The secretary of state shall cause this resolution to be published as pro-
26       vided by law and shall cause the proposed amendment to be submitted
27       to the electors of the state at the general election in the year 2000 unless
28       a special election is called at a sooner date by concurrent resolution of
29       the legislature, in which case it shall be submitted to the electors of the
30       state at the special election.
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