[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1107 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1107

To amend title 28, United States Code, to provide for a limited 6-month 
period for Federal judges to opt into the Judicial Survivors' Annuities 
 System and begin contributing toward an annuity for their spouse and 
      dependent children upon their death, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 20, 2009

  Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Graham, and Mr. Hatch ) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 28, United States Code, to provide for a limited 6-month 
period for Federal judges to opt into the Judicial Survivors' Annuities 
 System and begin contributing toward an annuity for their spouse and 
      dependent children upon their death, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Judicial Survivors Protection Act of 
2009''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``judicial official'' refers to incumbent 
        officials defined under section 376(a) of title 28, United 
        States Code.
            (2) The term ``Judicial Survivors' Annuities Fund'' means 
        the fund established under section 3 of the Judicial Survivors' 
        Annuities Reform Act (28 U.S.C. 376 note; Public Law 94-554; 90 
        Stat. 2611).
            (3) The term ``Judicial Survivors' Annuities System'' means 
        the program established under section 376 of title 28, United 
        States Code.

SEC. 3. PERSONS NOT CURRENTLY PARTICIPATING IN THE JUDICIAL SURVIVORS' 
              ANNUITIES SYSTEM.

    (a) Election of Judicial Survivors' Annuities System Coverage.--An 
eligible judicial official may elect to participate in the Judicial 
Survivors' Annuities System during the open enrollment period specified 
in subsection (d).
    (b) Manner of Making Elections.--An election under this section 
shall be made in writing, signed by the person making the election, and 
received by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United 
States Courts before the end of the open enrollment period.
    (c) Effective Date for Elections.--Any such election shall be 
effective as of the first day of the first calendar month following the 
month in which the election is received by the Director.
    (d) Open Enrollment Period Defined.--The open enrollment period 
under this section is the 6-month period beginning 30 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. JUDICIAL OFFICERS' CONTRIBUTIONS FOR OPEN ENROLLMENT ELECTION.

    (a) Contribution Rate.--Every active judicial official who files a 
written notification of his or her intention to participate in the 
Judicial Survivors' Annuities System during the open enrollment period 
shall be deemed thereby to consent and agree to having deducted from 
his or her salary a sum equal to 2.75 percent of that salary or a sum 
equal to 3.5 percent of his or her retirement salary, except that the 
deduction from any retirement salary--
            (1) of a justice or judge of the United States retired from 
        regular active service under section 371(b) or 372(a) of title 
        28, United States Code;
            (2) of a judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims 
        retired under section 178 of title 28, United States Code; or
            (3) of a judicial official on recall under section 155(b), 
        373(c)(4), 375, or 636(h) of title 28, United States Code,
shall be an amount equal to 2.75 percent of retirement salary.
    (b) Contributions To Be Credited to Judicial Survivors' Annuities 
Fund.--Contributions made under subsection (a) shall be credited to the 
Judicial Survivors' Annuities Fund.

SEC. 5. DEPOSIT FOR PRIOR CREDITABLE SERVICE.

    (a) Lump Sum Deposit.--Any judicial official who files a written 
notification of his or her intention to participate in the Judicial 
Survivors' Annuities System during the open enrollment period may make 
a deposit equaling 2.75 percent of salary, plus 3 percent annual, 
compounded interest, for the last 18 months of prior service, to 
receive the credit for prior judicial service required for immediate 
coverage and protection of the official's survivors. Any such deposit 
shall be made on or before the closure of the open enrollment period.
    (b) Deposits To Be Credited to Judicial Survivors' Annuities 
Fund.--Deposits made under subsection (a) shall be credited to the 
Judicial Survivors' Annuities Fund.

SEC. 6. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO ENLARGE SURVIVORS' ANNUITY.

    Section 376 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(y) For each year of Federal judicial service completed, judicial 
officials who are enrolled in the Judicial Survivors' Annuities System 
on the date of enactment of the Judicial Survivors Protection Act of 
2009 may purchase, in 3-month increments, up to an additional year of 
service credit, under the terms set forth in this section. In the case 
of judicial officials who elect to enroll in the Judicial Survivors' 
Annuities System during the statutory open enrollment period authorized 
under the Judicial Survivors Protection Act of 2009, for each year of 
Federal judicial service completed, such an official may purchase, in 
3-month increments, up to an additional year of service credit for each 
year of Federal judicial service completed, under the terms set forth 
in section 4(a) of that Act.''.

SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act, including the amendment made by section 6, shall take 
effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
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