Chapter 16 — OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES GENERALLYArticle IV — RETIREMENT

SEC. 16.37. POWERS AND DUTIES GENERALLY OF RETIREMENT BOARD.

San Francisco Administrative Code · 2025 edition · ingested 2026-07-08 · San Francisco

The management and control of the Retirement System shall be vested in the Retirement Board as provided in Section 12.100 of the Charter. The Board shall exercise the powers and perform the duties conferred on it by the Charter and by other sections of this Code, and in addition thereto as set forth in Sections 16.37-1 through 16.37-7.

(Amended by Ord. 299-64, App. 11/9/64; Ord. 326-00, File No. 001921, App. 12/28/2000)

SEC. 16.37-1. INTEREST RATES.

Upon the basis of an investigation or valuation, the Retirement Board shall adopt appropriate interest rates. The interest rate applied to member accounts shall be at least four percent per annum and shall not exceed the actuarial assumption for return on assets.

The Retirement Board, by means of a dividend payment method, may distribute annually to those persons receiving allowances from the Retirement Systemare not subject to change when the salary rates of active members change and which at the close of the next preceding fiscal year had been in effect for at least one yearpart or all of the net interest earnings in excess of the assumed earnings during the preceding fiscal year on the Retirement Fund except earnings upon the accumulated contributions of active members; provided, however, that no such distribution shall be made of that part

of said excess interest earnings as is required to maintain the contingency reserve against adverse mortality at an amount equal to two percent of the total assets of the Retirement System at the close of the next preceding fiscal year.

(Amended by Ord. 74-67, App. 3/8/67; Ord. 64-02, File No. 012003, App. 5/10/2002)

SEC. 16.37-2. ACTUARIAL VALUATION.

The Retirement Board shall keep in convenient form such data as shall be necessary for the actuarial valuation of the Retirement System. As of June 30, 1933, and thereafter at intervals of not to exceed six years, the Board shall make an actuarial investigation into the mortality, service and compensation experience of the members and beneficiaries; and further shall make an actuarial valuation of the assets and liabilities of the Retirement System. From time to time, the Board shall determine the rate of interest being earned on the retirement fund. Upon the basis of all or any such investigation, valuation and determination, the Board shall:

(a) Adopt for the retirement system such interest rate and such mortality, service and other tables, or any of such items, as shall be deemed

necessary.

(Added by Ord. 299-64, App. 11/9/64; amended by Ord. 326-00, File No. 001921, App. 12/28/2000)

SEC. 16.37-3. RECORDS AS TO ACCUMULATED CONTRIBUTIONS.

In addition to the other records and accounts, shall keep such records and accounts as shall be necessary to show at any time:

(a) The total accumulated contributions of members.

(b) The total accumulated contributions of retired members less the annuity payments made to such members.

(c) The accumulated contributions of the City and County held for the benefit of members on account of service rendered as members of the Retirement System.

(d) All other accumulated contributions of the City and County, which shall include the amounts available to meet the obligation of the City and County on account of benefits that have been granted and on account of prior service of members. A portion of the accumulated contributions of the City and County—previously held for the benefit of members (excluding persons who are members under Section 8.540 and 8.565 of the Charter), on account of service rendered as members of the Retirement System, equal to the accumulated normal contributions withdrawn by a member, or paid to a beneficiary upon the death of a member or applied to purchase an annuity upon the retirement of a member, except the accumulated normal contributions for time on and after July 1, 1965, of members who exercise a valid election provided for in Section 16.70-1 of this Code—shall thereafter be included in the amounts available to meet the obligation of the City and County on account of benefits that have been granted and on account of prior service of members. No transfer of accumulated contributions of the City and County shall be made on account of the withdrawal of accumulated contributions by a person who is a member under Sections 8.540 or 8.565 of the Charter; but upon the death or retirement of such a member, accumulated contributions of the City and County—previously held for the benefit of such member, actuarially equivalent to that portion of the benefit granted to him or to his beneficiary, which is chargeable to service rendered as a member of the Retirement System—shall thereafter be

included in the amounts available to meet the obligation of the City and County on account of benefits that have been granted and on account of prior service of members.

(Amended by Ord. 65-65, App. 3/19/67)

SEC. 16.37-4. DETERMINATION OF SERVICE CREDIT.

The Retirement Board shall determine the City and County service rendered by members and shall fix and may modify allowances for service and disability and fix other benefits. Except for the fiscal year in which retirement becomes effective, with respect to members under Section 8.509 of the Charter and regardless of the effective date of retirement, with respect to all other members, one year and proportionate parts thereof shall be credited on the basis of not more than 250 nor less than 220 days of City and County service rendered by per diem employees, on the basis of 10 months or more of City and County service rendered by monthly employees and on the basis of the receipt of 10/12ths of the annual salary received by teachers, but not more than one year shall be credited for all service in any fiscal year. For the fiscal year in which retirement becomes effective, and with respect only to members under Section 8.509 of the Charter, one year and proportionate parts thereof shall be credited on the basis of the average number, as determined by the Retirement Board, of days or hours ordinarily worked per year by persons in the same group or class of positions as the positions held by per diem or hourly employees during such fiscal year. Twelve months or more of City and County service rendered by monthly employees, and 12/12th of the annual salary received by teachers, but not more than one year, shall be credited for all service in any fiscal year. Time during which a member was or shall be absent from City and County service without pay shall not be allowed in computing service, except as provided in Section 16.29-8 of this Code.

(Added by Ord. 299-64, App. 11/9/64; amended by Ord. 326-00, File No. 001921, App. 12/28/2000)

SEC. 16.37-4.1. DETERMINATION OF SERVICE CREDIT FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES OF THE SAN…

Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 16.37-4 of this Code, service credit under the retirement system shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of this Section for those persons employed by the San Francisco Unified School District in positions whose normal work schedule consists of eight hours per day, five days per week and is limited to the school term.

Except for the fiscal year in which retirement becomes effective, one year and proportionate parts thereof shall be credited on the basis of not more than 12 months nor less than nine months of City and County service, but not more than one year shall be credited for all service in any fiscal year.

For the fiscal year in which retirement becomes effective, one year and proportionate parts thereof shall be credited on the basis of 12 months, but not more than one year shall be credited for all service in any fiscal year.

Time during which such a member was or shall be absent from City and County service without pay shall not be allowed in computing service, except as provided in Section 16.29-8 of this Code.

The provisions of this Section are hereby declared to be retroactive with respect to service rendered prior to the effective date of this Section in positions whose normal work schedule consists of eight hours per day, five days per week and is limited to the school term by persons employed in

such positions on or after July 1, 1972.

(Amended by Ord. 349-72, App. 12/11/72)

SEC. 16.37-5. PRIOR SERVICE CREDIT.

Credit for prior service shall be granted to each member who has rendered prior service as defined in Section 16.29-15.5 of this Code, and who entered the Retirement System prior to March 31, 1954, and to each member who has rendered prior service as defined in Section 16.29-15.10 of this Code and who has not failed to redeposit accumulated contributions withdrawn by him subsequent to such service, and to each member who has rendered prior service defined in Sections 16.29-15.1, 16.29-15.2, 16.29-15.3 and 16.29-15.4 of this Code, and who entered the Retirement System on January 8 or 9, 1932, except as provided in Sections 16.47 and 16.74 of this Code for re-entrants; and, except further, that any such member who has failed to redeposit accumulated contributions withdrawn by him from the San Francisco City and County Employees' Retirement System shall receive credit for such prior service only if, upon being notified by the Retirement Board, he makes such redeposit in the same manner as provided in Section 16.47 of this Code for persons re-entering City and County service. However, prior service so credited shall be the basis for a retirement allowance or benefit as provided herein only if membership continues unbroken until retirement on a retirement allowance or until the granting of such other benefit; provided, that a termination of membership by the withdrawal of accumulated contributions followed by the redeposit of such contributions upon re-entrance into City and County service shall not constitute a break in membership.

(Amended by Ord. 79-65, App. 4/7/65; amended by Ord. 326-00, File No. 001921, App. 12/28/2000)

SEC. 16.37-6. CALCULATION OF SERVICE CREDIT.

The method, heretofore used under the San Francisco City and County Employees' Retirement System in calculating the amount of City and County service to be credited to members, in fixing disability and service retirement allowances and other benefits, in determining effective dates of membership in the Retirement System and in calculating members' contributions to the Retirement System, based upon the assumption that teachers, subsequent to first entering into their duties, are in City and County service throughout that part of the interims between school terms, during which they have been or shall be paid salary installments, is hereby approved solely for the purposes hereof and regardless of the status of such teachers under the state law. No adjustments affecting teachers under the Retirement System shall be made on the basis of payment of teachers' salaries in other than 12 monthly installments; provided, however, that this paragraph shall not prevent adjustments prior to termination of membership in the Retirement System, in contributions because of underpayments or overpayments of salary, nor shall it prevent the Retirement Board from modifying the method referred to in the first sentence of this paragraph, in the event that teachers' salaries shall be paid in other than 12 monthly installments, but such modification shall apply only to City and County service rendered thereafter.

(Amended by Ord. 299-64, App. 11/9/64)

SEC. 16.37-7. CALCULATION OF SERVICE CREDIT BASED ON PART-TIME SERVICES.

In determining the credit to be granted for services rendered on a part-time basis, for the purposes of calculating retirement allowances, the service shall be reduced to a full-time basis according to the service required in the next preceding paragraph for credit for one year of service, in calculating benefits based on service so determined, compensation earnable shall be taken as the compensation which would be earnable if the employment had been on a full-time basis; and with a compensation derived by multiplying the member's compensation by the ratio of full time to the time he was required by his employment to engage in his duties. In calculating the credit to be granted for service rendered on a part-time basis, for purposes of determining qualifications for retirement, the service required in the next preceding paragraph for credit for a year of service shall not be used, but instead, a year of service shall be credited for each year during which the member was employed throughout the year on a part-time basis and was engaged in his duties the full amount of time he was required by his employment to be so engaged. Credit for fractional years shall be granted to the extent of the fraction derived by dividing the time during which the member was engaged in his duties within the years, by the time he was required by his employment to be so engaged.

(Amended by Ord. 299-64, App. 11/9/64)

SEC. 16.37-8. EXCESS RETIREMENT BENEFITS.

(a) Whenever any person has been paid retirement benefits in excess of that which he was entitled to receive, by reason of excess earnings in gainful occupation after retirement, such person, upon demand of the Retirement Board, shall pay back into the Retirement Fund such excess.

(b) The full amount of such retirement benefits paid in excess of that which such person was entitled to receive shall be repaid to the Retirement Fund in one sum immediately upon demand, provided that the Retirement Board may permit the repayment to be made in installments where it finds that repayment in one sum immediately would cause undue hardship on such person.

(c) Funds received as repayment of such excess shall be returned to the account from which the excess was paid.

(d) The Retirement Board may authorize and direct the withholding of any and all benefit payments to such person until the full amount of such excess has been repaid. Where benefit payments are not withheld, while installment repayments are permitted by the Retirement Board, should the person fail or neglect to promptly pay any installment when due the Retirement Board at its discretion may forthwith authorize or direct the withholding of any and all further benefit payments to such person until repayment is made of the full amount of the excess or the full amount of the unpaid installments.

(e) The City Attorney is hereby authorized and directed to take such action against such person, upon request of the Retirement Board, as may be necessary to effect full recovery of any such excess.

(Added by Ord. 96-63, App. 5/2/63)

SEC. 16.37-9. POWER TO ISSUE SUBPOENAS.

The Retirement Board shall have the power and authority to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, testimony and other evidence before it by subpoena in connection with any inquiry, matter, proceeding or hearing by or before the Board.

The subpoenas herein provided for shall be issued in the name of the Retirement Board by the Secretary of the Retirement Board, or, in his absence, by the acting Secretary.

Any person refusing to obey such subpoena or to produce such books, papers, testimony or other evidence shall be deemed in contempt and subject to proceedings and penalties as provided by general law in such instances.

(Added by Ord. 292-62, App. 11/20/62)

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