Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1965 )

April 8; 1965 Mrs. Marie Hudson Opinion No. C- 417 Firemen's Pension Commissioner 1010 Sam Houston Building Re: Whether, under the facts Austin, Texas stated, a fireman should be required to contribute a per cent of sick leave and vacation pay into the pear Mrs. Hudson: Pension Fund. In your letter requesting an opinion from thls office, you submit certain facts which me quote as follows: "The Firemen's Pension Board of Corpus Christi, Texas, has requested that I secure your official ruling on a,matter involving Section 6 of the -Firemen'sPension Law. "'After8 fully paid,Firemanhas 'completed twenty (20) years of Ser.vicebefore reaching the age of 55 years hecan leave the Fire Depart- ment for other employmentbut continue to pay into thenlocal Pension Fund the same percen'tage of.contributionas ,paidby the other Firemen on his average monthly salary for the five year period prior to his resignation. "A Fireman resigning from the Department with twenty (20) years of,service will have ac- cumulated sick leave and vacation pa p which in some cases can amount to as much as i to $4,000.00. fleither7the local Bo&d0'%: this office per-it thig sick leave and vacation pay to be included in his average monthly salary." :,x With regard.to.thesefacts you ask the following ques- tlon rhich 'wequote as follows: -1968- Mrs. Marie Hudson, page 2 (C-417) "We would like your official opinion as to whether or not a Fireman so resigning or retiring on age and service should be required to contributea percent of sick leave and vaca- tion pay lnto'the Pension Pund." Article 6243e, Vernon's civil Statutes, IS popularly known a8 the Firemen's Relief and RetirementFund Act. The provisions of Section 6 of Article 6243e, Vernon's Civil Statutes, most pertinent to our discussion read as follows: "sec. 6 I,.Any person who has been duly appointed and enroiled and who has attained the age of fifty-five (55) years, and who has served actively for a period of twenty (20) years in any rank, whether as wholly paid, part-paid or volunteer fireman, . . .shall be entitled to be retired from such service or department and shall be entitled to be paid from the Firemen's Relief and Retirement Fund of that city or town, a monthly pension equal to one half (l/2) of his average monthly salary not to exceed a maximum of One Hundred Dollars ($100) per month, except as hereinafterprovided; such average monthly salary to be based on the monthly average of his salary for the five year period preceding the date of such retirement; . . .Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, it is hereby speciallyprovided that any eligible and quall- fled fireman who shall have completed twenty (20) years of service before reaching the age of fifty-five (55) years may apply to the Doard of Trustees for, and it shall be the Board's duty to Issue, a certificateshowing the com- pletion of such service and showing and certify- ing that such fireman, when reaching the age of fifty-five (55) .years,will be entitled to the retirement and other applicablebenefits of this Act;. . . It is your administrativeruling, as well as that of the Board of Firemen's Relief and Retirement Fund Trustees of Corpus Christi, Texas, that sick leave and vacation pay is not authorized to be included in computing a fireman's average monthly salary under the provisions of Section 6, Article 6243e, Vernon's Civil Statutes. This ruling is a valid exercise of the rule making powers of the Boards of Firemen's Relief and RetirementFund Trus- tees and the Firemen's Pension Commissionergranted in Section 3 -1969- Mrs. Marie Hudson, page 3,(&17)~ ', and Section lg'respectivelyof Article 6243e, Vernon's Civil Statutes. We quote the pert.inentprovisions of these respective sections as follows:, " "Sec. 3 II .such Board,(Board of Firemen's Relief and Re&ement Fund Trustees) shall have the power and auth0rit.yto hear and determine all applicationsfor,retirement,claims for disability, either partial or tbtal, and to designate the beneficiariesor persons entitled to participate 'thereinor therefrom as hereinafter directed and whfch said Board shall be known as the 'Board of 'Firemen'sRelief and Retirement Fund Trustees of , T&as.,' .'. :" 'Sec., 19 11 iSuch Commissioner (Firemen'sPension Commis&ner) shall have,authorityto,examine the accounts and records of the various Boards of Trustees; shall make rules and regulations not otherwise~providedherein; . . .shall'hear, determine, and/or review all appeals herein provided and shall do any,and all things ,within his power and as,he may deem necessary to facilitate and assist in the purpose for which such Firemen'sRelief and Retirement Fund is created.' Since sick leave and vacation pay is not included in computing a fireman's average monthly salary, it is our opinion that a fireman, who resigns, after completing twenty years of service before reaching the age of fifty-five, is not required, under the provisions of Article 6243e, to contribute a percent of sick leave and vacation pay into the Firemen's Relief and Retirement Fund. SUMMARY Under the submitted facts, a fireman is not required by the provisions of Article 6243e, Ver- non's Civil Statutes, to contrIbute a percentage of sick leave and vacation pay into the Firemen's Relief and Retirement Fund. -1970- Mrs. Marie Hudson, page 4 (C-417) Very truly,yours, WAQOONER CARR >``~j!,/ . Ivan R. Williams, Jr. Assistant 1RWjr:mkh APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman Roy Johnson W. 0. Shultz Frank Booth Grady Chandler APPROVED FOR TRE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: Stanton Stone -1971-