(a)

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 8-36-127

  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Beneficiary: means any person, persons or institution receiving a retirement allowance or other benefit as provided in chapters 34-37 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Member: means any person included in the membership of the retirement system, as provided in chapter 35, part 1 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Retirement: means withdrawal from membership with a retirement allowance granted under chapters 34-37 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Retirement allowance: means the sum of the member annuity and the state annuity. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Retirement system: means the Tennessee consolidated retirement system as defined in §. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Service: means service as a general employee, a teacher, a state police officer, a wildlife officer, a firefighter, a police officer, a state judge, a county judge, an attorney general, a commissioner or a county official which is paid for by an employer, and also includes service for which a former member of the general assembly is entitled to under former §. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • State: means the state of Tennessee. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
(1) Notwithstanding § 8-36-121 or any other law to the contrary, members, upon retirement, may, on or after the date determined pursuant to subsection (c), name more than one (1) person as beneficiary under one (1) of the options named in § 8-36-601(b). A member may not designate a non-human being, such as a firm, organization, partnership, association, corporation, estate or trust, as a beneficiary under any of the options named in § 8-36-601(b).
(2) The reduced retirement allowance payable to the member under the optional form of retirement elected shall be based on the member’s age and the actual ages of the designated beneficiaries at the time of the member’s retirement. The portion of the member’s reduced retirement allowance that continues after the member’s death to a particular beneficiary shall be calculated using the appropriate reduction factors based on the actual age of the respective beneficiary at the time of the member’s retirement. When a beneficiary of a retired member dies, that portion of the benefit payment shall terminate and shall not be distributed or redistributed to the remaining beneficiaries. The designation of beneficiary under an optional form of retirement shall supersede the designation of all previous beneficiaries, and may not be changed or revoked, except as provided in part 6 of this chapter.
(b)

(1) Notwithstanding § 8-36-109, § 8-36-121 or any other law to the contrary, if a member who has reached the applicable eligibility requirements for an early or service retirement allowance dies in service and if the member designated more than one (1) person as beneficiary, then the beneficiaries shall be entitled to a retirement allowance if the death occurs on or after the date determined pursuant to subsection (c). The retirement allowance shall be equal to the retirement allowance that would have been payable under subsection (a) had the member retired under an effective election of Option 1 as provided in § 8-36-601(b) with the persons nominated as beneficiaries under the option.
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (b)(1), if any of the designated beneficiaries include a non-human being, such as a firm, organization, partnership, association, corporation, estate or trust, then the only benefit payable would be a lump sum payment made in accordance with § 8-36-107, unless the member’s surviving spouse is one of the beneficiaries. If the member’s surviving spouse is named, the spouse shall be entitled to receive the retirement allowance described in subdivision (b)(1). If the named surviving spouse elects to receive such retirement allowance, no benefits shall be paid to the remaining beneficiaries. If the named surviving spouse elects to receive the lump sum payment as provided in § 8-36-107, the payment shall be distributed in equal proportions among the named surviving spouse and the other surviving beneficiaries, including any non-human beneficiary.
(c) This section shall apply on such date as the retirement system‘s retirement operating systems are able to accommodate the payment of multiple beneficiaries as provided in this section. Such determination shall be made by the state treasurer.
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