Employers that offer PSPRS and CORP benefits to their public safety and corrections employees are responsible for forming local boards to assist in the administration of plan provisions.
Local boards consist of five members who also appoint a secretary and a legal counsel. While formed at the employer level, these boards are legally entities separate from the employer and plan members.
These governing bodies determine the eligibility of prospective members, make decisions on disability and line of duty death benefit applications, and use discretion to consider return-to-work eligibility for retired plan members.
Local boards share fiduciary responsibilities with the PSPRS Board of Trustees, meaning they are legally and ethically required to act in the best interest of system members, beneficiaries and the plan itself. Local boards must act fairly and in good faith, avoid conflicts of interest, incur only reasonable expenses, and adhere to all applicable state laws.
As political subdivisions under state law, local boards are public entities responsible for abiding by state open meeting laws and statutes and court rules concerning legal appeals of eligibility and benefit determinations. Local boards and employers are also subject to auditing and operational reviews from PSPRS, which also bears responsibility for ensuring compliance with state law and federal requirements for tax-qualified retirement plans.
Below is a table of contents to assist with understanding local board operational duties and requirements.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Local board composition
Local boards are comprised of five members. Three positions are appointed and two, reserved for plan members, are elected by membership through a secret ballot process. The appointment process varies depending on employer type, as there are slight differences for state, county, municipal, tribal and fire district employers.
The public safety local board appointment process is detailed in ARS Section 38-847 while the corrections local board process is detailed in ARS Section 38-893. Please refer to the following table for guidance on member appointments and how local board chairpersons are determined.
PSPRS
 | Chair (1) | ||
| Mayor or chief elected official or designee approved by the respective governing body. | |||
 | Elected Members (2) | | Appointed Members (2) |
| Elected by Membership | Both appointed by mayor or chief elected official with approval of governing body of employer. * One appointed citizen should be head of the merit system or designee | ||
| Chair (1) | ||
| Each local board shall elect a chairperson. | |||
| Elected Members (2) |  | Appointed Members (3) |
| Elected by Membership | Three citizens appointed by the Governor | ||
| Chair (1) | ||
Appointment: Chair of the fire district governing board or designee * May appoint any local board member | |||
| Elected Members (2) | | Appointed Members (2) |
| Elected by Membership | Appointed by the chairperson of the fire district governing board One member should be a resident of fire district One member must have experience in personnel administration – not required to be a resident. | ||
| Chair (1) | ||
| Joint powers authority board chairperson or designee approved by governing body | |||
| Elected Members (2) | | Appointed Members (3) |
| Elected by Membership | One member should be a resident of the partner entities One member must have experience in personnel administration – not required to be a resident | ||
CORP
| Chair (1) | ||
| Chairperson – Mayor or chief elected official or designee approved by the respective governing body | |||
| Elected Members (2) | | Appointed Members (2) |
| Elected by Membership | Both appointed by mayor or chief elected official with approval of governing body of employer * One appointed citizen should be head of the merit system or designee | ||
|
Chair (1) |
||
| Each local board shall elect a chairperson. | |||
|
Elected Members (2) |
|
Appointed Members (3) |
| Elected by Membership | Two citizens – appointed by the Governor One citizen – appointed by the director of each state department knowledgeable in personnel actions |
||
| Chair (1) | ||
| Chairperson of the board of supervisors or designee approved by the board of supervisors | |||
| Elected Members (2) | | Appointed Members (2) |
| Elected by Membership | Both appointed by the chairperson of the board of supervisors with approval of the board of supervisors * One appointed citizen should be head of the merit system or designee | ||
|
Chair (1) |
||
| Designee of the chief justice of the Arizona supreme court | |||
|
Elected Members (2) |
|
Appointed Members (2) |
| Elected by Membership | Appointed by the chief justice * One shall be head of a human resources department for the members |
||
Elected Officials
Contact: [email protected]
Employers will perform the functions of the board and forward to PSPRS.
Operational requirements
Local boards have a several requirements to conduct official business for PSPRS plans. These steps include everything from electing a secretary for recordkeeping and hiring attorneys to undergoing training to comply with state law. Review local board statutes, operations and duties
The minimal requirements for boards to operate include the following:
- Electing a secretary: Local board secretaries schedule meetings, send PSPRS meeting minutes and perform other administrative functions. Secretaries are elected by majority of the five-member local board.
- Hiring legal counsel: Local boards are independent of their corresponding employer and membership. As such, local boards must hire attorneys who are not employed or contracted by employers, member organizations or members. Additionally, local board attorneys cannot represent the local board in judicial appeals of local board determinations.
- Oath of office: Local board members are required under state law to take an oath of office within 10 days of their appointment or election to a local board. Completed forms must be kept by local boards.
- Training: Local board members, secretaries and attorneys are required to take PSPRS training within 180 days of appointment, election or hiring. See section below.
- Minimum meetings: At a minimum, local boards are required by law to meet at least twice a year.
- Deadline compliance: Local boards shall commence a hearing within 90 days of receipt of a claim from a member. A claim is any member or employer request for local board review, which includes a disability application and/or return to work.
- Update PSPRS: Local boards are required by law to notify PSPRS within 10 days of changes to local board membership and staff, including secretaries and counsel. This notification can be completed by emailing the Local Board Member Employer Information Update Form to [email protected].
- Transmit meeting minutes to PSPRS: Local boards are required to send PSPRS copies of local board meeting minutes within 20 days of meetings. Meeting minutes may be emailed to [email protected] or sent by certified mail to PSPRS.
- Adopt Model Uniform Rules: Local boards must adopt updated rules for adjudicating claims and disputes. At a minimum, local boards must incorporate the Model Uniform Rules adopted by the Board of Trustees.
Training requirements
PSPRS is obligated to provide training to local boards for open meeting laws, ethics, legal reviews, and fiduciary responsibilities and duties. This training is required for all local board secretaries and members elected or appointed after December 31, 2021. Training is encouraged – but not mandatory – for those appointed or elected prior to December 31, 2021.
Those required to undergo training must do so within 180 days of their appointment or election. The training curriculum playlist is available in the instructional video section below or on the PSPRS YouTube channel.
Determining member eligibility
One of the core functions of local boards is assisting with the employer process of hiring new public safety and corrections, detention, probation and surveillance officers. The local board determines potential new hires’ plan eligibility under state law.
Local board are also responsible for determining the eligibility of retirees seeking to return to PSPRS and CORP-covered positions.
Review member eligibility and return to work requirements.
New Hires:
Local board new hire actions are as follows:
- Look up new hire in portal for tier status
- Employer works with new hire to complete membership form
- Pre-hire physical should be completed for new hires and lateral hires
- Review the pre-hire physical report and votes in open meeting to approve with or without pre-existing condition(s)
- Local board secretary keeps the report as a permanent record
- Local board reviews and approves new hire for membership
- Once the employer enrolls new or lateral hire in the employer portal then the member will receive an email advising them to login to Members-only portal
- Once new member reviews and completes election the employer will receive email confirming elections
Return to Work
Local board return to work actions are as follows:
- Determine retiree eligibility for return to work for public safety (ARS Section 38-849) and for CORP (ARS Section 38-891.01)
- If retiree is eligible to return to work, then the member retains the pension payment
- If retiree is ineligible to return to work, then the member’s pension is suspended by the local board
- Once the local board makes a determination, they must provide public safety with meeting minutes within 10 days to suspend pension
- Look up retiree in employer portal
- If retiree is in public safety eligible position, then alternate contribution rate (ACR) is payable upon date of rehire
- Employer must update employment status to Hired-Return to Work
Disability retirement applications: Process and deadlines
Considering member disability applications is one of the most challenging tasks associated with serving on a local board. Public safety and corrections members are frequently hurt in the line of duty, and, on occasion, these injuries make continued work for their employer and the public impossible.
Local boards are responsible for determining the eligibility of members for disability benefits. The Local Board Retirement Manual includes sample local board correspondence, letters and legal guidance for determining disability retirement applications. An instructional video is available below, or on the PSPRS YouTube channel.
Local board timelines are as follows:
- Within 10 days after a local board receives an application for disability benefits the local board secretary shall send the application to PSPRS–[email protected].
- The local board needs to schedule a meeting within 90 days of receipt of the application. If there is enough information to proceed, the local board will appoint an independent medical doctor to review. The decision to award or deny the disability is based upon the independent medical review and information provided to the local board.
Local boards must download PDF forms to apply digital signatures prior to submitting to PSPRS.
Public Safety Disability forms
CORP Disability forms
- Application for Disability Retirement (FORM P5-EE)
- Local Board Determination for Disability Retirement (FORM P5-LB)
- Accidental Disability Questionnaire (FORM P5-LB-A)
- Catastrophic Disability Questionnaire (FORM P5-LB-C)
- Ordinary Disability Questionnaire (FORM P5-LB-O)
- Temporary Disability Questionnaire (FORM P5-LB-T)
Line-of-duty death determinations
Local boards are charged with making determinations concerning the line of duty death of public safety and corrections plan members. Under state law, line of duty death is defined as occurring in “direct and proximate result of the performance of the decedent’s public safety/corrections duties.” These determinations made by local boards impact benefits provided to surviving spouses, eligible dependents or beneficiaries.
Local boards may review public safety and corrections line of duty death statutes and benefits to determine:
- If the member death was the direct result of their duties (excluding suicide)
- The local board also needs to review information, such as a death certificate or independent medical review of records, to support awarding of the line of duty death benefits to surviving spouse, eligible dependents or beneficiaries
- PSPRS will review and process line of duty death benefit applications
Local board oversight and legal review
Like PSPRS, local boards are bound by fiduciary duty that requires applying all requirements for plan eligibility and benefits, acting impartially and avoiding conflicts of interest. When requested, local boards must submit additional records to PSPRS, which cannot approve determinations that violate state law, IRS code or threaten the public safety and corrections status as qualified retirement plans.
PSPRS, members and beneficiaries can require a rehearing of a local board determination, which a local board may uphold, rescind or modify. Rehearing determinations may be appealed to superior courts by both PSPRS, members and beneficiaries.
For more information on fiduciary duty, local board oversight and legal review please visit the “Instructional Video” section.
Instructional Videos
Local Board Training
2024 Employer-Local board Workshop
2024 Employer-Local Board Conference
Local Board Support
Local boards can email us at [email protected], or reach out to Local Board Relations Manager, Joann Lowey.