R-16 - Act respecting retirement plans for the mayors and councillors of municipalities

Updated to 31 May 2024

This document has official status.

chapter R-16

Act respecting retirement plans for the mayors and councillors of municipalities

1978, c. 60, s. 1.

DIVISION I DEFINITIONS

1. In this Act, the word or expression

(a)  “municipality” means a local municipality;

(b)  “member of the council” means the mayor or a councillor of a municipality;

(c)  “general plan” means the retirement plan established by section 2 of this Act;

(d)  (paragraph repealed);

(e)  “participant” means the member of the council who participates in the general plan;

(f)  “credited service” means, when expressed in years, the period during which a member of the council has participated in the general plan, taking into account, if such is the case, the service transferred or redeemed under this Act, any fraction of a year being deemed to be a complete year;

(g)  “pensionable salary” means the annual remuneration of a member of the council, including the allowances intended to pay part of the expenses attaching to the office of member of the council and any remuneration or allowance for the exercise of a particular function within the council or executive committee of the municipality;

(h)  “regulation” means a regulation of the Government made under this Act;

(i)  “year” means a cumulative period of 12 months.

1974, c. 48, s. 1; 1977, c. 5, s. 14; 1978, c. 60, s. 2; 1983, c. 24, s. 89; 1996, c. 2, s. 884; 1999, c. 40, s. 255; 2015, c. 20, s. 61; 2018, c. 2, s. 133.

DIVISION II GENERAL PLAN

2. A general retirement plan applicable to the members of the council of a municipality is established from 1 January 1975.

1974, c. 48, s. 2.

3. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 3; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

4. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 4; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

5. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 5; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

6. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 6; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

7. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 7; 1978, c. 60, s. 3; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

8. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 8; 1988, c. 85, s. 92.

DIVISION III ADMINISTRATION

9. The administration of the general plan is entrusted to Retraite Québec.

1974, c. 48, s. 9; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

10. Retraite Québec shall pay to the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec the sums paid to it under this Act, except the part of such sums that it considers it will need immediately to make payments under this Act.

1974, c. 48, s. 10; 1977, c. 5, s. 14; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

11. The function of Retraite Québec is to prescribe, in respect of funds entrusted to it under section 10, general standards of allocation of investments to be taken into account by the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.

1974, c. 48, s. 11; 1977, c. 5, s. 14; 1982, c. 51, s. 122; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

12. The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec must submit to Retraite Québec an annual report on the state of the fund of the general plan.

Retraite Québec shall communicate such report to the municipalities which have joined the general plan.

1974, c. 48, s. 12; 1977, c. 5, s. 14; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

DIVISION IV

Repealed, 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

1988, c. 85, s. 93.

13. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 13; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

14. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

15. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 15; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

16. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 16; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

17. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 17; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

18. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 18; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

19. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 19; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

20. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 20; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

21. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 21; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

22. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 22; 1988, c. 85, s. 93.

DIVISION V BENEFITS

23. A person shall acquire the right to a pension under the general plan if he has not less than eight years of credited service.

1974, c. 48, s. 23.

24. The pension shall be determined, in accordance with the terms and conditions established by regulation, by the amount of contributions of the participant, the contributory amounts of the municipality, the amounts paid for the redemption and transfer of previous years and interest at the rate fixed by regulation accumulated for the account of each participant.

1974, c. 48, s. 24.

25. The pension of a participant who is 60 years of age or more and who is no longer a member of the council becomes payable to him by Retraite Québec from the date on which the application is received or, where that is the case, from any other later date indicated in the application.

Notwithstanding the first paragraph, the pension becomes payable not later than 31 December of the year in which the participant reaches 69 years of age.

1974, c. 48, s. 25; 1992, c. 16, s. 20; 1997, c. 31, s. 31; 2015, c. 20, a. 61.

26. The pension shall be for life; it shall be payable in monthly instalments in arrears, or in the prescribed manner.

1974, c. 48, s. 26.

27. If a pensioner dies before having received his or her pension for at least 15 years, his or her married or civil union spouse or, if he or she has no married or civil union spouse, his or her heirs shall be entitled:

(a)  to receive the pension until expiry of such period of 15 years, or

(b)  to receive, upon application, a lump sum equal to the commuted value of the pension.

1974, c. 48, s. 27; 1990, c. 5, s. 44; 2002, c. 6, s. 202.

28. The participant who ceases to be a member of the council before he or she has acquired the right to a pension shall be entitled, upon application, to the reimbursement, with interest fixed by regulation, of the contributions and other sums paid by him or her for participation in the general plan.

In case of death, the reimbursement shall be made in the same manner to his or her married or civil union spouse or, if he or she has no married or civil union spouse, to his or her heirs.

1974, c. 48, s. 28; 1990, c. 5, s. 45; 2002, c. 6, s. 202; 2003, c. 19, s. 214.

29. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 29; 1988, c. 85, s. 94.

29.1. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 4; 1988, c. 85, s. 94.

30. If a participant dies at 60 years of age or older, after he or she has acquired the right to a pension but before such pension is payable to him or her, his or her married or civil union spouse or, if he or she has no married or civil union spouse, his or her heirs are entitled, from the first day of the month following the death,

(1)  to receive the pension for fifteen years; or

(2)  to receive, upon application, a lump sum equal to the commuted value of the pension.

1974, c. 48, s. 30; 1982, c. 2, s. 44; 1990, c. 5, s. 44; 2002, c. 6, s. 202.

30.1. If a participant dies before reaching 60 years of age but after he or she has acquired the right to a pension, the sums accumulated to his or her account are paid in a lump sum to his or her married or civil union spouse or, if he or she has no married or civil union spouse, to his or her heirs, with interest at the rate fixed.

1982, c. 2, s. 44; 1990, c. 5, s. 46; 2002, c. 6, s. 202.

31. The benefits payable under this Act shall be unassignable and unseizable.

1974, c. 48, s. 31.

32. Every reimbursement provided for in this Act is made on or before the one hundred and eightieth day following the reception by Retraite Québec of an application of the person entitled to it, made in accordance with the form prescribed by regulation.

1974, c. 48, s. 32; 1978, c. 60, s. 5; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

DIVISION VI

Repealed, 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

1988, c. 85, s. 95.

33. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 33; 1978, c. 60, s. 6; 1982, c. 63, s. 234; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

33.1. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 7; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

34. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 34; 1978, c. 60, s. 8; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

DIVISION VII

Repealed, 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

1988, c. 85, s. 95.

35. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 35; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

36. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 36; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

37. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 37; 1978, c. 60, s. 9; 1982, c. 63, s. 235; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

38. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 38; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

DIVISION VIII

Repealed, 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

1988, c. 85, s. 95.

39. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 39; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

40. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 40; 1978, c. 60, s. 10; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

41. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 41; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

DIVISION VIII.1

Repealed, 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

1978, c. 60, s. 11; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

41.1. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 11; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

41.2. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 11; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

41.3. (Repealed).

1979, c. 36, s. 104; 1980, c. 16, s. 84; 1988, c. 85, s. 95.

DIVISION VIII.2 PARTITION AND ASSIGNMENT OF BENEFITS BETWEEN SPOUSES

1990, c. 5, s. 47.

41.4. From the introduction of an application for separation from bed and board, divorce or marriage annulment, for the dissolution or annulment of a civil union or for the payment of a compensatory allowance, the member or former member of the council and his or her spouse are entitled to obtain, upon application to Retraite Québec on the conditions and according to the terms prescribed by regulation, a statement setting out the value of the benefits accrued by the member or former member of the council under this plan, the value of such benefits for the period of the marriage or civil union and any other information determined by regulation.

The member or former member and his or her spouse are also entitled to receive a statement of benefits, upon an application in writing to the pension committee, for the purposes of a pre-hearing mediation concerning a family matter or of a joint procedure before a notary for the dissolution of their civil union. The statement shall contain the information determined by regulation.

1990, c. 5, s. 47; 2002, c. 6, s. 203; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

41.5. For the purposes of their partition and assignment, the benefits accrued under this plan shall be established according to the rules fixed by regulation, which may differ from the rules otherwise applicable under this Act. The benefits shall be assessed in accordance with the actuarial rules, assumptions and methods determined by regulation, which may vary according to the nature of the benefits established.

The benefits shall be established and assessed on the date of institution of the proceedings or, if the court so decides, on the date on which the spouses ceased to live together or on the date determined in the notarized transaction settling the consequences of the dissolution of the civil union.

1990, c. 5, s. 47; 2002, c. 6, s. 204.

41.6. Retraite Québec, upon an application made on the conditions and according to the terms prescribed by regulation, shall pay the sums awarded to the spouse. The regulation may also prescribe rules, conditions and terms for the payment of such sums and, where applicable, the interest payable thereon.

1990, c. 5, s. 47; 2015, c. 20, s. 61.

41.7. Every sum paid to the spouse, the interest yielded by it and the benefits constituted with such sums shall be inalienable and unseizable.

1990, c. 5, s. 47.

41.8. Following payment of the sums awarded to the spouse of the member or former member of the council, every sum payable under this plan with respect to the membership of the member or former member of the council shall be reduced in accordance with the actuarial rules, assumptions and methods prescribed by regulation, which may vary according to the nature of the benefit from which such sum is derived.

1990, c. 5, s. 47.

41.9. Where, following a separation from bed and board, the value of the benefits accrued by the member or former member of the council under this plan has been included in whole or in part in the value of the benefits that may be partitioned, the partition of the family patrimony shall entail, for the spouse who obtained it, the extinction of any other benefit, advantage or reimbursement which he could claim in his quality as spouse, unless the spouses resume living together.

1990, c. 5, s. 47.

DIVISION IX REGULATIONS

42. The Government may, by regulation:

(a)  determine the rates of interest for which this Act provides for the fixing by regulation and, as the case may be, the rules governing the computing of the interest;

(b)  determine the form and contents of any form and the information which must be furnished on it;

(c)  (subparagraph repealed);

(d)  order that a pension may be paid otherwise than by monthly instalments;

(e)  (subparagraph repealed);

(f)  determine the terms and conditions for purposes of computing the pension;

(g)  determine every other measure necessary for the application of this Act;

(h)  determine the terms and conditions of the applications required under Division VIII.2;

(i)  determine, for the purposes of section 41.4, the information which must be contained in the statement setting out the value of the benefits accrued by the member or former member of the council;

(j)  fix, for the purposes of section 41.5, the rules which apply to the establishment of the benefits accrued under this plan, which may differ from the rules otherwise applicable under this Act; determine, for the purposes of the said section, the actuarial rules, assumptions and methods which apply to the assessment of accrued benefits and which may vary according to the nature of the benefits;

(k)  determine, for the purposes of section 41.6, the rules and the terms and conditions of payment of the sums awarded to the spouse and, where applicable, the interest payable thereon;

(l)  prescribe, for the purposes of section 41.8, the actuarial rules, assumptions and methods for reducing any sum payable under this plan, which may vary according to the nature of the benefit from which such sum is derived;

(m)  establish any measure to eliminate an unfunded liability of this plan, in particular by requiring the payment of additional contributory amounts by every municipality which has joined the plan or by every municipality which succeeded such a municipality.

A regulation under subparagraph a or k of the first paragraph may determine periods relating to interest payable and determine a separate rate of interest for each period.

Every regulation made under this Act shall come into force from its publication in the Gazette officielle du Québec or on any later date fixed therein.

1974, c. 48, s. 42; 1978, c. 60, s. 12; 1988, c. 85, s. 96; 1990, c. 5, s. 48; 2003, c. 19, s. 215; 2005, c. 28, s. 128.

DIVISION IX.1 SUPPLEMENTARY BENEFITS PLAN

2016, c. 17, s. 112.

42.0.1. If the general plan fund is exhausted, the payments provided for in the plan shall be made out of a supplementary benefits plan established by the Government.

All the benefits payable under the general plan become benefits payable under the supplementary benefits plan according to the same terms of payment. The benefits accrued during a marriage or civil union under the general plan shall be paid by the supplementary benefits plan as if they were paid out of the general plan fund.

The sums required to make payments under the supplementary benefits plan shall be borne by the municipalities determined by the Government, which shall establish their annual contribution to the supplementary benefits plan, the time limit within which any payment is to be made and the rate of interest payable on an outstanding payment. The Government may also determine a threshold below which a municipality ceases to contribute to the supplementary benefits plan.

The sums paid under the supplementary benefits plan shall be unassignable and unseizable. However, such sums shall be unseizable only up to 50% in the case of partition of the family patrimony between married or civil union spouses or payment of support or of a compensatory allowance.

An order made under the first paragraph may have effect on any date not prior to 1 October 2016. Any other order made under the third paragraph may have effect 12 months or less before its adoption.

2016, c. 17, s. 112.

42.0.2. Retraite Québec is responsible for the administration of the supplementary benefits plan.

2016, c. 17, s. 112.

DIVISION X FINAL PROVISIONS

42.1. The Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy is responsible for the administration of this Act.

2003, c. 19, s. 216; 2005, c. 28, s. 196; 2009, c. 26, s. 109.

43. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 43; 1978, c. 60, s. 13; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

44. (Repealed).

1974, c. 48, s. 44; 1977, c. 5, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

45. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

46. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

47. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

48. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 14; 1982, c. 63, s. 236; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

49. (Repealed).

1978, c. 60, s. 14; 1988, c. 85, s. 97.

50. (This section ceased to have effect on 17 April 1987).

1982, c. 21, s. 1; U. K., 1982, c. 11, Sch. B, Part I, s. 33.

REPEAL SCHEDULE

In accordance with section 17 of the Act respecting the consolidation of the statutes (chapter R-3), chapter 48 of the statutes of 1974, in force on 31 December 1977, is repealed, except sections 45 and 46, effective from the coming into force of chapter R-16 of the Revised Statutes.