KRS 61.705: Death benefit -- Designation of beneficiary -- Debt owed at death --

Assignment of benefit.

(1) (a) Upon the death of a retired member of the Kentucky Employees Retirement

System or State Police Retirement System who was receiving a monthly

retirement allowance based on a minimum of forty -eight (48) months of

service or whose retirement allowance based on a minimum of forty -eight

(48) months was suspended in accordance with KRS 61.637, a death benefit

for the beneficiary of five thousand dollars ($5,000) shall be paid.

(b) If the retired member had more than one (1) account in the Kentucky

Employees Retirement System or State Police Retirement System, or was

eligible for a benefit under KRS 78.5538 from the County Employees

Retirement System, th e systems shall pay only one (1) five thousand dollar

($5,000) death benefit to the named beneficiary. Each system's cost shall be

prorated between the systems based upon the level of service credit in each

system.

(c) Application for the death benefit mad e to the Kentucky Retirement Systems

shall include acceptable evidence of death and of the eligibility of the

applicant to receive the death benefit.

(2) (a) The death benefit shall be paid to a beneficiary named by the retired member.

Upon retirement or a ny time thereafter, the retired member may designate on

the form prescribed by the board, death benefit designation, a person, the

retired member's estate, a trust or trustee, or a licensed funeral home, as the

beneficiary of the death benefit provided by this section or KRS 78.5538. The

beneficiary for the death benefit may or may not be the same beneficiary

designated in accordance with KRS 61.590(1) but only one (1) designation

shall be available to a retired member who has service in both the County

Employees Retirement System and the Kentucky Retirement Systems.

(b) If the beneficiary designated under this section is a person and that person

dies prior to the member, or if the beneficiary was the retired member's

spouse and they were divorced on the dat e of the retired member's death, then

the retired member's estate shall become the beneficiary, unless the retired

member has filed a subsequent death benefit designation.

(c) If a licensed funeral home is designated as beneficiary and the licensed

funeral home cannot be reasonably identified or located by Kentucky

Retirement Systems at the time of the retired member's death, then the retired

member's estate shall become the beneficiary of the death benefit.

(3) The five thousand dollar ($5,000) death benef it paid to the designated beneficiary

shall not be subject to garnishment as an asset of the retired member's estate, except

if:

(a) At the time of the retired member's death, a debt to the Kentucky Retirement

Systems remains on his or her account, the bal ance owed shall be deducted

from the five thousand dollar ($5,000) death benefit;

(b) After the death of the retired member, an overpayment of benefits occurs, the

balance owed for the overpayment may be deducted from the five thousand

dollar ($5,000) death benefit; or

(c) At the time of the retired member's death, the designated beneficiar y is the

retired member's estate.

(4) Upon the death of a retired member, the death benefit provided pursuant to this

section may be assigned by the designated beneficiary to a bank or licensed funeral

home.