(a)     The general administration and responsibility for the proper operation of the System and for making effective the provisions of this article are hereby vested in a Board of Trustees consisting of eight (8) persons, as follows:

(1)     Three (3) Members other than Police Officers or Firefighters to be appointed as hereinafter provided;

(2)     Two (2) Firefighters to be elected as hereinafter provided; and

(3)     Two (2) Police Officers to be elected as hereinafter provided.

(4)     The finance director of the City shall be a nonvoting, ex officio member of the Board.

(b)     Commencing with the effective date of this amendment, the terms of office of each appointed Board member shall be two (2) years and shall be staggered in such a manner that no more than one Board member's term of office shall expire in any calendar year.

(c)     Commencing with the effective date of this amendment, the terms of office of the elective Board members shall be two (2) years, unless the elective Board member sooner leaves the employment of the City as a Police Officer or Firefighter, whereupon a successor shall be chosen in the same manner as an original appointment for an elective Board member. Nothing herein shall be construed in such a manner as to preclude a DROP Participant from serving as an elected member of the Board.

(d)     Two of the three appointive members shall be appointed by the City Commission, each of whom must be a legal resident of the City. Each of the two above appointive members shall serve as trustee for a period of two (2) years, unless sooner replaced by the City Commission at whose pleasure they shall serve. The third appointive member shall be chosen by a majority of the previous six members and such person's name shall be submitted to the City Commission. Upon receipt of the seventh person's name, the City Commission shall, as a ministerial duty, appoint such person to the Board of Trustees as its seventh member. The seventh member shall have the same rights as each of the other six members appointed or elected as herein provided, shall serve on the Board for a period of two (2) years, and may succeed himself or herself in office.

(e)     The elective members shall be elected in the following manner, to wit: by per capita vote of all Members of each of said respective departments who come within the purview of this division, both active and retired, at meetings to be held at places designated by the Board, at which meetings all qualified Members entitled to vote shall be notified in person or by mail ten (10) days in advance of said meeting. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected and shall take office immediately upon commencement of the term of office for which elected or as soon thereafter as he shall qualify therefor. An election shall be held each year not more than thirty (30) and not less than ten (10) days prior to commencement of the terms for which members are to be elected in that year. The Board shall meet, organize and elect one of their members as chairman, and one member as vice chairman, and one member as secretary within ten (10) days after members are elected and duly qualified. The initial election shall be administered by the then existing police and fire "joint pension committee" and until such election and formal establishment of the Board the "joint pension committee" shall be authorized and charged with the responsibilities herein prescribed for the pension administrative board.

(f)     If an elective seat on the Board is vacated for any reason an election to fill the vacated position shall be conducted. If an appointive seat on the Board is vacated for any reason, the seat shall be filled by appointment. A replacement member shall serve for the unexpired term of the person replaced.

(g)     Members shall serve without compensation, but they may be reimbursed for expenses and per diem as provided by Florida law from the expense fund.

(h)     Each Board member shall, within ten (10) days after his appointment or election, take an oath of office before the City Clerk of the City, that so far as it develops upon him he will diligently and honestly administer the affairs of the said Board, and that he will not knowingly violate or willingly permit to be violated any of the provisions of the law applicable to the Retirement System. Such oath shall be subscribed to by the Members making it and certified by the said Clerk and filed in his office.

(i)     Any and all acts and decisions of the Board shall be effectuated by vote of a majority of the members of the Board; however, no trustee shall take part in any action in connection with his or her own participation in the Fund, and no unfair discrimination shall be shown to any individual employee participating in the Fund. Each member shall be entitled to one (1) vote on the Board. The chairman shall have the right to one (1) vote only. A quorum shall consist of four (4) members.

(j)     Subject to the limitations of this division, the Board shall from time to time establish uniform rules and regulations for the administration of funds created by this division, and for transactions of its business, including provisions for compulsory attendance of its members, which shall have the force of law. The Board shall meet at least quarterly each year. The Board shall be a legal entity with, in addition to other powers and responsibilities, the power to bring and defend lawsuits in its own name of every kind, nature and description.

(k)     The Board shall, by majority vote of its members, appoint a secretary. The secretary of the Board shall keep a complete minute book of the actions, proceedings, or hearings of the Board. The secretary of the Board shall keep a record of all persons receiving retirement payments under the provisions of this Plan and Chapters 175 and 185, Florida Statutes, in which shall be noted the time when the pension is allowed and when the pension shall cease to be paid. In this record, the secretary shall keep a list of all Police Offices and Firefighters employed by the City. The record shall show the name, address and time of employment of such Police Officer and Firefighter and when he or she ceases to be employed by the City. All funds shall be disbursed by the City finance department only on authorization of the Board.

(l)     The sole and exclusive administration of, and the responsibilities for, the proper operation of the Fund and for making effective the provisions of this Plan and Chapters 175 and 185, Florida Statutes are vested in the Board; however nothing herein shall empower the Board to amend the provisions of the Plan without approval of the governing body of the City. The Board shall keep in convenient form such data as shall be necessary for an actuarial valuation of the Plan and for checking the actual experience of the Fund.

(m)     At least once every 3 years, the Board shall retain a professionally qualified independent consultant, as that term is defined in Sec. 175.071 and 185.06, Florida Statutes, who shall evaluate the performance of any existing professional money manager and shall make recommendations to the Board regarding the selection of money managers for the next investment term. These recommendations shall be considered by the Board at its next regularly scheduled meeting. The date, time, place and subject of this meeting shall be advertised in the same manner as for any meeting of the Board.

(n)     The duties and responsibilities of the Board shall include, but not necessarily be limited to the following:

(1)     To construe the provisions of the System and finally decide all claims to relief pursuant to the provisions of this Plan and Chapters 175 and 185, Florida Statutes to the extent such provisions are applicable to this Plan;

(2)     To determine all questions relating to eligibility and participation;

(3)     To determine and certify amount of all retirement allowances or other benefits hereunder;

(4)     Having annual actuarial valuations of the System performed;

(5)     To establish uniform rules and procedures to be followed for administrative purposes, benefit applications and all matters required to administer the Plan;

(6)     To distribute at regular intervals to Employees, information concerning the Plan;

(7)     To receive, process and approve all applications for participation and benefits; to notify the City finance department of approved benefit payments;

(8)     To perform such duties as are specified in section 20-133;

(9)     To review reports of the custodian and separate Investment Advisor, if any;

(10)     To submit copies of all annual reports to the City Commission; and

(11)     To conduct meetings with the Investment Advisor not less than once every three (3) months of each year.

(o)     To assist the Board in meeting its responsibilities under the Plan and Chapters 175 and 185, Florida Statutes, the Board, if it so elects, may:

(1)     Employ independent legal counsel at the Fund's expense.

(2)     Employ an independent actuary, as defined in Sec. 175.032(4) and 185.02(5), Florida Statutes, 1999 at the Fund's expense.

(3)     Employ such independent professional, technical or other advisers as it deems necessary at the Fund's expense.