California Code, Government Code - GOV § 31789.5

(a) Upon the death of any person after retirement and while receiving a retirement allowance from this system, or any superseded system, there shall be paid to his or her estate, or to the beneficiary as he or she shall nominate by written designation duly executed and filed with the board, an amount determined by the board of supervisors.  The board of supervisors shall, by resolution adopted by majority vote, fix and determine an amount that may not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000).

(b) This section applies to every member who dies after this section becomes operative whether he or she has retired before or after the operative date or effective date of this section.

(c) The death benefit provided by this section shall be paid in lieu of a payment under Section 31789 or 31789.1 and may be paid in part, from contributions of the county or district in accordance with Section 31789, and in part, from surplus earnings of the retirement system in accordance with Section 31789.1.

(d) The death benefit provided by this section may, at the election of the board of retirement, be provided through a group life insurance policy if the cost of that policy to the system is the same or less than the cost to the system, county, or district of other methods of providing the benefit.

(e) This section may not be operative in any county until the board of supervisors, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, makes this section applicable in the county and the board of retirement, by resolution adopted by a majority vote, determines that its portion of the cost of the benefits may be financed from surplus earnings of the retirement fund.

(f) Upon adoption, by any county providing benefits pursuant to this section, of Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 31610), only that portion of those benefits that is paid from surplus earnings described in Section 31592.2 shall be paid, instead, from the Supplemental Retiree Benefits Reserve established pursuant to Section 31618.