| SYNOPSIS: | Under existing law, a person previously employed by a nonparticipating local agency is not authorized to purchase credit for the service under the Teachers' Retirement System. |
| This bill would allow the purchase of previous service with a nonparticipating local agency under the Teachers' Retirement System. |
To reopen the Teachers' Retirement System to allow certain employees to purchase credit for certain prior service rendered to nonparticipating employers eligible for participation in the Employees' Retirement System.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. (a)(1) Any person who, as of July 1, 1990, is an officer or a regular employee of an employer participating in the Teachers' Retirement System and who has previously been employed by another employer eligible for participation in the Employees' Retirement System pursuant to Section 36-27-6, Code of Alabama 1975, shall be eligible to receive creditable service for each year of service previously rendered to another employer eligible for participation in the Employees' Retirement System pursuant to Section 36-27-6, Code of Alabama 1975, for up to eight years of creditable service up to ten years of creditable service for each year of service previously rendered to another employer eligible for participation in the Employees' Retirement System pursuant to Section 36-27-6, Code of Alabama 1975, provided, that the member claiming the credit shall have attained not less than 10 years of contributing membership service credit, exclusive of military service credit under the Teachers' Retirement System, and the member performs and complies with the condition prescribed in subdivision (2).
(2) A member of the Teachers' Retirement System eligible under subsection (a), may receive credit for service rendered to another employer eligible for participation in the Employees' Retirement System as provided in subdivision (1), provided that prior to receiving the credit, the member shall contribute, prior to the date of his or her retirement, to the Teachers' Retirement System, the full actuarially determined cost for each year of service purchased as determined by the system's actuary. Notwithstanding the foregoing language, no member of the Teacher's Retirement System shall be eligible to receive credit for any service that the member is already credited with in the system or in any other public retirement plan, with the exception of the Federal Social Security Program.
(b) The eligible employer defined in subsection (a) shall certify in writing to the Teachers' Retirement System of Alabama the total employment status and earnable compensation by fiscal year for the member requesting the service credit.
(c) The member shall claim, purchase, and receive credit for all the service certified from the eligible employer up to a maximum of eight years. In addition, the member is only eligible for a maximum of eight years of service credit under this section regardless of the total number of eligible employers and total years of service.
Section 2. This act shall become effective on October 1, 1999, following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.