§ 38-773 — Benefit payments to alternate payee under acceptable domestic relations order; termination of marriage; revocation of beneficiary designation; definitions

Arizona § 38-773

• Jurisdiction: Arizona
• Title 38: Arizona Revised Statutes
• Ch. 5: SOCIAL SECURITY AND RETIREMENT
• Art. 2: Arizona State Retirement System

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A. The board shall review any domestic relations order to which a member is a party and that is submitted to the board to determine if the domestic relations order is acceptable under this section. After a determination that a domestic relations order is acceptable under this section, the board shall notify the member and the named alternate payee of the board's acceptance of the domestic relations order, and ASRS shall pay benefits in accordance with the applicable requirements of the order.

B. An acceptable domestic relations order shall:

1. Not require the board to provide any type, form or time of payment of severance, survivor or retirement benefits or any severance, survivor or retirement benefit option that is not provided under this article.

2. Value the member's benefit on the earliest date of service of the petition for annulment, dissolution of marriage or legal separation.

C. An acceptable domestic relations order shall specify all of the following:

1. The name and last known mailing address of the member.

2. The name and last known mailing address of each alternate payee who is covered by the order.

3. The method of determining the amount of the member's severance, survivor or retirement benefits to be paid by ASRS to each alternate payee covered by the order.

4. The number of payments or period to which the order applies.

D. Except as provided by the express terms of a domestic relations order, the divorce or annulment of a member's marriage revokes any revocable:

1. Disposition or appointment of benefits made by a divorced member to that member's former spouse or to a relative of the divorced member's former spouse in an instrument executed by the member before the divorce or annulment of the member's marriage to the former spouse.

2. Provision in an instrument executed by the member before the divorce or annulment of the member's marriage to the former spouse conferring any power or right on the divorced member's former spouse or on a relative of the divorced member's former spouse.

E. ASRS shall give effect to provisions of an instrument executed by a member before the divorce or annulment of the member's marriage to a former spouse as follows:

1. In the case of disposition or appointment of benefits, as if the former spouse and relatives of the former spouse disclaimed all provisions revoked by this section.

2. In the case of a revoked power or right, as if the former spouse and relatives of the former spouse died immediately before the divorce or annulment.

F. Provisions of an instrument revoked solely as provided by this section are revived by the divorced member's remarriage to the former spouse or by a nullification of the member's divorce or annulment.

G. If an alternate payee predeceases the member, amounts payable to the alternate payee cease on the death of the alternate payee. ASRS shall cause the amount formerly payable to the alternate payee to revert to the member.

H. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Domestic relations order" means any judgment, decree, order or approval of a property settlement agreement entered in a court of competent jurisdiction that:

(a) Relates to marital property rights of a spouse or former spouse.

(b) Creates or recognizes in the spouse or former spouse the existence of an alternate payee's right to severance, survivor or retirement benefits.

(c) Assigns the spouse or former spouse as alternate payee the right to receive all or part of the severance, survivor or retirement benefits payable to the member.

2. "Relative of the divorced member's former spouse" means a person who is related to the divorced member's former spouse by blood, adoption or affinity and who, after the divorce or annulment, is not related to the divorced member by blood, adoption or affinity.