§ 36-8-10-12.5 — Purchase of service credit earned in certain Indiana public retirement funds

Indiana § 36-8-10-12.5

• Jurisdiction: Indiana
• Title 36: LOCAL GOVERNMENT
• Art. 8: PUBLIC SAFETY
• Ch. 10: Sheriff's Department; Merit Board; Pensions

Text

5. (a) This section applies after June 30,
2009, to active employee beneficiaries in a retirement plan established
under this chapter.
(b) As used in this section, "public retirement fund" refers to any of
the following, either singly or collectively:
(1) The public employees' retirement fund (IC 5-10.3).
(2) The Indiana state teachers' retirement fund (IC 5-10.4).
(3) The state excise police, gaming agent, gaming control officer,
and conservation enforcement officers' retirement fund (IC 5-10-5.5).
(4) The state police pension trust (IC 10-12).
(5) The 1977 police officers' and firefighters' pension and
disability fund (IC 36-8-8).
(6) A retirement plan established under this chapter by a
department other than the department that employs the employee
beneficiary who desires to purchase service credit under this
section.
(c) Subject to subsection (j), if an employee beneficiary:
(1) has not attained vested status in; and
(2) is not an active participant in;
a public retirement fund other than the retirement plan established
under this chapter by the department that employs the employee
beneficiary, the employee beneficiary may make a transfer described
in subsection (d) for the amount in the public retirement fund that is
attributable to contributions made by or on behalf of the employee
beneficiary (plus credited earnings).
(d) An employee beneficiary described in subsection (c) may
transfer the amount described in subsection (c) to a retirement plan
established under this chapter by the department that employs the
employee beneficiary in order to purchase service credit in the
retirement plan for the employee beneficiary's prior service in a public
retirement fund.
(e) A transfer under subsection (d) is irrevocable. A transfer cannot
exceed the amount necessary to fund the service purchase under
subsection (d). Any amounts in the public retirement fund after the
transfer shall remain subject to the public retirement fund's provisions.
(f) If an employee beneficiary makes a transfer under subsection (d),
the employee beneficiary is entitled to receive service credit for the
transferred amount equal to the service credit that would be purchased
by a contribution of the same amount computed at the actuarial present
value for an individual whose salary or wages and age would be the
same as the salary or wages and age of the employee beneficiary on the
transfer date.
(g) Before a transfer is made under this section, the employee
beneficiary must complete any forms required by:
(1) the public retirement fund from which the employee
beneficiary is requesting a transfer; and
(2) the retirement plan established under this chapter to which the
transfer is being made.
(h) An employee beneficiary who makes a transfer under subsection
(d) must have at least the number of years of credited service necessary
to receive an unreduced pension benefit in a retirement plan
established under this chapter by the department that employs the
employee beneficiary before the employee beneficiary may receive a
benefit based on the amount transferred under this section.
(i) An employee beneficiary who:
(1) makes a transfer under subsection (d); and
(2) terminates employment before satisfying the eligibility
requirements necessary to receive a monthly pension;
may withdraw the transferred amount, plus accumulated interest, from
the retirement plan established under this chapter by the department
that employs the employee beneficiary after submitting to the
retirement plan established under this chapter a properly completed
application for a refund. If a withdrawal of the transferred amount
occurs under this subsection, the benefit payable to the employee
beneficiary from the retirement plan established under this chapter
shall be adjusted as necessary to ensure that the plan remains
actuarially cost neutral to the county.
(j) The department may deny an application to transfer an amount
under this section if the transfer would exceed the limitations under
Section 415 of the Internal Revenue Code.
(k) If an employee beneficiary makes a transfer under subsection
(d), the employee beneficiary waives all credit for the employee
beneficiary's service in the public retirement fund from which the
amount is transferred or paid.
(l) To the extent permitted by the Internal Revenue Code and
applicable regulations, a retirement plan established under this chapter
may accept, on behalf of an employee beneficiary who is purchasing
permissive service credit under this section, a rollover of a distribution
from any of the following:
(1) A qualified plan described in Section 401(a) or Section 403(a)
of the Internal Revenue Code.
(2) An annuity contract or account described in Section 403(b) of
the Internal Revenue Code.
(3) An eligible plan that is maintained by a state, a political
subdivision of a state, or an agency or instrumentality of a state or
political subdivision of a state under Section 457(b) of the
Internal Revenue Code.
(4) An individual retirement account or annuity described in
Section 408(a) or Section 408(b) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(m) To the extent permitted by the Internal Revenue Code and
applicable regulations, a retirement plan established under this chapter
may accept, on behalf of an employee beneficiary who is purchasing
permissive service credit under this section, a trustee to trustee transfer
from any of the following:
(1) An annuity contract or account described in Section 403(b) of
the Internal Revenue Code.
(2) An eligible deferred compensation plan under Section 457(b)
of the Internal Revenue Code.

Legislative History

As added by P.L.98-2009, SEC.2.