(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), if a
unit, an airport authority, a school corporation, or a charter school
becomes a participant in the 1977 fund, credit for prior service by
police officers (including prior service as a full-time, fully paid town
marshal, full-time, fully paid deputy town marshal, full-time, fully paid
conservancy district marshal, or full-time, fully paid deputy
conservancy district marshal by a police officer employed by a
metropolitan board of police commissioners), by firefighters, or by
school resource officers before the date of participation may be given
by the system board only if:
(1) the amount necessary to fund the police officer's, firefighter's,
or school resource officer's prior service liability is contributed to
the 1977 fund under an agreement that specifies how much the
unit, airport authority, school corporation, or charter school is to
contribute, if any, and how much the police officer, firefighter, or
school resource officer is to contribute, if any; and
(2) the amount that the police officers, firefighters, or school
resource officers would have contributed if they had been
members of the 1977 fund during their prior service is paid to the
1977 fund under an agreement that specifies how much the unit,
airport authority, school corporation, or charter school is to
contribute, if any, and how much the police officer, firefighter, or
school resource officer is to contribute, if any.
If the requirements of subdivisions (1) and (2) are not met, a fund
member is entitled to credit only for years of service after the date of
participation. Contributions under subdivisions (1) and (2) must be
paid in a lump sum or in installments over a period of not more than
thirty (30) years, the amount and period to be determined by the system
board. The periods determined by the system board under subdivisions
(1) and (2) for any installment payments may differ between the unit,
the airport authority, the school corporation, or the charter school and
the police officers, firefighters, or school resource officers and between
subdivisions (1) and (2).
(b) If a unit becomes a participant in the 1977 fund under section
3(c) of this chapter, if an airport authority becomes a participant in the
1977 fund under section 3(e) of this chapter, if a school corporation or
charter school becomes a member of the 1977 fund under section 3(f)
of this chapter, or if a firefighter becomes a member of the 1977 fund
under section 7(g) of this chapter, credit for prior service before the
date of participation or membership shall be given by the system board
as follows:
(1) For a member who will accrue twenty (20) years of service
credit in the 1977 fund by the time the member reaches the
earliest retirement age under the fund at the time of the member's
date of participation in the 1977 fund and who participated in
PERF as a police officer, a firefighter, an emergency medical
technician, or a school resource officer, the member will be given
credit in the 1977 fund for one-third (1/3) of the member's years
of participation in PERF as a police officer, a firefighter, an
emergency medical technician, or a school resource officer.
(2) For a member who will accrue twenty (20) years of service
credit in the 1977 fund by the time the member reaches the
earliest retirement age under the fund at the time of the member's
date of participation in the 1977 fund and who did not participate
in a pension plan as a police officer, a firefighter, an emergency
medical technician, or a school resource officer, the member will
be given credit in the 1977 fund for one-third (1/3) of the
member's years of prior service with the unit as a police officer,
a firefighter, an emergency medical technician, or a school
resource officer only if:
(A) The amount necessary to fund the member's prior service
liability is contributed to the 1977 fund under an agreement that
specifies how much the unit, airport authority, school
corporation, or charter school is to contribute, if any, and how
much the member is to contribute, if any. Contributions must be
paid in a lump sum or in installments as provided in clause (C).
The amount of contributions must be based on the actual salary
earned by a first class patrolman or a first class firefighter at the
time the unit, the airport authority, the school corporation, or
the charter school becomes a participant in the 1977 fund, or
the police officer, firefighter, or school resource officer
becomes a member of the 1977 fund, or if no such salary
designation exists, the actual salary earned by the police officer,
firefighter, or school resource officer.
(B) The amount the police officer, firefighter, or school
resource officer would have contributed if the police officer,
firefighter, or school resource officer had been a member of the
1977 fund during the police officer's, firefighter's, or school
resource officer's prior service must be fully paid under an
agreement that specifies how much the unit, the airport
authority, the school corporation, or the charter school is to pay,
if any, and how much the member is to pay, if any.
Contributions must be paid in a lump sum or in installments as
provided in clause (C). The amount of contributions must be
based on the police officer's, firefighter's, or school resource
officer's actual salary earned during that period before service
can be credited under this section.
(C) Any amortization schedule for contributions paid under
clause (A) and contributions to be paid under clause (B) must
include interest at a rate determined by the system board. The
board shall determine the term of any amortization schedule
authorized under clauses (A) and (B), not to exceed ten (10)
years. The terms of the various amortization schedules
authorized under clauses (A) and (B) may differ.
(3) For a member who will not accrue twenty (20) years of service
credit in the 1977 fund by the time the member reaches the
earliest retirement age under the fund at the time of the member's
date of participation in the 1977 fund, credit for such prior service
shall be given only if:
(A) The amount necessary to fund the member's prior service
liability is contributed to the 1977 fund under an agreement that
specifies how much the unit, the airport authority, the school
corporation, or the charter school is to contribute, if any, and
how much the member is to contribute, if any. Contributions
must be paid in a lump sum or in installments as provided in
clause (C). The amount of contributions must be based on the
actual salary earned by a first class patrolman or a first class
firefighter at the time the unit, the airport authority, the school
corporation, or the charter school becomes a participant in the
1977 fund, or the police officer, firefighter, or school resource
officer becomes a member of the 1977 fund, or if no such salary
designation exists, the actual salary earned by the police officer,
firefighter, or school resource officer. The limit on credit for
prior service does not apply to a firefighter if the firefighter was
a member of the 1937 fund or 1977 fund whose participation
was terminated due to the creation of a new fire protection
district under IC 36-8-11-5 and who subsequently became a
member of the 1977 fund. A firefighter who was a member of
or reentered the 1937 fund or 1977 fund whose participation
was terminated due to the creation of a new fire protection
district under IC 36-8-11-5 is entitled to full credit for prior
service in an amount equal to the firefighter's years of service
before becoming a member of or reentering the 1977 fund.
Service may only be credited for time as a full-time, fully paid
police officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician under
section 7(g) of this chapter, or school resource officer.
(B) The amount the police officer, firefighter, or school
resource officer would have contributed if the police officer,
firefighter, or school resource officer had been a member of the
1977 fund during the police officer's, firefighter's, or school
resource officer's prior service must be fully paid under an
agreement that specifies how much the unit, the airport
authority, the school corporation, or the charter school is to pay
and how much the member is to pay. Contributions must be
paid in a lump sum or in installments as provided in clause (C).
The amount of contributions must be based on the police
officer's, firefighter's, or school resource officer's actual salary
earned during that period before service can be credited under
this section.
(C) Any amortization schedule for contributions paid under
clause (A) and contributions to be paid under clause (B) must
include interest at a rate determined by the system board. The
board shall determine the term of any amortization schedule
authorized under clauses (A) and (B), not to exceed ten (10)
years. The terms of the various amortization schedules
authorized under clauses (A) and (B) may differ.
(4) If, at the time a unit, an airport authority, a school corporation,
or a charter school entered the 1977 fund, a fund member
received the maximum prior service credit allowed by subdivision
(3) and, at a later date, the earliest retirement age was lowered,
the unit, the airport authority, the school corporation, or the
charter school or the fund member, or both, may contribute to the
1977 fund on the fund member's behalf an additional amount that
is determined in the same manner as under subdivision (3) with
respect to the additional prior service, if any, available as a result
of the lower retirement age. If the additional amount described in
this subdivision is paid in accordance with the requirements of
subdivision (3), the fund member shall receive the additional
service credit necessary for the fund member to retire at the lower
earliest retirement age.
(c) This subsection applies to a unit that:
(1) becomes a participant in the 1977 fund under section 3(c) of
this chapter; and
(2) is a fire protection district created under IC 36-8-11 that
includes a township or a municipality that had a 1937 fund.
A firefighter who continues uninterrupted service with a unit covered
by this subsection and who participated in the township or municipality
1937 fund is entitled to receive service credit for such service in the
1977 fund. However, credit for such service is limited to the amount
accrued by the firefighter in the 1937 fund or the amount necessary to
allow the firefighter to accrue twenty (20) years of service credit in the
1977 fund by the time the firefighter becomes fifty-two (52) years of
age, whichever is less.
(d) A unit to which subsection (c) applies shall contribute into the
1977 fund the amount necessary to fund the amount of past service
determined in accordance with subsection (c), amortized over a period
not to exceed ten (10) years with interest at a rate determined by the
system board.
(e) If the township or municipality has accumulated money in its
1937 fund, any amount accumulated that exceeds the present value of
all projected future benefits from the 1937 plan shall be paid by the
township or municipality to the unit for the sole purpose of making the
contributions determined in subsection (d).
(f) To the extent permitted by the Internal Revenue Code and the
applicable regulations, the 1977 fund may accept, on behalf of a fund
member who is purchasing permissive service credit under this chapter,
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.
(g) To the extent permitted by the Internal Revenue Code and the
applicable regulations, the 1977 fund may accept, on behalf of a fund
member who is purchasing permissive service credit under this chapter,
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.
[Pre-Local Government Recodification Citations:
19-1-17.8-16 part; 19-1-36.5-16 part.]
As added by Acts 1981, P.L.309, SEC.59. Amended by
P.L.313-1989, SEC.2; P.L.4-1990, SEC.19; P.L.149-1992, SEC.1;
P.L.101-1998, SEC.2; P.L.49-1998, SEC.9; P.L.61-2002, SEC.17;
P.L.148-2007, SEC.2; P.L.13-2011, SEC.20; P.L.35-2012, SEC.136;
P.L.130-2015, SEC.3; P.L.111-2015, SEC.7; P.L.43-2018, SEC.1;
P.L.102-2023, SEC.10; P.L.122-2023, SEC.30; P.L.170-2023, SEC.12;
P.L.135-2024, SEC.11.