§620. Transfer of other service credit

A. Any member of this system or of another state or statewide system, who would otherwise be eligible for benefits under the plan except that his first employment making him eligible for membership in any state system occurred on or before December 31, 2010, and who has not participated in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan in the system of which he is a member and who is not a reemployed retiree of his system or a retiree of this system reemployed under Option 1 or Option 3 as provided in R.S. 11:416, shall have the right to irrevocably elect to become a member of the plan by submitting an application to the board of trustees to be effective on or after January 1, 2011.

B. Any member who elects to join the Hazardous Duty Services Plan from an existing system or plan shall have the option of:

(1)(a) Maintaining prior service credit in the existing system or plan pursuant to the provisions of that system or plan and accruing service credit and benefits in the Hazardous Duty Services Plan after the date he joins the plan.

(b) For any member who joins the Hazardous Duty Services Plan after July 1, 2011, if such member elects to maintain prior service credit in his existing system or plan and that election results in an actuarial cost to this system, then the member shall pay the system the amount of such actuarial cost prior to his retirement.

(2)(a) An internal actuarial transfer from plan to plan in accordance with the provisions of R.S. 11:143(C) and (D) in which the member transfers all of his service credit from each other system or plan and maintains prior service credit at the accrual rate at which it was earned in the existing system or plan prior to joining the Hazardous Duty Services Plan. In the event that the amount of funds transferred is less than the actuarial cost of the service transferred to the plan, the member transferring, except as otherwise provided in this Section, shall pay the deficit or difference including the interest thereon at the board-approved actuarial valuation rate of the system.

(b) In lieu of paying the deficit or difference plus interest, the member may at his option, but only at the time of transfer, be granted an amount of credit in the plan which is based on the amount of funds actually transferred plus any additional funds less than the deficit paid by the member.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in Subparagraph (d) of this Paragraph, a member who completes a transfer under the provisions of this Section shall have his retirement benefit calculated using the accrual rate of the system or plan from which he transferred based on the number of years transferred.

(d) A member choosing an internal actuarial transfer shall be eligible to upgrade the service credit that was actuarially transferred pursuant to this Subsection to the accrual rate of the Hazardous Duty Services Plan by paying an amount that totally offsets the increase in actuarial liability resulting from the upgrade in accordance with R.S. 11:158.

C.(1) An employee who is a contributing member of any other plan in this or another state or statewide system who would otherwise be required to become a member of this plan as a condition of employment in a position which would otherwise qualify him for such membership on or after January 1, 2011, may elect at the time of his employment in such position to remain a contributing member of the last plan in this system of which he was a member or of such other system for which he remains eligible for membership.

(2) For an employee who elects to remain a member of a plan in this system, applicable to members employed in hazardous duty positions, which plan was in existence on or before December 31, 2010, service credit earned on or after January 1, 2011, in one of the hazardous duty positions defined in R.S. 11:612(2) shall be deemed as service credit earned in a position covered by such plan.

D. A member whose first employment making him eligible for membership in a state retirement system occurred on or before December 31, 2010, who elects to join this plan shall thereafter for purposes of all state retirement systems be treated as an employee whose first eligibility for membership occurred on or after January 1, 2011.

E. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the premiums for health insurance coverage paid by any retiree participating in the Office of Group Benefits program who has transferred service credit to this plan from another plan in this or any other state system and has retired pursuant to R.S. 11:614(A)(1) or (2) shall be increased by an amount sufficient to pay for any increase in the employer's premiums resulting from his retirement pursuant to these provisions. Such increase in the retiree's premium shall be deducted from the retiree's monthly benefit and remitted to the Office of Group Benefits. The Office of Group Benefits shall offset the employer's premium payments by such amount.

Acts 2010, No. 992, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2011; Acts 2011, No. 368, §1, eff. July 1, 2011.