A. On and after July 1, 2014, members, while in office, shall contribute ten and one-half percent of salary to the member contribution fund.

B. Upon implementation, the state, acting as employer of members covered pursuant to the provisions of the Judicial Retirement Act, shall, solely for the purpose of compliance with Section 414(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, pick up, for the purposes specified in that section, member contributions required by this section for all annual salary earned by the member. Member contributions picked up pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be treated as employer contributions for purposes of determining income tax obligations under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; however, such picked-up member contributions shall be included in the determination of the member's gross annual salary for all other purposes under federal and state laws. Member contributions picked up pursuant to the provisions of this section shall continue to be designated member contributions for all purposes of the Judicial Retirement Act and shall be considered as part of the member's annual salary for purposes of determining the amount of the member's contribution. The provisions of this section are mandatory, and the member shall have no option concerning the pickup or concerning the receipt of the contributed amounts directly instead of having the amounts paid by the employer to the retirement system. Implementation occurs upon authorization by the board. In no event may implementation occur other than at the beginning of a pay period applicable to the member.

History: Laws 1992, ch. 111, § 10; 2004, ch. 101, § 1; 2005, ch. 246, § 3; 2009, ch. 127, § 7; 2011, ch. 178, § 8; 2014, ch. 35, § 7.

Cross references. — For Section 414(h) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, see 26 U.S.C. § 414(h).

The 2014 amendment, effective July 1, 2014, increased contribution rates; in Subsection A, at the beginning of the subsection, added "On and after July 1, 2014", after "shall contribute", added "ten and one-half percent of salary"; and after "contribution fund", deleted "pursuant to the following schedule"; and in Subsection A, deleted former Paragraphs (1) through (3), which provided a schedule of contribution rates.

Severability. — Laws 2014, ch. 35, § 16 provided that if any part or application of Laws 2014, ch. 35 is held invalid, the remainder or its application to other situations or persons shall not be affected.

The 2011 amendment, effective July 1, 2011, for the period from July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012, increased the member contribution rate for members whose annual salary is more than twenty thousand dollars.

Temporary provisions. — Laws 2011, ch. 178, § 15 provided that for the purposes of calculating employee and employer contributions due after June 30, 2011, in determining whether an employee has an annual salary greater or less than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000), the employee's annual salary shall be the employee's base hourly rate at the time the contribution is made multiplied by the number of compensable hours for a full-time-equivalent in the employee's position at the time the contribution is made as determined by the employer; provided that the department of finance and administration shall determine the number of compensable hours for a full-time-equivalent in the employee's position for employees who are members in a retirement program provided for in the Public Employees Retirement Act, the Magistrate Retirement Act or the Judicial Retirement Act.

Laws 2011, ch. 178, § 16, provided that notwithstanding a provision of Laws 2011, Chapter 178 to the contrary, the employer and employee contribution rates required by this act for the period from July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012 shall continue for the period from July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013 if, after the last consensus revenue forecast before the beginning of the second session of the fiftieth legislature, the secretary of finance and administration certifies to the retirement board of the public employees retirement association, the educational retirement board and the legislative finance committee that, according to the consensus revenue forecast:

(1) general fund revenues in fiscal year 2012 will be less than one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) more than the general fund revenue forecast reflected in the fiscal year 2012 state budget; and

(2) at the end of fiscal year 2012, the total amount in the state reserve funds will be less than five percent of the total general fund appropriations for fiscal year 2012.

The 2009 amendment, effective July 1, 2009, in Paragraph (3) of Subsection A, added the exception at the end of the sentence.

The 2005 amendment, effective June 17, 2005, provided the schedule of contributions of members in Subsection A(1) through (3); and deleted former Subsection C.

The 2004 amendment, effective July 1, 2004, amended Subsection A to increase the contribution rate from 5% to 5 1/2% and added Subsection C making the increase in member contributions contingent upon a 6% salary increase for justices and judges.