19-11-115. State retirement systems; payment of contributions; interest.

(a) Any employee who did not elect to make employee contributions pursuant to W.S. 19-11-113 to the state retirement system applicable to his employment during his period of service in the uniformed services shall be entitled to receive credit for his service in the uniformed services toward establishing retirement eligibility and for computation of benefits upon payment into the system in an amount equal to the employee contributions that would have been paid had the employee continued in employment and not been called to service in the uniformed services, together with interest thereon at the valuation interest rate of the system or plan in effect at the time payment is made. The contributions shall be based on the salary including any increases in compensation that the employee would have received had he remained in employment during the period of service in the uniformed services.

(b) Upon payment by the employee of the employee contributions and interest as provided in subsection (a) of this section the employer shall pay to the retirement system an amount equal to the employer contributions that the employer would have paid to the retirement system had the employee remained in service, together with interest thereon, at the valuation interest rate in effect at the time payment is made. The contributions shall be based on the salary the employee would have received during the period of service in the uniformed services, including any increases in compensation that the employee would have received had he remained in employment during the period of service in the uniformed services. The employer contributions and interest due to the system shall be paid within thirty (30) days after the employee has paid all of the contributions due to the system or fund.

(c) All employee contributions and interest due thereon made in payment for service in the uniformed services credit in accordance with subsection (a) of this section must be received by the system within five (5) years of his reemployment.

(d) Should the employee fail to make the required contributions within four (4) years, the credit shall only count toward determining eligibility for retirement benefits. Any unpaid actuarial cost to the retirement system shall be borne by the employers through reflection in the employer rate established by the state retirement system s actuarial committee.

(e) Notwithstanding any other requirements in W.S. 19-11-113 or 19-11-114 or this section relating to payment of retirement contributions to a public or private retirement system, employer and employee contributions for any public or private retirement or pension system plan, not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) per person per year, may be paid by the Wyoming adjutant general, if the payment is permitted by the Internal Revenue Code, for any person whose primary occupation is that of a first responder and who is called or ordered into the federal service of the United States under title 10 of the United States Code.

(f) The provisions of subsection (e) of this section shall also apply to any Wyoming resident whose primary occupation is that of a first responder when that person is called or ordered into federal service with a national guard unit in any state in the United States. The adjutant general shall promulgate rules and regulations for the administration of the payments authorized under subsection (e) of this section which rules shall provide a method for application for persons not serving in the Wyoming national guard and which shall establish a method for prorating payments where insufficient funds exist to make full payment on behalf of all qualifying persons.

(g) The adjutant general shall report annually, no later than October 1, to the joint transportation, highways and military affairs interim committee. The report shall include the number of persons who qualified for the contributions under subsections (e) and (f) of this section, a listing of the civilian classifications of the persons applying for the contributions and the total amount expended for the contributions.