Florida Florida Statutes

§ 121.081 — Past service; prior service; contributions

FS § 121.081Ch. 121

Statute text

Conditions under which past service or prior service may be claimed and credited are:(1)(a) Past service, as defined in s. 121.021, may be claimed as creditable service by officers or employees of a municipality, metropolitan planning organization, charter school, charter technical career center, or special district who become a covered group under this system. The governing body of a covered group in compliance with s. 121.051(2)(b) may elect to provide benefits for past service earned before January 1, 1975, in accordance with this chapter, and the cost for such past service is established by applying the following formula: The member contribution for both regular and special risk members is 4 percent of the gross annual salary for each year of past service claimed, plus 4-percent employer matching contribution, plus 4-percent interest thereon compounded annually, figured on each year of past service, with interest compounded from date of annual salary earned until July 1, 1975, and 6.5-percent interest compounded annually thereafter until date of payment. Once the total cost for a member has been figured to date, then after July 1, 1975, 6.5-percent compounded interest shall be added each June 30 thereafter on any unpaid balance until the cost of such past service liability is paid in full. The following formula shall be used in calculating past service earned before January 1, 1975: (Annual gross salary multiplied by 8 percent) multiplied by the 4-percent or 6.5-percent compound interest table factor, as may be applicable. The resulting product equals cost to date for each particular year of past service.

(b)Past service earned after January 1, 1975, may be claimed by officers or employees of a municipality, metropolitan planning organization, charter school, charter technical career center, or special district who become a covered group under this system. The governing body of a covered group may elect to provide benefits for past service earned after January 1, 1975, in accordance with this chapter. The cost for such past service is established by applying the following formula: The employer shall contribute an amount equal to the employer contribution rate in effect at the time the service was earned and, if applicable, the employee contribution rate, multiplied by the employee's gross salary for each year of past service claimed, plus 6.5 percent interest thereon, compounded annually, for each year of past service, with interest compounded from date of annual salary earned until date of payment. (c)

(d)Employment prior to January 1, 1968, in the Cuban Refugee Assistance Program administered by the Florida State Department of Public Welfare or the Florida State Board of Health shall be deemed to be included in past service as defined in s. 121.021(18), for the purposes of the Florida Retirement System, any other provisions of law notwithstanding and regardless of the fund from which such employment was paid. If credit for such service has not been granted under any other state or federal system, any member of the Florida Retirement System or any system consolidated therein shall be entitled to receive past-service credit for his or her period of employment in the Cuban Refugee Assistance Program prior to January 1, 1968, in the manner provided in this subsection. However, in no event will eligibility for past service be established unless required contributions are paid into the Florida Retirement System for such period of past service and such contributions are not paid from general revenue funds of the state.

(e)Past service, as defined in s. 121.021, may be claimed as creditable service by a member of the Florida Retirement System who formerly was an officer or employee of a municipality, metropolitan planning organization, charter school, charter technical career center, or special district, notwithstanding the status or form of the retirement system, if any, of that municipality, metropolitan planning organization, charter school, charter technical career center, or special district and irrespective of whether such officers or employees now or hereafter become a covered group under the Florida Retirement System. Such member may claim creditable service and be entitled to the benefits accruing to the regular class of members as provided for the past service claimed under this paragraph by paying into the retirement trust fund an amount equal to the total actuarial cost of providing the additional benefit resulting from such past-service credit, discounted by the applicable actuarial factors to date of retirement.

(f)If any person becomes entitled to and participates in one of the retirement systems under this chapter through the consolidation or merger of governments or the transfer of functions between units of government, at the state or local level or between state and local units, or through the assumption of functions or activities by a state or local unit from an employing governmental entity that was not an employer under the system, and such person becomes a member of the Florida Retirement System, such person is entitled to receive past-service credit for the time the person performed services for, and was an employee of, such state or local unit or other governmental employing entity before the transfer, merger, consolidation, or assumption of functions and activities. Past-service credit allowed by this paragraph is also available to any person who becomes a member of an existing system before December 1, 1970, through the transfer, merger, consolidation, or assumption of functions and activities set forth in this paragraph and who subsequently becomes a member of the Florida Retirement System. However, credit for the past service may not be granted until contributions are made in the manner provided in this subsection. If a person rejected Florida Retirement System membership at the time of the transfer, merger, consolidation, or assumption of governmental functions and activities, the required contributions shall be at total actuarial cost as specified in paragraph (e). Such contributions or accrued interest may not be paid from any public funds.

(g)Any person who was enrolled on May 15, 1976, in a state retirement system administered under this chapter and who was, on that date, an officer or employee of a consolidated government which by virtue of its charter had elected status as a municipality for purposes of state retirement systems administered under this chapter and who had not withdrawn his or her contributions shall be deemed to have become a member of that system as of the date he or she began to participate therein, whether employed by the consolidated government or a preceding interim government on that date, and shall be entitled to retain membership in that system so long as he or she continues to be an officer or employee of the consolidated government, regardless of the fact that the consolidated government and interim government were not employers as defined in s. 121.021(10). Any person who was enrolled before May 15, 1976, in a state retirement system administered under this chapter and who was, during the period of enrollment, an officer or employee of a consolidated government which by virtue of its charter had elected status as a municipality for purposes of state retirement systems administered under this chapter, who terminated employment with the consolidated government, and who had not withdrawn his or her contributions shall be deemed to have been a member of the retirement system in which he or she was enrolled during the period of such enrollment and employment by that consolidated government and during any period of enrollment and employment by any interim government which performed the functions of the consolidated government prior to its creation, regardless of the fact that the consolidated government and interim government were not employers as defined in s. 121.021(10). However, in no event shall credit be granted for service rendered in such employment prior to May 15, 1976, unless the contributions required for such credit were paid prior to May 15, 1976.

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Legislative history

s. 8, ch. 70-112; s. 27, ch. 71-355; s. 1, ch. 72-168; s. 1, ch. 74-158; s. 5, ch. 74-302; s. 1, ch. 75-260; s. 2, ch. 76-226; s. 3, ch. 77-469; s. 5, ch. 79-377; s. 7, ch. 80-242; s. 2, ch. 80-243; s. 4, ch. 81-214; s. 9, ch. 84-266; s. 5, ch. 85-246; s. 12, ch. 88-382; s. 6, ch. 92-122; s. 772, ch. 95-147; s. 8, ch. 98-138; s. 36, ch. 99-255; s. 10, ch. 99-392; s. 9, ch. 2000-169; s. 5, ch.