1.
Description of Service That May Be Eligible
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) requires employers to reemploy and preserve job security, pension and welfare benefits for "qualified" employees whose employment was interrupted by military service. If qualified interrupted military service does not meet the qualifications for Active-Duty military service available to the member at no cost as provided under § 102 of this regulation, a member may be awarded credit for time spent in the military that interrupted public service provided that the appropriate employee and employer contributions (and interest, if applicable) are paid.
a. Service in the "Uniformed Services" means the performance of duty on a voluntary or involuntary basis in a Uniformed Service under competent authority and includes active duty, active and inactive duty for training, National Guard duty under Federal statute, and a period during which a person is absent from a position of employment for the purpose of an examination to determine the fitness of the person to perform such duty. The term also includes a period for which a person is absent from employment to perform funeral honors duty as authorized by law. In addition, service as an intermittent disaster-response appointee upon activation of the National Disaster Medical System or as a participant in an authorized training program is deemed service in the Uniformed Services in accordance with Public Law 107-188. The definition of "Uniformed Services" shall conform to the definition as provided from time to time pursuant to federal law.
b. Uniformed Service means any of the following:
i. the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, or any reserve components of such services;
ii. the National Guard or Air National Guard;
iii. the Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service; or
iv. any other category of persons designated by the President in time of war or emergency.
2.
Limitations
The member must have worked for an employer covered by one of the retirement systems administered by PERS, have left that employer for a military leave of absence, and returned to work for the same public employer within three months of discharge or release from the "Uniformed Services."
a.
To qualify to purchase this service, the member must have:
i. Held a job with the state or other public employer participating in PERS, MHSPRS, MRS, or ORP immediately prior to entering the uniformed services; and
ii. Given written or verbal notice (or verification upon return where such notice could not be provided), to the member's public employer that he or she was leaving the job for military training or service; and
iii. Not exceeded the five-year cumulative limit on periods of service or the period to complete an initial enlistment, or such other period as provided under applicable federal law; and
iv. Have been discharged under honorable conditions or as otherwise provided by applicable federal law (Note that the following types of service do not qualify for purchase under USERRA:
a. where the member separated from the service with a dishonorable or bad conduct discharge;
b. where the member separated from the service under other than honorable conditions;
c. where a member was dismissed or discharged from the service as the result of a court martial; or
d. where the member was dropped from the rolls due to absence without authority for more than three months or imprisoned by a civilian court.); and
v. Reported back to the same public employer within 90 days after the member's discharge, unless he/she was hospitalized for or convalescing from a service-connected injury or illness in which case the deadline for reporting to work may be extended for up to two years; and
vi. Met any other requirements provided by applicable federal law.
b.
Military Service Performed after Withdrawal from State Service
No military service is available for service credit under this provision after the member leaves covered public service or retires. In order to begin drawing a retirement allowance the individual must have withdrawn or terminated from service. To have military service considered for service credit, the member must have left state service for the purpose of entering the military and later returned to covered state service after discharge from qualifying service under USERRA. Should the member enter military service after retirement or termination of employment and later return to covered state service, no service credit for such military service is available under this section.
c.
Ineligible Service
Weekend drills and temporary annual training periods for which the employee is granted paid leave under State Law (e.g., summer camp) do not qualify for purchase under this provision as contributions have already been made on compensation paid during such periods. Further, a member may not receive additional service credit for periods of time for which he or she has already received service credit (i.e., where the individual is on paid personal leave). Where periods of public and qualified military service overlap, such may not result in more than one year of service credit being awarded during the same fiscal year.
d.
Payment
i. To obtain a cost statement, the member's employer shall complete and submit a Form 25D, Determination of Entitlement to Purchase Pension Service Credit under the Veteran's Reemployment Rights Laws, which certifies the employee's eligibility to purchase service, and a Form 25M, Statement of Qualified Military Service, along with a copy of the member's military DD214 honorable discharge forms or other comparable documentation showing the date of entry and separation from service in the uniformed services and discharge status.
ii. The member and his or her employer shall remit the retirement contributions that would have been due pursuant to applicable state law.
iii. The member must make payment within a period of time beginning with the date of return to membership service and not exceeding three times the member's qualified military service, but in no case shall the member have in excess of five years from the date of his return to make such payment.
iv. Employer contributions required by the employer with which service was interrupted that are due pursuant to applicable state and federal law shall be billed to the employer for payment after the member has paid the employee contributions.
v. Such service in defined benefit plans must be purchased in minimum increments of one month. As contributions for each month of service (or multiples thereof) are received, service will be credited to the account.
e.
Certification
In order to purchase service credit, the member and employer must provide the following:
i. A certificate of service or discharge (DD214) that shows the date of entry into and the date of separation from service in the uniformed services and the discharge status; and
ii. Form 25D, Determination of Entitlement to Purchase Pension Service Credit under the Veteran's Reemployment Rights Laws; and
iii. Form 25M, Statement of Qualified Military Service, certifying the salary the member would have earned during the period the member was out of service as a public employee by reason of service in the uniformed services.
