Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. For
purposes of granting allowed service credit pursuant to Paragraph (2) of
Subsection A of Section 22-11-34 NMSA 1978, a member engaged in military
service that interrupted the member's employment under a state system in New
Mexico shall return to employment within 18 months following honorable
discharge.
(1) In order to claim such service
credit the member shall furnish documentary evidence of:
(a) the member's entry into and honorable
discharge from military service;
(b) the dates of service to an affiliated
public employer prior to entry into military service.
(2) The director shall review the members'
request for allowed service credit based upon the documentary evidence
presented, and, in the director's discretion, shall request additional
documentation to verify the member's eligibility for such allowed service
credit.
B. For purposes
of granting allowed service credit pursuant to Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of
Section 22-11-34 NMSA 1978, a member engaged in United States military service,
shall:
(1) be honorably discharged from such
service;
(2) have five or more
years of contributory employment at the time of the application for allowed
service credit, in order to be eligible to purchase allowed service credit
pursuant to Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section 22-11-34 NMSA
1978;
(3) contribute to the fund,
for each year of service credit the member elects to purchase, a sum equal to
the member's average annual actual salary for the five years of contributory
employment preceding the date of the contribution multiplied by the sum of the
member's contribution rate and the employer contribution rate in effect at the
time of the member's written election to purchase, subject to the federal
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994;
(4) full payment shall be made in a single
lump sum within 60 days of the date that the member is informed of the amount
of the payment;
(5) the portion of
the purchase cost derived from the employer's contribution rate shall be
credited to the fund and, in the event that a member requests a refund of
contributions pursuant to Section 22-11-15 NMSA 1978, the member shall not be
entitled to a refund of that portion of the purchase cost derived from the
employer contribution rate;
(6) the
director shall use the salary information on file with the board in determining
"average annual actual salary" under Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section
22-11-34 NMSA 1978; if reasonable evidence of the salaries earned is not
available, the director shall set amounts to be used which, in his opinion, are
representative of reasonable annual salaries for the periods of contributory
employment for the position held by the applicant at that time;
(7) when the actual cost of purchase of
allowed service credit for periods of military service is calculated under
Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section 22-11-34 NMSA 1978, the "average
annual actual salary" shall be based upon the member's most recent 20 calendar
quarters of contributory employment prior to the date on which he makes
payment;
(8) no allowed service
credit shall be granted for service not performed by the member by reason of
service in the uniformed services of the United States, nor for periods of
service in the military reserves or national guard for short term training
during which the member was notactivated pursuant to a federal call to duty,
deployment or peacekeeping mission or other declared national
emergency;
(9) purchase of allowed
service credit as provided in Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section 22-11-34
NMSA 1978, may be carried out only while the member is currently employed by an
administrative unit;
(10) the
provisions of
2.82.10.8
NMAC shall apply to purchase of allowed service credit under this
paragraph;
(11) a member who has
forfeited service credit may reinstate such service credit in order to
establish the minimum period of contributory employment required by this
subsection by repayment of withdrawn member contributions in the manner
required by Subsection C of Section 22-11-33 NMSA 1978; such repayment shall be
made at the same time as the lump sum payment for allowed service credit as
specified in Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section 22-11-34 NMSA
1978.
C. Notwithstanding
the provisions of Subsection A of
2.82.3.8
NMAC the "annual actual salary" to be used in calculating the cost of allowed
service credit described in Paragraphs (3) and (4) of Subsection A of Section
22-11-34 NMSA 1978 shall be an annualized salary. For the purpose of this rule,
employment shall be viewed as either full-time or part-time employment, and an
annualized salary shall be defined as follows.
(1) For full-time employees: The annual
salary as defined in Subsection A of
2.82.3.8
NMAC.
(2) For part-time employees:
The total remuneration for the part-time employment divided by the full-time
equivalency, as defined by the director at the time of the contribution. In no
event shall allowed service credit contributions be granted for any calendar
quarter in which the member did not work more than .25 of the full-time
equivalency for the applicable position as determined pursuant to rules enacted
by the board or the director.
(3)
For employees on sabbatical leave: The amount that would have been earned
during the entire year had the member been on regular assignment. In
determining the full-time equivalency of an employee, the director may refer to
the administrative unit's approved budget for the fiscal year under
consideration.
D. For
the purpose of granting allowed service credit, pursuant to Paragraph (4) of
Subsection A of Section
22-11-34
NMSA 1978, a "public school or public institution of higher learning" in
another state, territory, or possession of the United States shall be taken to
mean one that is open to the public without regard to race, creed, or color,
and such school or institution need not be tax supported. The out-of-state
public school shall be accredited by the state in which it is located or
another accrediting organization which is recognized by the state. Service
credit purchasable pursuant to Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (4) of Subsection
A of Section
22-11-34
NMSA 1978 shall not include employment as a graduate assistant, teaching
assistant or teaching fellow or in any position of a similar nature while the
member was enrolled as a student in that institution.
E. Prior to the purchase of allowed service
credit under Subparagraph (d) of Paragraph (4) of Subsection A of Section
22-11-34
NMSA 1978, a member must provide satisfactory evidence that the private school
was accredited by the state board of education at the time of the member's
employment.
F. The board may accept
rollover and employer pickup payroll deduction contributions for the purchase
of allowed service credit if the following conditions are met.
(1) The payments must be all or a portion of
the member's interest qualified under Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue
Code.
(2) The payments shall
contain only tax-deferred contributions and earnings on the contributions. The
member and employer must submit satisfactory documentation, releases or
indemnifications to the board against any and all liabilities that may be
connected with the transfer, verifying that the proposed transfer is a
qualifying contribution under the Internal Revenue Code.
(3) Payroll deductions and employer pickups
are authorized by the governing body of the ERA employer.
(4) The board may not accept rollover or
employer pickup payroll deduction contributions in excess of the amount
required to purchase the allowed service credit.
G. For payments to purchase allowed service
credit which commence on and after January 1, 2002, the board may accept
rollover and transfers if the following conditions are met.
(1) Rollovers must be eligible rollover
distributions that are not includible in the income of the member by reason of
Sections 402(c), 403(b)(8), 408(d) or 457(e)(16) of the Internal Revenue
Code.
(2) Transfers must be direct
trustee-to-trustee transfers from a qualified plan described in Section 401(a)
or 403(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, an annuity contract described in
Section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code to the extent permitted by Section
403(b)(13) of the Internal Revenue Code, or an eligible plan under Section
457(b) of the Internal Revenue Code to the extent permitted by Section
457(e)(13) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(3) The rollovers and transfers shall contain
only pre-tax deferred contributions and earnings on the contributions. The
member and employer must submit satisfactory documentation, releases, or
indemnification to the board against any and all liabilities that may be
connected with the rollover or transfer verifying that the proposed rollover or
transfer is permissible under the Internal Revenue Code.
(4) Payroll deduction contributions shall no
longer be allowed for the purchase of allowed service credit if the
contributions would commence on or after July 1, 2002.
(5) The board may not accept rollovers or
transfers in excess of the amount required to purchase the allowed service
credit.
