HOUSE BILL No. 5341

 

October 20, 2005, Introduced by Rep. Hunter and referred to the Committee on Education.

 

     A bill to amend 1980 PA 300, entitled

 

"The public school employees retirement act of 1979,"

 

by amending section 75 (MCL 38.1375), as amended by 1989 PA 194.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 75. (1)  A member who left or leaves service as a public

 

school employee for purposes of maternity or paternity or child

 

rearing, and returns to service as a public school employee, or a

 

person performing out of system public education service who leaves

 

that service for purposes of maternity, paternity, or child rearing

 

and who subsequently becomes a member of this retirement system,

 

without other intervening employment of more than 20 hours per week

 

for each week for which service credit is claimed, may purchase

 

service credit for the time period or periods during which the


 

person was separated from service as a public school employee or

 

during which the person was separated from performing out of system

 

public education service because of maternity or paternity or child

 

rearing, upon request and payment to the retirement system of the

 

actuarial cost. The total service credited under this section shall

 

not exceed 5 years. A member requesting purchase of service credit

 

under this section shall certify to the board the purpose for which

 

the member took leave and was separated from service as a public

 

school employee.  A member who leaves service as a public school

 

employee for maternity, paternity, or child rearing and who returns

 

to service as a public school employee may purchase service credit

 

for the time that the member was separated from service as a public

 

school employee because of maternity, paternity, or child rearing.

 

A person who leaves out-of-system public education service for

 

maternity, paternity, or child rearing and who subsequently becomes

 

a member may purchase service credit for the time that the person

 

was separated from performing out-of-system public education

 

service because of maternity, paternity, or child rearing. A person

 

who becomes a member of this retirement system may purchase service

 

credit for maternity, paternity, or child rearing that the member

 

was engaged in before becoming a member. A member shall not

 

purchase service credit under this section if there has been other

 

intervening employment of more than 20 hours a week for each week

 

that service credit is claimed. The total service credited under

 

this section shall not exceed 5 years. A member shall make the

 

request to purchase service credit under this section and pay the

 

actuarial cost as determined under subsection (5) before the


 

service is credited. A member who requests to purchase service

 

credit under this section shall certify to the board that the

 

member was engaged in maternity, paternity, or child rearing for

 

the period that the member is requesting to purchase the service

 

credit.

 

     (2) Service credit purchased under this section  may  shall

 

not be used to satisfy the minimum of 10 years of service credit

 

required to receive a retirement allowance under this act.

 

     (3) If a member who made payment under this section dies and a

 

retirement allowance beneficiary has not been designated, or if the

 

member leaves reporting unit service before his or her retirement

 

becomes effective, the payment made by the member shall be refunded

 

upon request to the member or to the member's refund beneficiary.

 

     (4) A member who reduces hours of employment with a reporting

 

unit for purposes of maternity, paternity, or child rearing or a

 

person who reduces hours of out of system public education service

 

for purposes of maternity, paternity, or child rearing and who

 

subsequently becomes a member of this retirement system may

 

purchase service credit for those hours by which employment was

 

reduced if all other requirements of this section are met.

 

     (5) Notwithstanding section 79, for 1 year after the effective

 

date of the amendatory act that added this subsection, actuarial

 

cost for service credit purchased under this section shall be

 

calculated by using the age of the member at the time the member

 

first became a public school employee. Actuarial cost for service

 

credit purchased under this section shall be calculated under

 

section 79 for all years after the first year after the effective


 

date of the amendatory act that added this subsection.