Law Enforcement Officers' Pension System - Military Service Credit Eligibility - Helicopter Pilots

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*sb0491*

SENATE BILL 491
P6 6lr2620
CF HB 789
By: Senator Salling
Introduced and read first time: February 2, 2026
Assigned to: Budget and Taxation
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
Senate action: Adopted
Read second time: March 3, 2026

CHAPTER ______

AN ACT concerning 1

Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System – Military Service Credit Eligibility 2
– Helicopter Pilots 3

FOR the purpose of authorizing certain members of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension 4
System assigned as helicopter pilots in a State law enforcement aviation unit to 5
receive credit for certain military service if the member receives military service 6
credit in another retirement system; prohibiting an individual from receiving credit 7
more than a certain number of times; and generally relating to members of the Law 8
Enforcement Officers’ Pension System receiving military service credit. 9

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 10
Article – State Personnel and Pensions 11
Section 38–104 12
Annotated Code of Maryland 13
(2024 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 14

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 15
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 16

Article – State Personnel and Pensions 17

38–104. 18

(a) (1) This section applies to an individual who is: 19

2 SENATE BILL 491

(i) a member of a State system; or 1

(ii) a former member of a State system who is eligible to receive a 2
benefit under § 29–302 or § 29–303 of this article. 3

(2) This section does not apply to a retiree of a State system. 4

(b) Except as provided in [subsection (c) ] SUBSECTIONS (C) AND (E) of this 5
section, an individual described in subsection (a) of this section, who has not met the 6
conditions set forth in § 38 –103(a)(2) through (4) of this subtitle, is entitled to receive 7
service credit for military service only on the attainment of 10 years of service credit earned 8
through employment as a member of a State system. 9

(c) (1) An individual described in subsection (a) of this section may not receive 10
credit for that military service if the individual receives credit for military service from 11
another retirement system for which retirement benefits have been or will be received by 12
the individual. 13

(2) Paragraph (1) of this subsection does not apply to: 14

(i) credit for military service provided under: 15

1. the Social Security Act; 16

2. the National Railroad Retirement Act; or 17

3. Title 3 or Title 10, Chapter 1223, §§ 12731 through 12737 18
of the United States Code; [or] 19

(ii) disability payments from a pension or retirement system; OR 20

(III) A MEMBER OR FORMER M EMBER OF THE LAW 21
ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS’ PENSION SYSTEM WHO IS OR WAS ASSIGN ED AS A 22
HELICOPTER PILOT IN A STATE LAW ENFORCEMENT AVIATION UNIT. 23

(3) (i) Military service credit under this section may not exceed 5 years. 24

(ii) Subject to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, a member of the 25
Maryland National Guard or of a reserve component of the armed forces of the Un ited 26
States who has not been activated under Title 10 of the United States Code, shall receive 27
service credit at the rate of 4 months for each full year of service with the Maryland 28
National Guard or with a reserve component of the armed forces of the Unit ed States, not 29
to exceed a total of 36 months. 30

SENATE BILL 491 3

(iii) Subject to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, an individual shall 1
receive service credit at the rate of 4 months for each full year of attendance at a United 2
States service academy, not to exceed a total of 16 months. 3

(d) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the service credit 4
for military service that an individual receives under this section shall be applied to the 5
individual’s retirement allowance using the accrual rate in effect at the time the individual 6
retires from a State system. 7

(2) If an individual applies for military service credit on or after July 1, 8
2011, the service credit for military service that the individual receives under this section 9
shall be applied to the individual’s retirement allowance using the accrual rate in effect at 10
the time the individual submits an application for military service credit to the State 11
Retirement Agency. 12

(E) AN INDIVIDUAL MAY NOT RECEIVE SERVICE CRED IT UNDER THIS 13
SECTION MORE THAN ONCE. 14

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 15
1, 2026. 16

Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.