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As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 424
2025-2026
Representatives Willis, Craig
Cosponsors: Representatives Thomas,
D., Williams, Lear, White, A., Fischer, Gross, Deeter, Newman,
Workman
To
amend section 145.295 of the Revised Code
regarding transfers or purchases of certain retirement service
credit.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
section 145.295 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:
Sec.
145.295.
(A)
As used in this section and section 145.2913 of the Revised Code:
(1)
"Uniform retirement system" or "uniform system"
means the Ohio police and fire pension fund or state highway patrol
retirement system.
(2)
"Military service credit" means credit purchased or
obtained under this chapter or Chapter 742. or 5505. of the Revised
Code for service in the armed forces of the United States.
(B)
A member of the public employees retirement system who has
contributions on deposit with, but is no longer contributing to, a
uniform retirement system shall, in computing years of service, be
given full credit for service credit earned under Chapter 742. or
5505. of the Revised Code or for military service credit if a
transfer to the public employees retirement system is made under this
division. At the request of the member a transfer shall be made if
all of the following conditions are met:
(1)
The
member's service credit in the public employees retirement system is
greater than the amount of credit that would be transferred under
this division.
(2)
The
member is eligible, or with the credit will be eligible, for a
retirement or disability benefit.
(3)
(2)
The
member agrees to retire or accept a disability benefit not later than
ninety days after receiving notice from the public employees
retirement system that the credit has been obtained.
(4)
(3)
For
each year of service the uniform system transfers to the public
employees retirement system the sum of the following:
(a)
An amount equal to the member's accumulated contributions to the
uniform system making the transfer and any payments by the member for
military service credit;
(b)
An amount equal to the lesser of the employer's contributions to the
uniform system or the appropriate employer contribution under section
145.48 or 145.49 of the Revised Code;
(c)
Interest, determined as provided in division (H) of this section, on
the amounts specified in divisions
(B)(4)(a)
(B)(3)(a)
and
(b) of this section for the period from the last day of the year for
which the service credit in the uniform system was earned or in which
the military service credit was purchased or obtained to the date the
transfer is made.
(C)
A member of the public employees retirement system who has at least
eighteen months of contributing service credit with the public
employees retirement system, who is a former member of a uniform
retirement system, and who has received a refund of the member's
accumulated contributions to that uniform system may obtain credit
for service credit earned under Chapter 742. or 5505. of the Revised
Code or for military service credit if all of the following
conditions are met:
(1)
The
member's service credit in the public employees retirement system is
greater than the amount of credit that would be transferred under
this division.
(2)
The
member is eligible, or with the credit will be eligible, for a
retirement or disability benefit.
(3)
(2)
The
member agrees to retire or accept a disability benefit not later than
ninety days after receiving notice from the public employees
retirement system that the credit has been obtained.
(4)
(3)
For
each year of service, the public employees retirement system receives
the sum of the following:
(a)
An amount, which shall be paid by the member, equal to the amount
refunded by the uniform system to the member for that year for
accumulated contributions and payments for military service credit,
with interest at a rate established by the public employees
retirement board on that amount from the date of the refund to the
date of the payment;
(b)
Interest, which shall be transferred by the uniform system, on the
amount refunded to the member that is attributable to the year of
service from the last day of the year for which the service credit
was earned or in which payment was made for military service credit
to the date the refund was made;
(c)
An amount, which shall be transferred by the uniform system, equal to
the lesser of the employer's contributions to the uniform system or
the appropriate employer contribution under section 145.48 or 145.49
of the Revised Code, with interest on that amount from the last day
of the year for which the service credit was earned or in which
payment was made for military service credit to the date of the
transfer.
On
receipt of payment from the member, the public employees retirement
system shall notify the uniform system, which, on receipt of the
notice, shall make the transfer required by this division. Interest
shall be determined as provided in division (H) of this section.
(D)
A member of the public employees retirement system who purchased
credit under former division (A)(1) of this section, as it existed
before August 25, 1995, for service as a member of a uniform
retirement system may elect to have the amount the member paid for
this service credit refunded to the member under this division if the
member agrees to repurchase this service credit pursuant to division
(C) of this section.
(E)
Service credit purchased or otherwise obtained under this section
shall be considered the equivalent of Ohio service credit.
The
public employees retirement system shall withdraw the credit and
refund all amounts paid or transferred under this section if either
of the following occurs:
(1)
The member fails to retire or accept a disability benefit not later
than ninety days after receiving notice from the public employees
retirement system that credit has been obtained.
(2)
The member's application for a disability benefit is denied.
A
member may choose to purchase only part of the credit the member is
eligible to purchase under division (C) of this section, subject to
rules of the public employees retirement board. A member is
ineligible to purchase or otherwise obtain credit under this section
for service to be used in calculation of any retirement benefit
currently being paid or payable to the member in the future under any
other retirement program or for service credit that may be
transferred under section 145.2913 of the Revised Code.
(F)
If a member of the public employees retirement system who is not a
current contributor elects to receive credit under section 742.21 or
5505.40 of the Revised Code for service for which the member
contributed to the system or made payment for military service
credit, the system shall transfer to the Ohio police and fire pension
fund or the state highway patrol retirement system, as applicable,
the amount specified in division (D) of section 742.21 or division
(B)(2) of section 5505.40 of the Revised Code.
(G)
A member of the public employees retirement system who earned service
credit in the public employees retirement system for full-time
service as a township or municipal police officer and received
service credit in the Ohio police and fire pension fund under section
742.511 or 742.512 of the Revised Code for such service may elect to
have the credit restored as public employees retirement system
service credit by paying the public employees retirement system an
amount equal to the accumulated contributions paid by the member to
the Ohio police and fire pension fund under section 742.511 or
742.512 of the Revised Code. When such an election is made, the Ohio
police and fire pension fund shall transfer to the public employees
retirement system the amount previously transferred under section
742.511 or 742.512 of the Revised Code from the public employees
retirement system to the Ohio police and fire pension fund.
(H)
Interest charged under this section shall be calculated separately
for each year of service credit. Unless otherwise specified in this
section, it shall be calculated at the lesser of the actuarial
assumption rate for that year of the public employees retirement
system or of the uniform retirement system in which the credit was
earned. The interest shall be compounded annually.
(I)
At the request of the public employees retirement system, the uniform
retirement system shall certify to the public employees retirement
system a copy of the records of the service and contributions of a
public employees retirement system member who seeks service credit
under this section.
Section
2.
That
existing section 145.295 of the Revised Code is hereby repealed.