2007 Minnesota Statutes

356.30 COMBINED SERVICE ANNUITY.
    Subdivision 1. Eligibility; computation of annuity. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of
the laws governing the retirement plans enumerated in subdivision 3, a person who has met the
qualifications of paragraph (b) may elect to receive a retirement annuity from each enumerated
retirement plan in which the person has at least one-half year of allowable service, based on the
allowable service in each plan, subject to the provisions of paragraph (c).
(b) A person may receive, upon retirement, a retirement annuity from each enumerated
retirement plan in which the person has at least one-half year of allowable service, and
augmentation of a deferred annuity calculated at the appropriate rate under the laws governing
each public pension plan or fund named in subdivision 3, based on the date of the person's initial
entry into public employment from the date the person terminated all public service if:
(1) the person has allowable service totaling an amount that allows the person to receive
an annuity in any two or more of the enumerated plans; and
(2) the person has not begun to receive an annuity from any enumerated plan or the person
has made application for benefits from each applicable plan and the effective dates of the
retirement annuity with each plan under which the person chooses to receive an annuity are
within a one-year period.
(c) The retirement annuity from each plan must be based upon the allowable service,
accrual rates, and average salary in the applicable plan except as further specified or modified in
the following clauses:
(1) the laws governing annuities must be the law in effect on the date of termination from
the last period of public service under a covered retirement plan with which the person earned a
minimum of one-half year of allowable service credit during that employment;
(2) the "average salary" on which the annuity from each covered plan in which the employee
has credit in a formula plan must be based on the employee's highest five successive years of
covered salary during the entire service in covered plans;
(3) the accrual rates to be used by each plan must be those percentages prescribed by each
plan's formula as continued for the respective years of allowable service from one plan to the
next, recognizing all previous allowable service with the other covered plans;
(4) the allowable service in all the plans must be combined in determining eligibility for
and the application of each plan's provisions in respect to reduction in the annuity amount for
retirement prior to normal retirement age; and
(5) the annuity amount payable for any allowable service under a nonformula plan of a
covered plan must not be affected, but such service and covered salary must be used in the above
calculation.
(d) This section does not apply to any person whose final termination from the last public
service under a covered plan was before May 1, 1975.
(e) For the purpose of computing annuities under this section, the accrual rates used by any
covered plan, except the public employees police and fire plan, the judges retirement fund, and the
State Patrol retirement plan, must not exceed the percent specified in section 356.315, subdivision
4 , per year of service for any year of service or fraction thereof. The formula percentage used
by the judges retirement fund must not exceed the percentage rate specified in section 356.315,
subdivision 8 , per year of service for any year of service or fraction thereof. The accrual rate
used by the public employees police and fire plan and the State Patrol retirement plan must not
exceed the percentage rate specified in section 356.315, subdivision 6, per year of service for
any year of service or fraction thereof. The accrual rate or rates used by the legislators retirement
plan and the elective state officers retirement plan must not exceed 2.5 percent, but this limit
does not apply to the adjustment provided under section 3A.02, subdivision 1, paragraph (c), or
352C.031, paragraph (b).
(f) Any period of time for which a person has credit in more than one of the covered plans
must be used only once for the purpose of determining total allowable service.
(g) If the period of duplicated service credit is more than one-half year, or the person has
credit for more than one-half year, with each of the plans, each plan must apply its formula to a
prorated service credit for the period of duplicated service based on a fraction of the salary on
which deductions were paid to that fund for the period divided by the total salary on which
deductions were paid to all plans for the period.
(h) If the period of duplicated service credit is less than one-half year, or when added to other
service credit with that plan is less than one-half year, the service credit must be ignored and a
refund of contributions made to the person in accord with that plan's refund provisions.
    Subd. 2. Repayment of refunds. A person who has service credit in one of the retirement
plans enumerated in subdivision 3 and who is employed or was formerly employed in a position
covered by one of these covered plans but also has received a refund from any other of these
covered plans, may repay the refund to the respective plan under terms and conditions that are
consistent with the laws governing the other plan, except that the person need not be a currently
contributing member of the plan to which the refund is repaid at the time the repayment is made.
Unless otherwise provided by statute, the repayment of a refund under this subdivision may only
be made within six months following termination of employment from a position covered by one
of the covered plans enumerated in subdivision 3 or before the date of retirement from the plan to
which the refund is repaid, whichever is earlier.
    Subd. 2a. Purchases of prior service. If a purchase of prior service is made under the
provisions of Laws 1988, chapter 709, article 3, or any similar special or general law provision
which allows a purchase of service credit in any of the retirement plans enumerated in subdivision
3, the amount of required reserves calculated as prescribed in Laws 1988, chapter 709, article
3, must be paid to each plan based on the amount of benefit increase payable from that plan
as a result of the purchase of prior service.
    Subd. 3. Covered plans. This section applies to the following retirement plans:
(1) the general state employees retirement plan of the Minnesota State Retirement System,
established under chapter 352;
(2) the correctional state employees retirement plan of the Minnesota State Retirement
System, established under chapter 352;
(3) the unclassified employees retirement program, established under chapter 352D;
(4) the State Patrol retirement plan, established under chapter 352B;
(5) the legislators retirement plan, established under chapter 3A;
(6) the elective state officers retirement plan, established under chapter 352C;
(7) the general employees retirement plan of the Public Employees Retirement Association,
established under chapter 353;
(8) the public employees police and fire retirement plan of the Public Employees Retirement
Association, established under chapter 353;
(9) the local government correctional service retirement plan of the Public Employees
Retirement Association, established under chapter 353E;
(10) the Teachers Retirement Association, established under chapter 354;
(11) the Minneapolis Employees Retirement Fund, established under chapter 422A;
(12) the St. Paul Teachers Retirement Fund Association, established under chapter 354A;
(13) the Duluth Teachers Retirement Fund Association, established under chapter 354A; and
(14) the judges retirement fund, established by chapter 490.
History: 1975 c 232 s 1; 1981 c 37 s 2; 1981 c 298 s 11; 1983 c 286 s 14; 1986 c 444; 1987
c 372 art 1 s 20; art 9 s 35; 1989 c 319 art 2 s 23; art 5 s 4; art 13 s 92; 1991 c 340 s 31; 1992 c
432 art 2 s 45; 1994 c 528 art 2 s 14; 1995 c 141 art 3 s 20; 1995 c 262 art 1 s 13; art 3 s 6; 1997
c 233 art 1 s 61,62; 1999 c 222 art 2 s 17; 2000 c 461 art 3 s 44; art 18 s 3; 2002 c 392 art 11 s
19; 2006 c 271 art 11 s 48; 2006 c 277 art 2 s 10; art 3 s 35