2006 Minnesota Statutes

354.55 OPTIONS TO CERTAIN MEMBERS.
    Subdivision 1.[Repealed, 1974 c 289 s 59]
    Subd. 2. Pre-July 1, 1957, elections. Any election made by a teacher pursuant to Minnesota
Statutes 1953, section 135.10, subdivision 3, prior to July 1, 1957, shall continue in effect at such
amount and subject to such conditions as the law then in effect permitted.
    Subd. 3. Pre-July 1, 1957, cessation of service. Any person who ceased teaching service
prior to July 1, 1957, who left accumulated deductions in the fund for the purpose of receiving
when eligible, a retirement annuity shall have the annuity computed in accordance with the law
in effect at the date the person ceased teaching service, except that if such person has ten or
more years of allowable service credit, the retirement annuity shall be determined under the law
in effect on June 30, 1969.
    Subd. 4.[Repealed, 1974 c 289 s 59]
    Subd. 5.[Repealed, 1989 c 319 art 2 s 28]
    Subd. 6. Annuities commenced between August 1, 1931, and June 30, 1965. Each
annuitant who as a member of the association commenced drawing the annuity between August 1,
1931 and June 30, 1965, but not including the annuitant's beneficiaries, shall be paid ten percent
of the present monthly annuity if such annuitant retired pursuant to Minnesota Statutes 1965,
sections 354.33 and 354.34 and 15 percent of the present monthly annuity if such annuitant retired
pursuant to Minnesota Statutes 1953, section 135.10 and Minnesota Statutes 1965, sections
354.44 and 354.45, in addition to the amounts such annuitant is otherwise entitled to receive
under the provisions of Minnesota Statutes 1965, chapter 354.
    Subd. 7.[Repealed, 1974 c 289 s 59]
    Subd. 8.[Repealed, 1974 c 289 s 59]
    Subd. 9.[Repealed, 1974 c 289 s 59]
    Subd. 10. Reduced benefits. Any benefit to which any person may be entitled under this
chapter may be reduced in amount upon application of the person entitled thereto to the board of
trustees, provided that such person shall first relinquish in writing all claim to that part of the full
benefit which is the difference between the benefit which the person would be otherwise entitled
to receive and the benefit which the person will receive. The reduced benefit shall be payment
in full of all amounts due under this chapter for the month for which the payment is made and
acceptance of the reduced benefit releases the retirement association from all obligation to pay to
such person the difference between the amount of the reduced benefit and the full amount of the
benefit which such person would otherwise have received. After July 1, 1971, any benefit reduced
under the provisions of this subdivision may not again be restored.
    Subd. 11. Deferred annuity; augmentation. (a) Any person covered under section 354.44,
subdivision 6 , who ceases to render teaching service, may leave the person's accumulated
deductions in the fund for the purpose of receiving a deferred annuity at retirement. Eligibility for
an annuity under this subdivision is governed pursuant to section 354.44, subdivision 1, or 354.60.
(b) The amount of the deferred retirement annuity is determined by section 354.44,
subdivision 6 , and augmented as provided in this subdivision. The required reserves related to that
portion of the annuity which had accrued when the member ceased to render teaching service
must be augmented by interest compounded annually from the first day of the month following
the month during which the member ceased to render teaching service to the effective date of
retirement. There shall be no augmentation if this period is less than three months or if this
period commences prior to July 1, 1971. The rates of interest used for this purpose must be five
percent compounded annually commencing July 1, 1971, until January 1, 1981, and three percent
compounded annually thereafter until January 1 of the year following the year in which the
former member attains age 55 and from that date to the effective date of retirement, the rate is five
percent compounded annually if the employee became an employee before July 1, 2006, and at
2.5 percent compounded annually if the employee becomes an employee after June 30, 2006. If a
person has more than one period of uninterrupted service, a separate average salary determined
under section 354.44, subdivision 6, must be used for each period and the required reserves
related to each period must be augmented by interest pursuant to this subdivision. The sum of
the augmented required reserves so determined shall be the basis for purchasing the deferred
annuity. If a person repays a refund, the service restored by the repayment must be considered as
continuous with the next period of service for which the person has credit with this fund. If a
person does not render teaching service in any one fiscal year or more consecutive fiscal years
and then resumes teaching service, the formula percentages used from the date of the resumption
of teaching service must be those applicable to new members. The mortality table and interest
assumption used to compute the annuity must be the applicable mortality table established by
the board under section 354.07, subdivision 1, and the interest rate assumption under section
356.215 in effect when the member retires. A period of uninterrupted service for the purposes of
this subdivision means a period of covered teaching service during which the member has not
been separated from active service for more than one fiscal year.
(c) In no case shall the annuity payable under this subdivision be less than the amount of
annuity payable pursuant to section 354.44, subdivision 6.
(d) The requirements and provisions for retirement before normal retirement age contained
in section 354.44, subdivision 6, clause (3) or (5), shall also apply to an employee fulfilling the
requirements with a combination of service as provided in section 354.60.
(e) The augmentation provided by this subdivision applies to the benefit provided in section
354.46, subdivision 2.
(f) The augmentation provided by this subdivision shall not apply to any period in which
a person is on an approved leave of absence from an employer unit covered by the provisions
of this chapter.
(g) The retirement annuity or disability benefit of, or the survivor benefit payable on behalf
of, a former teacher who terminated service before July 1, 1997, which is not first payable until
after June 30, 1997, must be increased on an actuarial equivalent basis to reflect the change in
the postretirement interest rate actuarial assumption under section 356.215, subdivision 8, from
five percent to six percent under a calculation procedure and tables adopted by the board as
recommended by an approved actuary and approved by the actuary retained under section 356.214
    Subd. 12. Pre-1973 law retirements. Any member who retires under the law in effect prior
to July 1, 1973, shall have that portion of the member's annuity based on accumulations after June
30, 1957, under Minnesota Statutes 1971, section 354.44, subdivision 2, and all accumulations
under Minnesota Statutes 1971, section 354.33, subdivision 1, calculated using the mortality table
established by the board under section 354.07, subdivision 1, and the interest rate assumption
specified in section 356.215 used at the time of that retirement to transfer the required reserves to
the Minnesota postretirement investment fund.
    Subd. 13. Pre-1969 law retirements. Any person who ceased teaching service prior to July
1, 1968, who has ten years or more of allowable service and left accumulated deductions in the
fund for the purpose of receiving when eligible a retirement annuity, and retires shall have the
annuity computed in accordance with the law in effect on June 30, 1969, except that the portion
of the annuity based on accumulations after June 30, 1957, under Minnesota Statutes 1967,
section 354.44, subdivision 2, and accumulations under Minnesota Statutes 1967, section 354.33,
subdivision 1 , shall be calculated using the mortality table established by the board under section
354.07, subdivision 1, and the interest rate assumption specified in section 356.215, to transfer the
required reserves to the Minnesota postretirement investment fund.
    Subd. 14. Annuity increases. All annuities payable from the Minnesota postretirement
investment fund which are in effect on June 30, 1973 shall be increased in the same ratio that the
actuarially computed reserve for such annuities determined by using an interest assumption of
3-1/2 percent bears to the actuarially computed reserve for such annuities determined by using
an interest assumption of five percent. The reserves upon which such increases shall be based
shall be the actuarially determined reserves for all Minnesota postretirement investment fund
annuities which were in effect on June 30, 1972, in accordance with the mortality assumptions
then in effect and at interest assumptions of 3-1/2 percent and five percent. Such ratio of increase
computed to the last full 1/100 of one percent shall be applied to all annuities payable from the
Minnesota postretirement investment fund which are in effect on June 30, 1973. Increases in
annuity payments pursuant to this subdivision will be made automatically unless written notice
is filed by the annuitant with the Teachers Retirement Association board requesting that the
increase shall not be made.
    Subd. 15. Additional annuity increases. Notwithstanding the maximum benefit provisions
of section 354.46, subdivision 1, all benefits and annuities payable pursuant to sections 354.48;
354.46, subdivision 1 and Laws 1915, chapter 199, as amended, which are in effect on June 30,
1973 shall be increased 25 percent. Such increase shall begin to accrue January 1, 1974. Increases
in benefit and annuity payments pursuant to this subdivision will be made automatically unless
written notice is filed by the annuitant with the Teachers Retirement Association board requesting
that the increase shall not be made.
    Subd. 16. 1972-1973 retirements. Any member who ceased to render teaching service
during the 1972-1973 fiscal year whose application for retirement becomes effective after June
30, 1973, shall be eligible to receive the new retirement benefits provided by the law in effect
on July 1, 1973.
    Subd. 17. Post 1973 retirements. Teachers who retire after June 30, 1973 and who failed to
make an election pursuant to Minnesota Statutes 1971, section 354.145, subdivision 1, clause
(1) and subdivision 2, clause (1) shall have their annuity at retirement computed under section
354.44, subdivision 2 or 6, whichever is larger.
    Subd. 18. 1972-1973 retirements; no election. (1) Teachers who retired after June 30,
1972 and before July 1, 1973 who failed to make an election pursuant to Minnesota Statutes
1971, section 354.145, subdivision 1, clause (1) shall have their annuity recomputed under the
law in effect on June 30, 1973 under the provisions of either Minnesota Statutes 1971, section
354.33, subdivision 1 or 7, whichever is larger.
(2) Teachers who retired after June 30, 1972 and before July 1, 1973 and who failed to make
an election pursuant to Minnesota Statutes 1971, section 354.145, subdivision 2, clause (1) shall
have their annuity recomputed under the law in effect on June 30, 1973 under the provisions of
either section 354.44, subdivision 2 or 6, whichever is larger.
    Subd. 19. Refunds. Any member or retired former member who is covered by the formula in
effect after June 30, 1973, and who made payments to the fund pursuant to Minnesota Statutes
1965, section 354.511, shall upon request receive a refund of such payments.
History: Ex1957 c 16 s 20; Ex1959 c 50 s 21,22; 1965 c 644 s 1; 1967 c 654 s 1; 1967 c 715
s 1; 1969 c 399 s 1; 1969 c 485 s 28; 1971 c 40 s 28-31; 1971 c 87 s 1; 1971 c 88 s 1; 1973 c 270
s 13; 1973 c 728 s 23-25,27; 1974 c 289 s 47-53; 1975 c 306 s 24-27; 1977 c 97 s 5-7; 1978 c 796
s 43; 1980 c 607 art 14 s 45 subd 2; 1980 c 614 s 142; 1981 c 224 s 124; 1Sp1985 c 7 s 23; 1986
c 444; 1986 c 458 s 18; 1987 c 259 s 40-42; 1987 c 284 art 6 s 10; 1989 c 319 art 13 s 69; 1990 c
570 art 12 s 41,42; 1995 c 141 art 3 s 20; 1996 c 305 art 1 s 82,83; 1997 c 233 art 1 s 54; 2002 c
392 art 11 s 52; 2006 c 271 art 3 s 47; 2006 c 277 art 2 s 7