TITLE 2 PUBLIC FINANCE
CHAPTER 84 MAGISTRATE RETIREMENT
PART 400 SERVICE CREDIT
2.84.400.1 ISSUING AGENCY:
Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA), P. O. Box 2123, Santa
Fe, New Mexico 87504-2123.
[2.84.400.1 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.1 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.2 SCOPE: This rule
affects the members, retirees, beneficiaries, public employers, the retirement
board and the association under the Magistrate Retirement Act (MRA).
[2.84.400.2 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.2 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.3 STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
This rule is authorized by Sections 10-12C-3 and 10-12C-5 NMSA 1978.
[2.84.400.3 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.3 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.4 DURATION:
Permanent.
[2.84.400.4 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.4 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.5 EFFECTIVE DATE:
July 1, 2015, unless a later date is cited at the end of a section.
[2.84.400.5 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.5 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.6 OBJECTIVE: The
objective of this rule is to establish standards and procedures for awarding
and reinstating service credit under the Magistrate Retirement Act.
[2.84.400.6 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.6 NMAC, 7/1/15]
2.84.400.7 DEFINITIONS:
[Reserved]
2.84.400.8 GENERAL PROVISIONS:
A. Members
may receive one month of service credit for any calendar month in which the
member becomes a member on or before the sixteenth day of that month, or for
any calendar month in which the member leaves office on or after the fifteenth
day of the month, provided that all other requirements for awarding service
credit are met.
B. Service
credit that was forfeited when a member left office and withdrew his or her
accumulated member contributions may be reinstated by repayment of withdrawn
member contributions, together with interest from the date of withdrawal to the
date of repayment at the rate or rates set by the board under the following
conditions:
(1) Service
credit may be reinstated in one-year increments, beginning with the most
recently forfeited service credit. A
one-year increment is 12 consecutive, but not necessarily continuous, months of
service credit. For the purpose of eligibility to retire only, less than one year of
service credit may be purchased. After
reinstatement of all 12-month "years" as defined herein, any
remaining service credit that totals less than 12 months may be reinstated by
payment in one lump sum as provided herein.
(2) All
forfeited service credit may also be reinstated by repayment of the total
amount of all member contributions withdrawn from each period of service
together with interest from the date of withdrawal to the date of repayment at
the rate set by the board.
(3) The
rate or rates of interest for the purchase or reinstatement of service credit
shall be set annually by the board at a July meeting and shall be effective
beginning the next succeeding January 1.
(4) A
former member who is employed by an employer covered under the Educational
Retirement Act must provide evidence of current contributing membership in the
educational retirement association; such evidence shall be either certification
by the employer, in the form prescribed by the association, or certification by
the educational retirement association (ERA).
(5) Payment
for reinstated service credit must be received by the association prior to the
member’s effective date of retirement.
(6) Interest
received to reinstate forfeited service credit under this subsection shall not
be refunded to the member. The purchase
cost received to reinstate forfeited service credit, which is determined to be
unnecessary to provide the maximum pension applicable to the member and which
is purchased in reliance on information provided by PERA shall be refunded to
the member.
C. Service
credit that a member would have earned if the member had not elected to be
excluded from membership prior to July 1, 2014 may be purchased under the
following conditions:
(1) the
member first reinstates all previously withdrawn MRA service credit;
(2) the
member may purchase service credit in increments of not less than one year
except where the total excluded service credit is less than one year;
(3) the
member pays the full cost as determined under Section 10-12C-5(F) NMSA 1978 within
60 days of the notification of that amount.
D. Military
service credit is free in some cases and may be purchased in other cases as
provided by statute.
(1) Where
a member wishes to claim service credit pursuant to Section 10-12C-5 NMSA 1978
the association shall, upon the member's request, furnish that member a form of
affidavit for completion and certification of such service. The affidavit shall be accompanied by
documentary evidence of the member's entry and discharge from service in a
uniformed service of the United States.
(2) The
judicial agency shall certify in writing the date the member left office to
enter a uniformed service of the United States.
This requirement may be waived if PERA records contain sufficient
documentation of the date of termination.
(3) The
judicial agency shall certify in writing to the association the member’s date
of return to office within 30 days of reemployment. This requirement may be waived if PERA
records contain sufficient documentation of the date of return, to office. Members who do not return, to office within 90
days following termination of the period of intervening service but who
nevertheless claim reemployment rights under federal law shall provide to the
association written certification from the judicial agency that the member is
entitled to reemployment rights under the Uniformed Services Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, as amended.
(4) The
affidavit, employer certifications, and documentary evidence of uniformed
service shall be presented to the association for approval.
(5) Service
credit for periods of intervening service in the uniformed services following
voluntary enlistment, reenlistment or appointment, shall be awarded only upon
compliance by the member and the judicial agency with the provisions of Section
10-12C-5 NMSA 1978, as amended, and the Uniformed Services Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, as amended, including but not limited to the
payment to the association of contributions required from the member and the
employer.
(6) MRA
members who are also members of the military service reserve components who
reactivated pursuant to a federal call to duty, deployment or peacekeeping
mission or other declared national emergency may receive free credit service
subject to the conditions of this section.
The member must provide a form DD 214 and other documentation as
required by PERA to support an award of free service credit.
(7) Payment
for military service credit must be received by the association prior to the
member’s effective date of retirement.
E. No
installment payment contracts may be used for the purchase of any service
credit. A member may purchase a total of five years of permissive service credit
as allowed by the Magistrate Retirement Act in one lump-sum or in one-year
increments.
F. A member may
rollover funds from an Internal Revenue Code Section 457, 403(b), 401(k), IRA
or another 401(a) qualified account to pay for forfeited or permissive service
credit allowed by the Magistrate Retirement Act. The rollover of funds must be made by a
trustee- to-trustee transfer and the account from which the funds come must be
in the name of the member requesting the transfer.
[2.84.400.8 NMAC - Rp, 2.84.400.8 NMAC, 7/1/15]
HISTORY of 2.84.400 NMAC:
Pre-NMAC History: The material in this part was derived from
that previously filed with the State Records Center and Archives under:
MRA Rule 300.00, Credited Service, filed on 12-29-89;
MRA Rule 400, Service Credit, filed on 7-1-92.
History of Repealed Material:
2.84.400 NMAC, Magistrate Retirement - Service Credit,
filed 12/28/2000, repealed 7/1/2015.