HB3904 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB097 14145 JDS 58838 b

97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB3904

Introduced 12/11/2011, by Rep. Dwight Kay

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

40 ILCS 5/3-110	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 3-110
40 ILCS 5/4-108	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 4-108
40 ILCS 5/5-214	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 5-214
40 ILCS 5/6-209	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 6-209
40 ILCS 5/7-132	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-132
40 ILCS 5/8-226	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 8-226
40 ILCS 5/11-215	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 11-215
40 ILCS 5/15-107	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 15-107
40 ILCS 5/16-106	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 16-106
40 ILCS 5/17-134	from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 17-134

Amends the Illinois Pension Code. Amends various Articles of the Code to provide that participants under those Articles are entitled only to creditable service for periods of service with a labor organization if the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of the amendatory Act. Amends the IMRF Article of the Illinois Pension Code to provide that the Illinois Municipal League and the Will County Governmental League are participating instrumentalities only with respect to service on or before the effective date of the amendatory Act. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

PENSION IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by changing Sections 3-110, 4-108, 5-214, 6-209, 7-132, 8-226, 11-215, 15-107, 16-106, and 17-134 as follows:

(40 ILCS 5/3-110) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 3-110)

Sec. 3-110. Creditable service.

(a) "Creditable service" is the time served by a police officer as a member of a regularly constituted police force of a municipality. In computing creditable service furloughs without pay exceeding 30 days shall not be counted, but all leaves of absence for illness or accident, regardless of length, and all periods of disability retirement for which a police officer has received no disability pension payments under this Article shall be counted.

(a-5) Up to 3 years of time during which the police officer receives a disability pension under Section 3-114.1, 3-114.2, 3-114.3, or 3-114.6 shall be counted as creditable service, provided that (i) the police officer returns to active service after the disability for a period at least equal to the period for which credit is to be established and (ii) the police officer makes contributions to the fund based on the rates specified in Section 3-125.1 and the salary upon which the disability pension is based. These contributions may be paid at any time prior to the commencement of a retirement pension. The police officer may, but need not, elect to have the contributions deducted from the disability pension or to pay them in installments on a schedule approved by the board. If not deducted from the disability pension, the contributions shall include interest at the rate of 6% per year, compounded annually, from the date for which service credit is being established to the date of payment. If contributions are paid under this subsection (a-5) in excess of those needed to establish the credit, the excess shall be refunded. This subsection (a-5) applies to persons receiving a disability pension under Section 3-114.1, 3-114.2, 3-114.3, or 3-114.6 on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 91st General Assembly, as well as persons who begin to receive such a disability pension after that date.

(b) Creditable service includes all periods of service in the military, naval or air forces of the United States entered upon while an active police officer of a municipality, provided that upon applying for a permanent pension, and in accordance with the rules of the board, the police officer pays into the fund the amount the officer would have contributed if he or she had been a regular contributor during such period, to the extent that the municipality which the police officer served has not made such contributions in the officer's behalf. The total amount of such creditable service shall not exceed 5 years, except that any police officer who on July 1, 1973 had more than 5 years of such creditable service shall receive the total amount thereof.

(b-5) Creditable service includes all periods of service in the military, naval, or air forces of the United States entered upon before beginning service as an active police officer of a municipality, provided that, in accordance with the rules of the board, the police officer pays into the fund the amount the police officer would have contributed if he or she had been a regular contributor during such period, plus an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the municipality's normal cost of the benefit, plus interest at the actuarially assumed rate calculated from the date the employee last became a police officer under this Article. The total amount of such creditable service shall not exceed 2 years.

(c) Creditable service also includes service rendered by a police officer while on leave of absence from a police department to serve as an executive of an organization whose membership consists of members of a police department, subject to the following conditions: (i) the police officer is a participant of a fund established under this Article with at least 10 years of service as a police officer; (ii) the police officer received no credit for such service under any other retirement system, pension fund, or annuity and benefit fund included in this Code; (iii) pursuant to the rules of the board the police officer pays to the fund the amount he or she would have contributed had the officer been an active member of the police department; and (iv) the organization pays a contribution equal to the municipality's normal cost for that period of service; and (v) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(d)(1) Creditable service also includes periods of service originally established in another police pension fund under this Article or in the Fund established under Article 7 of this Code for which (i) the contributions have been transferred under Section 3-110.7 or Section 7-139.9 and (ii) any additional contribution required under paragraph (2) of this subsection has been paid in full in accordance with the requirements of this subsection (d).

(2) If the board of the pension fund to which creditable service and related contributions are transferred under Section 7-139.9 determines that the amount transferred is less than the true cost to the pension fund of allowing that creditable service to be established, then in order to establish that creditable service the police officer must pay to the pension fund, within the payment period specified in paragraph (3) of this subsection, an additional contribution equal to the difference, as determined by the board in accordance with the rules and procedures adopted under paragraph (6) of this subsection. If the board of the pension fund to which creditable service and related contributions are transferred under Section 3-110.7 determines that the amount transferred is less than the true cost to the pension fund of allowing that creditable service to be established, then the police officer may elect (A) to establish that creditable service by paying to the pension fund, within the payment period specified in paragraph (3) of this subsection (d), an additional contribution equal to the difference, as determined by the board in accordance with the rules and procedures adopted under paragraph (6) of this subsection (d) or (B) to have his or her creditable service reduced by an amount equal to the difference between the amount transferred under Section 3-110.7 and the true cost to the pension fund of allowing that creditable service to be established, as determined by the board in accordance with the rules and procedures adopted under paragraph (6) of this subsection (d).

(3) Except as provided in paragraph (4), the additional contribution that is required or elected under paragraph (2) of this subsection (d) must be paid to the board (i) within 5 years from the date of the transfer of contributions under Section 3-110.7 or 7-139.9 and (ii) before the police officer terminates service with the fund. The additional contribution may be paid in a lump sum or in accordance with a schedule of installment payments authorized by the board.

(4) If the police officer dies in service before payment in full has been made and before the expiration of the 5-year payment period, the surviving spouse of the officer may elect to pay the unpaid amount on the officer's behalf within 6 months after the date of death, in which case the creditable service shall be granted as though the deceased police officer had paid the remaining balance on the day before the date of death.

(5) If the additional contribution that is required or elected under paragraph (2) of this subsection (d) is not paid in full within the required time, the creditable service shall not be granted and the police officer (or the officer's surviving spouse or estate) shall be entitled to receive a refund of (i) any partial payment of the additional contribution that has been made by the police officer and (ii) those portions of the amounts transferred under subdivision (a)(1) of Section 3-110.7 or subdivisions (a)(1) and (a)(3) of Section 7-139.9 that represent employee contributions paid by the police officer (but not the accumulated interest on those contributions) and interest paid by the police officer to the prior pension fund in order to reinstate service terminated by acceptance of a refund.

At the time of paying a refund under this item (5), the pension fund shall also repay to the pension fund from which the contributions were transferred under Section 3-110.7 or 7-139.9 the amount originally transferred under subdivision (a)(2) of that Section, plus interest at the rate of 6% per year, compounded annually, from the date of the original transfer to the date of repayment. Amounts repaid to the Article 7 fund under this provision shall be credited to the appropriate municipality.

Transferred credit that is not granted due to failure to pay the additional contribution within the required time is lost; it may not be transferred to another pension fund and may not be reinstated in the pension fund from which it was transferred.

(6) The Public Employee Pension Fund Division of the Department of Insurance shall establish by rule the manner of making the calculation required under paragraph (2) of this subsection, taking into account the appropriate actuarial assumptions; the police officer's service, age, and salary history; the level of funding of the pension fund to which the credits are being transferred; and any other factors that the Division determines to be relevant. The rules may require that all calculations made under paragraph (2) be reported to the Division by the board performing the calculation, together with documentation of the creditable service to be transferred, the amounts of contributions and interest to be transferred, the manner in which the calculation was performed, the numbers relied upon in making the calculation, the results of the calculation, and any other information the Division may deem useful.

(e)(1) Creditable service also includes periods of service originally established in the Fund established under Article 7 of this Code for which the contributions have been transferred under Section 7-139.11.

(2) If the board of the pension fund to which creditable service and related contributions are transferred under Section 7-139.11 determines that the amount transferred is less than the true cost to the pension fund of allowing that creditable service to be established, then the amount of creditable service the police officer may establish under this subsection (e) shall be reduced by an amount equal to the difference, as determined by the board in accordance with the rules and procedures adopted under paragraph (3) of this subsection.

(3) The Public Pension Division of the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation shall establish by rule the manner of making the calculation required under paragraph (2) of this subsection, taking into account the appropriate actuarial assumptions; the police officer's service, age, and salary history; the level of funding of the pension fund to which the credits are being transferred; and any other factors that the Division determines to be relevant. The rules may require that all calculations made under paragraph (2) be reported to the Division by the board performing the calculation, together with documentation of the creditable service to be transferred, the amounts of contributions and interest to be transferred, the manner in which the calculation was performed, the numbers relied upon in making the calculation, the results of the calculation, and any other information the Division may deem useful.

(4) Until January 1, 2010, a police officer who transferred service from the Fund established under Article 7 of this Code under the provisions of Public Act 94-356 may establish additional credit, but only for the amount of the service credit reduction in that transfer, as calculated under paragraph (3) of this subsection (e). This credit may be established upon payment by the police officer of an amount to be determined by the board, equal to (1) the amount that would have been contributed as employee and employer contributions had all of the service been as an employee under this Article, plus interest thereon at the rate of 6% per year, compounded annually from the date of service to the date of transfer, less (2) the total amount transferred from the Article 7 Fund, plus (3) interest on the difference at the rate of 6% per year, compounded annually, from the date of the transfer to the date of payment. The additional service credit is allowed under this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly notwithstanding the provisions of Article 7 terminating all transferred credits on the date of transfer.

(Source: P.A. 95-812, eff. 8-13-08; 96-297, eff. 8-11-09; 96-1260, eff. 7-23-10.)

(40 ILCS 5/4-108) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 4-108)

Sec. 4-108. Creditable service.

(a) Creditable service is the time served as a firefighter of a municipality. In computing creditable service, furloughs and leaves of absence without pay exceeding 30 days in any one year shall not be counted, but leaves of absence for illness or accident regardless of length, and periods of disability for which a firefighter received no disability pension payments under this Article, shall be counted.

(b) Furloughs and leaves of absence of 30 days or less in any one year may be counted as creditable service, if the firefighter makes the contribution to the fund that would have been required had he or she not been on furlough or leave of absence. To qualify for this creditable service, the firefighter must pay the required contributions to the fund not more than 90 days subsequent to the termination of the furlough or leave of absence, to the extent that the municipality has not made such contribution on his or her behalf.

(c) Creditable service includes:

(1) Service in the military, naval or air forces of the United States entered upon when the person was an active firefighter, provided that, upon applying for a permanent pension, and in accordance with the rules of the board the firefighter pays into the fund the amount that would have been contributed had he or she been a regular contributor during such period of service, if and to the extent that the municipality which the firefighter served made no such contributions in his or her behalf. The total amount of such creditable service shall not exceed 5 years, except that any firefighter who on July 1, 1973 had more than 5 years of such creditable service shall receive the total amount thereof as of that date.

(1.5) Up to 24 months of service in the military, naval, or air forces of the United States that was served prior to employment by a municipality or fire protection district as a firefighter. To receive the credit for the military service prior to the employment as a firefighter, the firefighter must apply in writing to the fund and must make contributions to the fund equal to (i) the employee contributions that would have been required had the service been rendered as a member, plus (ii) an amount determined by the fund to be equal to the employer's normal cost of the benefits accrued for that military service, plus (iii) interest at the actuarially assumed rate provided by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, compounded annually from the first date of membership in the fund to the date of payment on items (i) and (ii). The changes to this paragraph (1.5) by this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly apply only to participating employees in service on or after its effective date.

(2) Service prior to July 1, 1976 by a firefighter initially excluded from participation by reason of age who elected to participate and paid the required contributions for such service.

(3) Up to 8 years of service by a firefighter as an officer in a statewide firefighters' association when he is on a leave of absence from a municipality's payroll, provided that (i) the firefighter has at least 10 years of creditable service as an active firefighter, (ii) the firefighter contributes to the fund the amount that he would have contributed had he remained an active member of the fund, and (iii) the employee or statewide firefighter association contributes to the fund an amount equal to the employer's required contribution as determined by the board, and (v) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(4) Time spent as an on-call fireman for a municipality, calculated at the rate of one year of creditable service for each 5 years of time spent as an on-call fireman, provided that (i) the firefighter has at least 18 years of creditable service as an active firefighter, (ii) the firefighter spent at least 14 years as an on-call firefighter for the municipality, (iii) the firefighter applies for such creditable service within 30 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1989, (iv) the firefighter contributes to the Fund an amount representing employee contributions for the number of years of creditable service granted under this subdivision (4), based on the salary and contribution rate in effect for the firefighter at the date of entry into the Fund, to be determined by the board, and (v) not more than 3 years of creditable service may be granted under this subdivision (4).

Except as provided in Section 4-108.5, creditable service shall not include time spent as a volunteer firefighter, whether or not any compensation was received therefor. The change made in this Section by Public Act 83-0463 is intended to be a restatement and clarification of existing law, and does not imply that creditable service was previously allowed under this Article for time spent as a volunteer firefighter.

(5) Time served between July 1, 1976 and July 1, 1988 in the position of protective inspection officer or administrative assistant for fire services, for a municipality with a population under 10,000 that is located in a county with a population over 3,000,000 and that maintains a firefighters' pension fund under this Article, if the position included firefighting duties, notwithstanding that the person may not have held an appointment as a firefighter, provided that application is made to the pension fund within 30 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1991, and the corresponding contributions are paid for the number of years of service granted, based upon the salary and contribution rate in effect for the firefighter at the date of entry into the pension fund, as determined by the Board.

(6) Service before becoming a participant by a firefighter initially excluded from participation by reason of age who becomes a participant under the amendment to Section 4-107 made by this amendatory Act of 1993 and pays the required contributions for such service.

(7) Up to 3 years of time during which the firefighter receives a disability pension under Section 4-110, 4-110.1, or 4-111, provided that (i) the firefighter returns to active service after the disability for a period at least equal to the period for which credit is to be established and (ii) the firefighter makes contributions to the fund based on the rates specified in Section 4-118.1 and the salary upon which the disability pension is based. These contributions may be paid at any time prior to the commencement of a retirement pension. The firefighter may, but need not, elect to have the contributions deducted from the disability pension or to pay them in installments on a schedule approved by the board. If not deducted from the disability pension, the contributions shall include interest at the rate of 6% per year, compounded annually, from the date for which service credit is being established to the date of payment. If contributions are paid under this subdivision (c)(7) in excess of those needed to establish the credit, the excess shall be refunded. This subdivision (c)(7) applies to persons receiving a disability pension under Section 4-110, 4-110.1, or 4-111 on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 91st General Assembly, as well as persons who begin to receive such a disability pension after that date.

(Source: P.A. 94-856, eff. 6-15-06; 95-1056, eff. 4-10-09.)

(40 ILCS 5/5-214) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 5-214)

Sec. 5-214. Credit for other service. Any participant in this fund (other than a member of the fire department of the city) who has rendered service as a member of the police department of the city for a period of 3 years or more is entitled to credit for the various purposes of this Article for service rendered prior to becoming a member or subsequent thereto for the following periods:

(a) While on leave of absence from the police department assigned or detailed to investigative, protective, security or police work for the park district of the city, the department of the Port of Chicago or the sanitary district in which the city is located.

(b) As a temporary police officer in the city or while serving in the office of the mayor or in the office of the corporation counsel, as a member of the city council of the city, as an employee of the Policemen's Annuity and Benefit Fund created by this Article, as the head of an organization whose membership consists of members of the police department, the Public Vehicle License Commission and the board of election commissioners of the city.

(c) While performing safety or investigative work for the county in which such city is principally located or for the State of Illinois or for the federal government, on leave of absence from the department of police, or while performing investigative work for the department as a civilian employee of the department.

(d) While on leave of absence from the police department of the city and serving as the chief of police of a police department outside the city.

No credit shall be granted in this fund, however, for this service if the policeman has credit therefor in any other annuity and benefit fund, or unless he contributes to this fund the amount he would have contributed with interest had he remained an active member of the police department in the position he occupied as a result of a civil service competitive examination, certification and appointment by the Civil Service Board; or in the case of a city operating under the provisions of a personnel ordinance the position he occupied as a result of a personnel ordinance competitive examination certification and appointment under the authority of a Municipal Personnel ordinance.

Concurrently with such contributions, the city shall contribute the amounts provided by this Article. No credit shall be allowed for any period of time for which contributions by the policeman have not been paid. The period of service rendered by such policeman prior to the date he became a member of the police department of the city or while detailed, assigned or on leave of absence and employed in any of the departments set forth hereinabove in this Section for which such policeman has contributed to this fund shall be credited to him as service for all the purposes of this Article, except that he shall not have any of the rights conferred by the provisions of Sections 5-127 and 5-162 of this Article.

The changes in this Section made by Public Act 86-273 shall apply to members of the fund who have not begun receiving a pension under this Article on August 23, 1989, without regard to whether employment is terminated before that date.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, participants are only entitled to credit for service under paragraph (b) of this Section as the head of an organization whose membership consists of members of the police department if the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(Source: P.A. 86-273; 87-1265.)

(40 ILCS 5/6-209) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 6-209)

Sec. 6-209. In computing the service rendered by a fireman prior to the effective date, the following periods shall be counted, in addition to all periods during which he performed the duties of his position, as periods of service for annuity purposes only: All periods of (a) vacation, (b) leave of absence with whole or part pay, (c) leave of absence without pay which were necessary on account of disability, and (d) leave of absence during which he was engaged in the military or naval service of the United States of America. Service credit shall not be allowed for any period during which a fireman was in receipt of pension on account of disability from any pension fund superseded by this fund.

In computing the service rendered by a fireman on and after the effective date, the following periods shall be counted in addition to all periods during which he performed the duties of his position, as periods of service for annuity purposes only: All periods of (a) vacation, (b) leave of absence with whole or part pay, (c) leave of absence during which he was engaged in the military or naval service of the United States of America, (d) disability for which he receives any disability benefit, (e) disability for which he receives whole or part pay, (f) leave of absence, or other authorized relief from active duty, during which he served as president of The Firemen's Association of Chicago, (g) periods of suspension from duty not to exceed a total of one year during the total period of service of the fireman, and (h) a period of time not to exceed 23 days in 1980 in accordance with an agreement with the City on a settlement of strike; provided that the fireman elects to make contributions to the Fund for the various annuity and benefit purposes according to the provisions of this Article as though he were an active fireman, based upon the salary attached to the civil service rank held by him during such absence from duty, and if the fireman so elects, the city shall make the prescribed concurrent contributions for such annuity and benefit purposes as provided in this Article, all to the end that such fireman shall be entitled to receive the same annuities and benefits for which he would otherwise be eligible if he had continued as an active fireman during the periods of absence from duty. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, a fireman may only use a leave of absence, or other authorized relief from active duty, during which the fireman served as president of The Firemen's Association of Chicago in computing his or her service if the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

In computing service on and after the effective date for ordinary disability benefit, all periods described in the preceding paragraph, except any period for which a fireman receives ordinary disability benefit, shall be counted as periods of service.

In computing service for any of the purposes of this Article, credit shall be given for any periods prior to January 9, 1997, during which an active fireman (or fire paramedic) who is a member of the General Assembly is on leave of absence or is otherwise authorized to be absent from duty to enable him to perform his legislative duties, notwithstanding any reduction in salary for such periods and notwithstanding that the contributions paid by the fireman were based on such reduced salary rather than the full amount of salary attached to his civil service rank.

In computing service for any of the purposes of this Article, no credit shall be given for any period during which a fireman was not rendering active service because of his discharge from the service, unless proceedings to test the legality of the discharge are filed in a court of competent jurisdiction within one year from the date of discharge and a final judgment is entered therein declaring the discharge illegal.

No overtime or extra service shall be included in computing service of a fireman and not more than one year or a proper fractional part thereof of service shall be allowed for service rendered during any calendar year.

(Source: P.A. 86-273; 86-1488; 87-1265.)

(40 ILCS 5/7-132) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-132)

Sec. 7-132. Municipalities, instrumentalities and participating instrumentalities included and effective dates.

(A) Municipalities and their instrumentalities.

(a) The following described municipalities, but not including any with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants, and the instrumentalities thereof, shall be included within and be subject to this Article beginning upon the effective dates specified by the Board:

(1) Except as to the municipalities and instrumentalities thereof specifically excluded under this Article, every county shall be subject to this Article, and all cities, villages and incorporated towns having a population in excess of 5,000 inhabitants as determined by the last preceding decennial or subsequent federal census, shall be subject to this Article following publication of the census by the Bureau of the Census. Within 90 days after publication of the census, the Board shall notify any municipality that has become subject to this Article as a result of that census, and shall provide information to the corporate authorities of the municipality explaining the duties and consequences of participation. The notification shall also include a proposed date upon which participation by the municipality will commence.

However, for any city, village or incorporated town that attains a population over 5,000 inhabitants after having provided social security coverage for its employees under the Social Security Enabling Act, participation under this Article shall not be mandatory but may be elected in accordance with subparagraph (3) or (4) of this paragraph (a), whichever is applicable.

(2) School districts, other than those specifically excluded under this Article, shall be subject to this Article, without election, with respect to all employees thereof.

(3) Towns and all other bodies politic and corporate which are formed by vote of, or are subject to control by, the electors in towns and are located in towns which are not participating municipalities on the effective date of this Act, may become subject to this Article by election pursuant to Section 7-132.1.

(4) Any other municipality (together with its instrumentalities), other than those specifically excluded from participation and those described in paragraph (3) above, may elect to be included either by referendum under Section 7-134 or by the adoption of a resolution or ordinance by its governing body. A copy of such resolution or ordinance duly authenticated and certified by the clerk of the municipality or other appropriate official of its governing body shall constitute the required notice to the board of such action.

(b) A municipality that is about to begin participation shall submit to the Board an application to participate, in a form acceptable to the Board, not later than 90 days prior to the proposed effective date of participation. The Board shall act upon the application within 90 days, and if it finds that the application is in conformity with its requirements and the requirements of this Article, participation by the applicant shall commence on a date acceptable to the municipality and specified by the Board, but in no event more than one year from the date of application.

(c) A participating municipality which succeeds to the functions of a participating municipality which is dissolved or terminates its existence shall assume and be transferred the net accumulation balance in the municipality reserve and the municipality account receivable balance of the terminated municipality.

(d) In the case of a Veterans Assistance Commission whose employees were being treated by the Fund on January 1, 1990 as employees of the county served by the Commission, the Fund may continue to treat the employees of the Veterans Assistance Commission as county employees for the purposes of this Article, unless the Commission becomes a participating instrumentality in accordance with subsection (B) of this Section.

(B) Participating instrumentalities.

(a) The participating instrumentalities designated in paragraph (b) of this subsection shall be included within and be subject to this Article if:

(1) an application to participate, in a form acceptable to the Board and adopted by a two-thirds vote of the governing body, is presented to the Board not later than 90 days prior to the proposed effective date; and

(2) the Board finds that the application is in conformity with its requirements, that the applicant has reasonable expectation to continue as a political entity for a period of at least 10 years and has the prospective financial capacity to meet its current and future obligations to the Fund, and that the actuarial soundness of the Fund may be reasonably expected to be unimpaired by approval of participation by the applicant.

The Board shall notify the applicant of its findings within 90 days after receiving the application, and if the Board approves the application, participation by the applicant shall commence on the effective date specified by the Board.

(b) The following participating instrumentalities, so long as they meet the requirements of Section 7-108 and the area served by them or within their jurisdiction is not located entirely within a municipality having more than one million inhabitants, may be included hereunder:

i. Township School District Trustees.

ii. Multiple County and Consolidated Health Departments created under Division 5-25 of the Counties Code or its predecessor law.

iii. Public Building Commissions created under the Public Building Commission Act, and located in counties of less than 1,000,000 inhabitants.

iv. A multitype, consolidated or cooperative library system created under the Illinois Library System Act. Any library system created under the Illinois Library System Act that has one or more predecessors that participated in the Fund may participate in the Fund upon application. The Board shall establish procedures for implementing the transfer of rights and obligations from the predecessor system to the successor system.

v. Regional Planning Commissions created under Division 5-14 of the Counties Code or its predecessor law.

vi. Local Public Housing Authorities created under the Housing Authorities Act, located in counties of less than 1,000,000 inhabitants.

vii. Illinois Municipal League, but only with respect to service on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

viii. Northeastern Illinois Metropolitan Area Planning Commission.

ix. Southwestern Illinois Metropolitan Area Planning Commission.

x. Illinois Association of Park Districts.

xi. Illinois Supervisors, County Commissioners and Superintendents of Highways Association.

xii. Tri-City Regional Port District.

xiii. An association, or not-for-profit corporation, membership in which is authorized under Section 85-15 of the Township Code.

xiv. Drainage Districts operating under the Illinois Drainage Code.

xv. Local mass transit districts created under the Local Mass Transit District Act.

xvi. Soil and water conservation districts created under the Soil and Water Conservation Districts Law.

xvii. Commissions created to provide water supply or sewer services or both under Division 135 or Division 136 of Article 11 of the Illinois Municipal Code.

xviii. Public water districts created under the Public Water District Act.

xix. Veterans Assistance Commissions established under Section 9 of the Military Veterans Assistance Act that serve counties with a population of less than 1,000,000.

xx. The governing body of an entity, other than a vocational education cooperative, created under an intergovernmental cooperative agreement established between participating municipalities under the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act, which by the terms of the agreement is the employer of the persons performing services under the agreement under the usual common law rules determining the employer-employee relationship. The governing body of such an intergovernmental cooperative entity established prior to July 1, 1988 may make participation retroactive to the effective date of the agreement and, if so, the effective date of participation shall be the date the required application is filed with the fund. If any such entity is unable to pay the required employer contributions to the fund, then the participating municipalities shall make payment of the required contributions and the payments shall be allocated as provided in the agreement or, if not so provided, equally among them.

xxi. The Illinois Municipal Electric Agency.

xxii. The Waukegan Port District.

xxiii. The Fox Waterway Agency created under the Fox Waterway Agency Act.

xxiv. The Illinois Municipal Gas Agency.

xxv. The Kaskaskia Regional Port District.

xxvi. The Southwestern Illinois Development Authority.

xxvii. The Cairo Public Utility Company.

xxviii. Except with respect to employees who elect to participate in the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois under Section 14-104.13 of this Code, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning created under the Regional Planning Act, provided that, with respect to the benefits payable pursuant to Sections 7-146, 7-150, and 7-164 and the requirement that eligibility for such benefits is conditional upon satisfying a minimum period of service or a minimum contribution, any employee of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning that was immediately prior to such employment an employee of the Chicago Area Transportation Study or the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, such employee's service at the Chicago Area Transportation Study or the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission and contributions to the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois established under Article 14 and the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund shall count towards the satisfaction of such requirements.

xxix. United Counties Council (formerly the Urban Counties Council), but only if the Council has a ruling from the United States Internal Revenue Service that it is a governmental entity.

xxx. The Will County Governmental League, but only if the League has a ruling from the United States Internal Revenue Service that it is a governmental entity and only with respect to service on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(c) The governing boards of special education joint agreements created under Section 10-22.31 of the School Code without designation of an administrative district shall be included within and be subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities when the joint agreement becomes effective. However, the governing board of any such special education joint agreement in effect before September 5, 1975 shall not be subject to this Article unless the joint agreement is modified by the school districts to provide that the governing board is subject to this Article, except as otherwise provided by this Section.

The governing board of the Special Education District of Lake County shall become subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality on July 1, 1997. Notwithstanding subdivision (a)1 of Section 7-139, on the effective date of participation, employees of the governing board of the Special Education District of Lake County shall receive creditable service for their prior service with that employer, up to a maximum of 5 years, without any employee contribution. Employees may establish creditable service for the remainder of their prior service with that employer, if any, by applying in writing and paying an employee contribution in an amount determined by the Fund, based on the employee contribution rates in effect at the time of application for the creditable service and the employee's salary rate on the effective date of participation for that employer, plus interest at the effective rate from the date of the prior service to the date of payment. Application for this creditable service must be made before July 1, 1998; the payment may be made at any time while the employee is still in service. The employer may elect to make the required contribution on behalf of the employee.

The governing board of a special education joint agreement created under Section 10-22.31 of the School Code for which an administrative district has been designated, if there are employees of the cooperative educational entity who are not employees of the administrative district, may elect to participate in the Fund and be included within this Article as a participating instrumentality, subject to such application procedures and rules as the Board may prescribe.

The Boards of Control of cooperative or joint educational programs or projects created and administered under Section 3-15.14 of the School Code, whether or not the Boards act as their own administrative district, shall be included within and be subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities when the agreement establishing the cooperative or joint educational program or project becomes effective.

The governing board of a special education joint agreement entered into after June 30, 1984 and prior to September 17, 1985 which provides for representation on the governing board by less than all the participating districts shall be included within and subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality. Such participation shall be effective as of the date the joint agreement becomes effective.

The governing boards of educational service centers established under Section 2-3.62 of the School Code shall be included within and subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities. The governing boards of vocational education cooperative agreements created under the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act and approved by the State Board of Education shall be included within and be subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities. If any such governing boards or boards of control are unable to pay the required employer contributions to the fund, then the school districts served by such boards shall make payment of required contributions as provided in Section 7-172. The payments shall be allocated among the several school districts in proportion to the number of students in average daily attendance for the last full school year for each district in relation to the total number of students in average attendance for such period for all districts served. If such educational service centers, vocational education cooperatives or cooperative or joint educational programs or projects created and administered under Section 3-15.14 of the School Code are dissolved, the assets and obligations shall be distributed among the districts in the same proportions unless otherwise provided.

The governing board of Paris Cooperative High School shall be included within and be subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly. If the governing board of Paris Cooperative High School is unable to pay the required employer contributions to the fund, then the school districts served shall make payment of required contributions as provided in Section 7-172. The payments shall be allocated among the several school districts in proportion to the number of students in average daily attendance for the last full school year for each district in relation to the total number of students in average attendance for such period for all districts served. If Paris Cooperative High School is dissolved, then the assets and obligations shall be distributed among the districts in the same proportions unless otherwise provided.

Financial Oversight Panels established under Article 1H of the School Code shall be included within and be subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly. If the Financial Oversight Panel is unable to pay the required employer contributions to the fund, then the school districts served shall make payment of required contributions as provided in Section 7-172. If the Financial Oversight Panel is dissolved, then the assets and obligations shall be distributed to the district served.

(d) The governing boards of special recreation joint agreements created under Section 8-10b of the Park District Code, operating without designation of an administrative district or an administrative municipality appointed to administer the program operating under the authority of such joint agreement shall be included within and be subject to this Article as participating instrumentalities when the joint agreement becomes effective. However, the governing board of any such special recreation joint agreement in effect before January 1, 1980 shall not be subject to this Article unless the joint agreement is modified, by the districts and municipalities which are parties to the agreement, to provide that the governing board is subject to this Article.

If the Board returns any employer and employee contributions to any employer which erroneously submitted such contributions on behalf of a special recreation joint agreement, the Board shall include interest computed from the end of each year to the date of payment, not compounded, at the rate of 7% per annum.

(e) Each multi-township assessment district, the board of trustees of which has adopted this Article by ordinance prior to April 1, 1982, shall be a participating instrumentality included within and subject to this Article effective December 1, 1981. The contributions required under Section 7-172 shall be included in the budget prepared under and allocated in accordance with Section 2-30 of the Property Tax Code.

(f) The Illinois Medical District Commission created under the Illinois Medical District Act may be included within and subject to this Article as a participating instrumentality, notwithstanding that the location of the District is entirely within the City of Chicago. To become a participating instrumentality, the Commission must apply to the Board in the manner set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection (B). If the Board approves the application, under the criteria and procedures set forth in paragraph (a) and any other applicable rules, criteria, and procedures of the Board, participation by the Commission shall commence on the effective date specified by the Board.

(C) Prospective participants.

Beginning January 1, 1992, each prospective participating municipality or participating instrumentality shall pay to the Fund the cost, as determined by the Board, of a study prepared by the Fund or its actuary, detailing the prospective costs of participation in the Fund to be expected by the municipality or instrumentality.

(Source: P.A. 96-211, eff. 8-10-09; 96-551, eff. 8-17-09; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10; 96-1046, eff. 7-14-10; 97-429, eff. 8-16-11.)

(40 ILCS 5/8-226) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 8-226)

Sec. 8-226. Computation of service. In computing the term of service of an employee prior to the effective date, the entire period beginning on the date he was first appointed and ending on the day before the effective date, except any intervening period during which he was separated by withdrawal from service, shall be counted for all purposes of this Article, except that for any employee who was not in service on the day before the effective date, service rendered prior to such date shall not be considered for the purposes of Section 8-138.

For a person employed by an employer for whom this Article was in effect prior to January 1, 1950, from whose salary deductions are first made under this Article after December 31, 1949, any period of service rendered prior to the effective date, unless he was in service on the day before the effective date, shall not be counted as service.

The time a person was an employee of any territory annexed to the city prior to the effective date shall be counted as a period of service.

In computing the term of service of any employee subsequent to the day before the effective date, the following periods shall be counted as periods of service for age and service, widow's and child's annuity purposes:

(a) The time during which he performed the duties of his position;

(b) Vacations, leaves of absence with whole or part pay, and leaves of absence without pay not longer than 90 days;

(c) Leaves of absence without pay during which a participant is employed full-time by a local labor organization that represents municipal employees, provided that (1) the participant continues to make employee contributions to the Fund as though he were an active employee, based on the regular salary rate received by the participant for his municipal employment immediately prior to such leave of absence (and in the case of such employment prior to December 9, 1987, pays to the Fund an amount equal to the employee contributions for such employment plus regular interest thereon as calculated by the board), and based on his current salary with such labor organization after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1991, (2) after January 1, 1989 the participant, or the labor organization on the participant's behalf, makes contributions to the Fund as though it were the employer, in the same amount and same manner as specified under this Article, based on the regular salary rate received by the participant for his municipal employment immediately prior to such leave of absence, and based on his current salary with such labor organization after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1991, and (3) the participant does not receive credit in any pension plan established by the local labor organization based on his employment by the organization, and (4) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly;

(d) Any period of disability for which he received (i) a disability benefit under this Article, or (ii) a temporary total disability benefit under the Workers' Compensation Act if the disability results from a condition commonly termed heart attack or stroke or any other condition falling within the broad field of coronary involvement or heart disease, or (iii) whole or part pay;

(e) Any period for which contributions and service credit have been transferred to this Fund under subsection (d) of Section 9-121.1 or subsection (d) of Section 12-127.1 of this Code.

For a person employed by an employer in which the 1921 Act was in effect prior to January 1, 1950, from whose salary deductions are first made under the 1921 Act or this Article after December 31, 1949, any period of service rendered subsequent to the effective date and prior to the date he became an employee and contributor, shall not be counted as a period of service under this Article, except such period for which he made payment as provided in Section 8-230 of this Article, in which case such period shall be counted as a period of service for all annuity purposes hereunder.

In computing the term of service of an employee subsequent to the day before the effective date for ordinary disability benefit purposes, all periods described in the preceding paragraph, except any such period for which he receives ordinary disability benefit, shall be counted as periods of service; provided, that for any person employed by an employer in which this Article was in effect prior to January 1, 1950, from whose salary deductions are first made under this Article after December 31, 1949, any period of service rendered subsequent to the effective date and prior to the date he became an employee and contributor, shall not be counted as a period of service for ordinary disability benefit purposes, unless the person made payment for the period as provided in Section 8-230 of this Article, in which case the period shall be counted as a period of service for ordinary disability purposes for periods of disability on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1997.

Overtime or extra service shall not be included in computing any term of service. Not more than 1 year of service shall be allowed for service rendered during any calendar year.

(Source: P.A. 90-511, eff. 8-22-97.)

(40 ILCS 5/11-215) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 11-215)

Sec. 11-215. Computation of service.

(a) In computing the term of service of an employee prior to the effective date, the entire period beginning on the date he was first appointed and ending on the day before the effective date, except any intervening period during which he was separated by withdrawal from service, shall be counted for all purposes of this Article. Only the first year of each period of lay-off or leave of absence without pay, continuing or extending for a period in excess of one year, shall be counted as such service.

(b) For a person employed by an employer for whom this Article was in effect prior to August 1, 1949, from whose salary deductions are first made under this Article after July 31, 1949, any period of service rendered prior to the effective date, unless he was in service on the day before the effective date, shall not be counted as service.

(c) In computing the term of service of an employee subsequent to the day before the effective date, the following periods of time shall be counted as periods of service for annuity purposes:

(1) the time during which he performed the duties of his position;

(2) leaves of absence with whole or part pay, and leaves of absence without pay not longer than 90 days;

(3) leaves of absence without pay during which a participant is employed full-time by a local labor organization that represents municipal employees, provided that (A) the participant continues to make employee contributions to the Fund as though he were an active employee, based on the regular salary rate received by the participant for his municipal employment immediately prior to such leave of absence (and in the case of such employment prior to December 9, 1987, pays to the Fund an amount equal to the employee contributions for such employment plus regular interest thereon as calculated by the board), and based on his current salary with such labor organization after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1991, (B) after January 1, 1989 the participant, or the labor organization on the participant's behalf, makes contributions to the Fund as though it were the employer, in the same amount and same manner as specified under this Article, based on the regular salary rate received by the participant for his municipal employment immediately prior to such leave of absence, and based on his current salary with such labor organization after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1991, and (C) the participant does not receive credit in any pension plan established by the local labor organization based on his employment by the organization, and (D) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly;

(4) any period of disability for which he received (i) a disability benefit under this Article, or (ii) a temporary total disability benefit under the Workers' Compensation Act if the disability results from a condition commonly termed heart attack or stroke or any other condition falling within the broad field of coronary involvement or heart disease, or (iii) whole or part pay.

(d) For a person employed by an employer, or the retirement board, in which "The 1935 Act" was in effect prior to August 1, 1949, from whose salary deductions are first made under "The 1935 Act" or this Article after July 31, 1949, any period of service rendered subsequent to the effective date and prior to August 1, 1949, shall not be counted as a period of service under this Article, except such period for which he made payment, as provided in Section 11-221 of this Article, in which case such period shall be counted as a period of service for all annuity purposes hereunder.

(e) In computing the term of service of an employee subsequent to the day before the effective date for ordinary disability benefit purposes, the following periods of time shall be counted as periods of service:

(1) any period during which he performed the duties of his position;

(2) leaves of absence with whole or part pay;

(3) any period of disability for which he received (i) a duty disability benefit under this Article, or (ii) a temporary total disability benefit under the Workers' Compensation Act if the disability results from a condition commonly termed heart attack or stroke or any other condition falling within the broad field of coronary involvement or heart disease, or (iii) whole or part pay.

However, any period of service rendered by an employee contributor prior to the date he became a contributor to the fund shall not be counted as a period of service for ordinary disability purposes, unless the person made payment for the period as provided in Section 11-221 of this Article, in which case the period shall be counted as a period of service for ordinary disability purposes for periods of disability on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1997.

Overtime or extra service shall not be included in computing any term of service. Not more than 1 year of service shall be allowed for service rendered during any calendar year.

(Source: P.A. 90-511, eff. 8-22-97.)

(40 ILCS 5/15-107) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 15-107)

Sec. 15-107. Employee.

(a) "Employee" means any member of the educational, administrative, secretarial, clerical, mechanical, labor or other staff of an employer whose employment is permanent and continuous or who is employed in a position in which services are expected to be rendered on a continuous basis for at least 4 months or one academic term, whichever is less, who (A) receives payment for personal services on a warrant issued pursuant to a payroll voucher certified by an employer and drawn by the State Comptroller upon the State Treasurer or by an employer upon trust, federal or other funds, or (B) is on a leave of absence without pay. Employment which is irregular, intermittent or temporary shall not be considered continuous for purposes of this paragraph.

However, a person is not an "employee" if he or she:

(1) is a student enrolled in and regularly attending classes in a college or university which is an employer, and is employed on a temporary basis at less than full time;

(2) is currently receiving a retirement annuity or a disability retirement annuity under Section 15-153.2 from this System;

(3) is on a military leave of absence;

(4) is eligible to participate in the Federal Civil Service Retirement System and is currently making contributions to that system based upon earnings paid by an employer;

(5) is on leave of absence without pay for more than 60 days immediately following termination of disability benefits under this Article;

(6) is hired after June 30, 1979 as a public service employment program participant under the Federal Comprehensive Employment and Training Act and receives earnings in whole or in part from funds provided under that Act; or

(7) is employed on or after July 1, 1991 to perform services that are excluded by subdivision (a)(7)(f) or (a)(19) of Section 210 of the federal Social Security Act from the definition of employment given in that Section (42 U.S.C. 410).

(b) Any employer may, by filing a written notice with the board, exclude from the definition of "employee" all persons employed pursuant to a federally funded contract entered into after July 1, 1982 with a federal military department in a program providing training in military courses to federal military personnel on a military site owned by the United States Government, if this exclusion is not prohibited by the federally funded contract or federal laws or rules governing the administration of the contract.

(c) Any person appointed by the Governor under the Civil Administrative Code of the State is an employee, if he or she is a participant in this system on the effective date of the appointment.

(d) A participant on lay-off status under civil service rules is considered an employee for not more than 120 days from the date of the lay-off.

(e) A participant is considered an employee during (1) the first 60 days of disability leave, (2) the period, not to exceed one year, in which his or her eligibility for disability benefits is being considered by the board or reviewed by the courts, and (3) the period he or she receives disability benefits under the provisions of Section 15-152, workers' compensation or occupational disease benefits, or disability income under an insurance contract financed wholly or partially by the employer.

(f) Absences without pay, other than formal leaves of absence, of less than 30 calendar days, are not considered as an interruption of a person's status as an employee. If such absences during any period of 12 months exceed 30 work days, the employee status of the person is considered as interrupted as of the 31st work day.

(g) A staff member whose employment contract requires services during an academic term is to be considered an employee during the summer and other vacation periods, unless he or she declines an employment contract for the succeeding academic term or his or her employment status is otherwise terminated, and he or she receives no earnings during these periods.

(h) An individual who was a participating employee employed in the fire department of the University of Illinois's Champaign-Urbana campus immediately prior to the elimination of that fire department and who immediately after the elimination of that fire department became employed by the fire department of the City of Urbana or the City of Champaign shall continue to be considered as an employee for purposes of this Article for so long as the individual remains employed as a firefighter by the City of Urbana or the City of Champaign. The individual shall cease to be considered an employee under this subsection (h) upon the first termination of the individual's employment as a firefighter by the City of Urbana or the City of Champaign.

(i) An individual who is employed on a full-time basis as an officer or employee of a statewide teacher organization that serves System participants or an officer of a national teacher organization that serves System participants may participate in the System and shall be deemed an employee, provided that (1) the individual has previously earned creditable service under this Article, (2) the individual files with the System an irrevocable election to become a participant, and (3) the individual does not receive credit for that employment under any other Article of this Code and (4) the employee and employer contribution for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly. An employee under this subsection (i) is responsible for paying to the System both (A) employee contributions based on the actual compensation received for service with the teacher organization and (B) employer contributions equal to the normal costs (as defined in Section 15-155) resulting from that service; all or any part of these contributions may be paid on the employee's behalf or picked up for tax purposes (if authorized under federal law) by the teacher organization.

A person who is an employee as defined in this subsection (i) may establish service credit for similar employment prior to becoming an employee under this subsection by paying to the System for that employment the contributions specified in this subsection, plus interest at the effective rate from the date of service to the date of payment. However, credit shall not be granted under this subsection for any such prior employment for which the applicant received credit under any other provision of this Code, or during which the applicant was on a leave of absence under Section 15-113.2.

(j) A person employed by the State Board of Higher Education in a position with the Illinois Century Network as of June 30, 2004 shall be considered to be an employee for so long as he or she remains continuously employed after that date by the Department of Central Management Services in a position with the Illinois Century Network, the Bureau of Communication and Computer Services, or, if applicable, any successor bureau and meets the requirements of subsection (a).

(Source: P.A. 95-369, eff. 8-23-07.)

(40 ILCS 5/16-106) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 16-106)

Sec. 16-106. Teacher. "Teacher": The following individuals, provided that, for employment prior to July 1, 1990, they are employed on a full-time basis, or if not full-time, on a permanent and continuous basis in a position in which services are expected to be rendered for at least one school term:

(1) Any educational, administrative, professional or other staff employed in the public common schools included within this system in a position requiring certification under the law governing the certification of teachers;

(2) Any educational, administrative, professional or other staff employed in any facility of the Department of Children and Family Services or the Department of Human Services, in a position requiring certification under the law governing the certification of teachers, and any person who (i) works in such a position for the Department of Corrections, (ii) was a member of this System on May 31, 1987, and (iii) did not elect to become a member of the State Employees' Retirement System pursuant to Section 14-108.2 of this Code; except that "teacher" does not include any person who (A) becomes a security employee of the Department of Human Services, as defined in Section 14-110, after June 28, 2001 (the effective date of Public Act 92-14), or (B) becomes a member of the State Employees' Retirement System pursuant to Section 14-108.2c of this Code;

(3) Any regional superintendent of schools, assistant regional superintendent of schools, State Superintendent of Education; any person employed by the State Board of Education as an executive; any executive of the boards engaged in the service of public common school education in school districts covered under this system of which the State Superintendent of Education is an ex-officio member;

(4) Any employee of a school board association operating in compliance with Article 23 of the School Code who is certificated under the law governing the certification of teachers;

(5) Any person employed by the retirement system who:

(i) was an employee of and a participant in the system on August 17, 2001 (the effective date of Public Act 92-416), or

(ii) becomes an employee of the system on or after August 17, 2001;

(6) Any educational, administrative, professional or other staff employed by and under the supervision and control of a regional superintendent of schools, provided such employment position requires the person to be certificated under the law governing the certification of teachers and is in an educational program serving 2 or more districts in accordance with a joint agreement authorized by the School Code or by federal legislation;

(7) Any educational, administrative, professional or other staff employed in an educational program serving 2 or more school districts in accordance with a joint agreement authorized by the School Code or by federal legislation and in a position requiring certification under the laws governing the certification of teachers;

(8) Any officer or employee of a statewide teacher organization or officer of a national teacher organization who is certified under the law governing certification of teachers, provided: (i) the individual had previously established creditable service under this Article, (ii) the individual files with the system an irrevocable election to become a member, and (iii) the individual does not receive credit for such service under any other Article of this Code, and (iv) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly;

(9) Any educational, administrative, professional, or other staff employed in a charter school operating in compliance with the Charter Schools Law who is certificated under the law governing the certification of teachers.

(10) Any person employed, on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, by the Macon-Piatt Regional Office of Education in a birth-through-age-three pilot program receiving funds under Section 2-389 of the School Code who is required by the Macon-Piatt Regional Office of Education to hold a teaching certificate, provided that the Macon-Piatt Regional Office of Education makes an election, within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, to have the person participate in the system. Any service established prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly for service as an employee of the Macon-Piatt Regional Office of Education in a birth-through-age-three pilot program receiving funds under Section 2-389 of the School Code shall be considered service as a teacher if employee and employer contributions have been received by the system and the system has not refunded those contributions.

An annuitant receiving a retirement annuity under this Article or under Article 17 of this Code who is employed by a board of education or other employer as permitted under Section 16-118 or 16-150.1 is not a "teacher" for purposes of this Article. A person who has received a single-sum retirement benefit under Section 16-136.4 of this Article is not a "teacher" for purposes of this Article.

A person who is a teacher as described in item (8) of this Section may establish service credit for similar employment prior to becoming certified as a teacher if he or she (i) is certified as a teacher on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, (ii) applies in writing to the system within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, and (iii) pays to the system contributions equal to the normal costs calculated from the date of first full-time employment as described in item (8) to the date of payment, compounded annually at the rate of 8.5% per year for periods before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly and for subsequent periods at a rate equal to the System's actuarially assumed rate of return on investments, and (iv) the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the Fund before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly. However, credit shall not be granted under this paragraph for any such prior employment for which the applicant received credit under any other provision of this Code.

(Source: P.A. 93-320, eff. 7-23-03; 94-1111, eff. 2-27-07.)

(40 ILCS 5/17-134) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 17-134)

Sec. 17-134. Contributions for leaves of absence; military service; computing service. In computing service for pension purposes the following periods of service shall stand in lieu of a like number of years of teaching service upon payment therefor in the manner hereinafter provided: (a) time spent on a leave of absence granted by the employer; (b) service with teacher or labor organizations based upon special leaves of absence therefor granted by an Employer; (c) a maximum of 5 years spent in the military service of the United States, of which up to 2 years may have been served outside the pension period; (d) unused sick days at termination of service to a maximum of 244 days; (e) time lost due to layoff and curtailment of the school term from June 6 through June 21, 1976; and (f) time spent after June 30, 1982 as a member of the Board of Education, if required to resign from an administrative or teaching position in order to qualify as a member of the Board of Education.

(1) For time spent on or after September 6, 1948 on sabbatical leaves of absence or sick leaves, for which salaries are paid, an Employer shall make payroll deductions at the applicable rates in effect during such periods.

(2) For time spent on a leave of absence granted by the employer for which no salaries are paid, teachers desiring credit therefor shall pay the required contributions at the rates in effect during such periods as though they were in teaching service. If an Employer pays salary for vacations which occur during a teacher's sick leave or maternity or paternity leave without salary, vacation pay for which the teacher would have qualified while in active service shall be considered part of the teacher's total salary for pension purposes. No more than 36 months of leave credit may be allowed any person during the entire term of service. Sabbatical leave credit shall be limited to the time the person on leave without salary under an Employer's rules is allowed to engage in an activity for which he receives salary or compensation.

(3) For time spent prior to September 6, 1948, on sabbatical leaves of absence or sick leaves for which salaries were paid, teachers desiring service credit therefor shall pay the required contributions at the maximum applicable rates in effect during such periods.

(4) For service with teacher or labor organizations authorized by special leaves of absence, for which no payroll deductions are made by an Employer, teachers desiring service credit therefor shall contribute to the Fund upon the basis of the actual salary received from such organizations at the percentage rates in effect during such periods for certified positions with such Employer. To the extent the actual salary exceeds the regular salary, which shall be defined as the salary rate, as calculated by the Board, in effect for the teacher's regular position in teaching service on September 1, 1983 or on the effective date of the leave with the organization, whichever is later, the organization shall pay to the Fund the employer's normal cost as set by the Board on the increment. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subdivision (4), teachers are only entitled to credit for service under this subdivision (4) if the employee and employer contributions for the service are received by the System before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(5) For time spent in the military service, teachers entitled to and desiring credit therefor shall contribute the amount required for each year of service or fraction thereof at the rates in force (a) at the date of appointment, or (b) on return to teaching service as a regularly certified teacher, as the case may be; provided such rates shall not be less than $450 per year of service. These conditions shall apply unless an Employer elects to and does pay into the Fund the amount which would have been due from such person had he been employed as a teacher during such time. In the case of credit for military service not during the pension period, the teacher must also pay to the Fund an amount determined by the Board to be equal to the employer's normal cost of the benefits accrued from such service, plus interest thereon at 5% per year, compounded annually, from the date of appointment to the date of payment.

The changes to this Section made by Public Act 87-795 shall apply not only to persons who on or after its effective date are in service under the Fund, but also to persons whose status as a teacher terminated prior to that date, whether or not the person is an annuitant on that date. In the case of an annuitant who applies for credit allowable under this Section for a period of military service that did not immediately follow employment, and who has made the required contributions for such credit, the annuity shall be recalculated to include the additional service credit, with the increase taking effect on the date the Fund received written notification of the annuitant's intent to purchase the credit, if payment of all the required contributions is made within 60 days of such notice, or else on the first annuity payment date following the date of payment of the required contributions. In calculating the automatic annual increase for an annuity that has been recalculated under this Section, the increase attributable to the additional service allowable under this amendatory Act of 1991 shall be included in the calculation of automatic annual increases accruing after the effective date of the recalculation.

The total credit for military service shall not exceed 5 years, except that any teacher who on July 1, 1963, had validated credit for more than 5 years of military service shall be entitled to the total amount of such credit.

(6) A maximum of 244 unused sick days credited to his account by an Employer on the date of termination of employment. Members, upon verification of unused sick days, may add this service time to total creditable service.

(7) In all cases where time spent on leave is creditable and no payroll deductions therefor are made by an Employer, persons desiring service credit shall make the required contributions directly to the Fund.

(8) For time lost without pay due to layoff and curtailment of the school term from June 6 through June 21, 1976, as provided in item (e) of the first paragraph of this Section, persons who were contributors on the days immediately preceding such layoff shall receive credit upon paying to the Fund a contribution based on the rates of compensation and employee contributions in effect at the time of such layoff, together with an additional amount equal to 12.2% of the compensation computed for such period of layoff, plus interest on the entire amount at 5% per annum from January 1, 1978 to the date of payment. If such contribution is paid, salary for pension purposes for any year in which such a layoff occurred shall include the compensation recognized for purposes of computing that contribution.

(9) For time spent after June 30, 1982, as a nonsalaried member of the Board of Education, if required to resign from an administrative or teaching position in order to qualify as a member of the Board of Education, an administrator or teacher desiring credit therefor shall pay the required contributions at the rates and salaries in effect during such periods as though the member were in service.

Effective September 1, 1974, the interest charged for validation of service described in paragraphs (2) through (5) of this Section shall be compounded annually at a rate of 5% commencing one year after the termination of the leave or return to service.

(Source: P.A. 92-599, eff. 6-28-02.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.