Refund of Contributions by Members
19. (1) If a member, for reasons other than death or retirement, ceases to be an employee or councillor of an employer before normal retirement date, the member may elect to have a refund of contributions made by him or her to the Fund, plus interest less the amount of any benefits that have been paid under this Regulation but, (a) contributions made by the member from the 1st day of January, 1965 to the 31st day of December, 1986, exclusive of contributions referred to in subsections 12 (6), 26 (14) and 26 (16), shall not be refunded if the cessation occurs after the member has attained the age of forty-five years and has completed ten years of continuous service with the employer; and (b) contributions made by the member on or after the 1st day of January, 1987, exclusive of contributions referred to in subsection 12 (6), shall not be refunded if the cessation occurs after the member has completed two continuous years of membership in the System. O. Reg. 775/91, s. 17; O. Reg. 591/98, s. 11. (2) Despite any other provision in this Regulation, if a member dies, retires or otherwise ceases to be an employee or councillor, the member, or the member’s designated beneficiary, or estate if there is no designated beneficiary, as the case may be, is entitled to a refund equal to the sum of contributions made by the member under subsections 10 (2.1), 10 (5) and 26 (6) since the 1st day of January, 1987, plus interest, minus one-half the commuted value of the pension which the member has earned in respect of these contributions. O. Reg. 775/91, s. 17; O. Reg. 783/92, s. 10. (2.1) If, before January 1, 1992, a member accrued credited service in excess of 35 years, a refund equal to the sum of the member’s contributions, plus interest, for the period of credited service in excess of 35 years is payable to the member or, if the member is deceased, to a person receiving a pension in respect of the member or, if there is no such person, to the member’s designated beneficiary or, if there is no designated beneficiary, to the member’s estate. O. Reg. 317/99, s. 9. (2.2) A refund under subsection (2.1) shall not include any amount paid to the member under subsection (2) in respect of the same period of credited service. O. Reg. 317/99, s. 9. (3) For the purposes of this section, interest on a contribution shall be calculated at the rate of 3 per cent per annum up to the 31st day of December, 1977, 5 per cent per annum up to the 31st day of December, 1986, and thereafter at a rate equal to the average monthly yield in the previous calendar year of five-year personal fixed term bank deposit rates as determined from the Canadian Socio-Economic Information Management (CANSIM) Series B 14045 published monthly in the Bank of Canada Review. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 890, s. 19 (3). (4) Despite subsection (3), any person whose written request for a refund under subsection (1) is effective on or before the 31st day of December, 1987, for the purposes of this section, interest on a contribution shall be calculated at the rate of 6.5 per cent per annum in respect of 1987. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 890, s. 19 (4). (5) For the purposes of this section, interest shall be calculated in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Pension Benefits Act. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 890, s. 19 (5).