GA Code § 47-3-86 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 47 - Retirement and Pensions|Chapter 3 - Teachers Retirement System of Georgia|Article 5 - Service Creditable Toward Retirement Benefits|§ 47-3-86. Issuance of a Prior Service Certificate; Evidentiary Effect of Such Certificate; Credit for Prior Service Rendered by Members Who Previously Elected Nonmembership

  Under such rules and regulations as the board of trustees shall adopt, each member who (1) was a teacher at any time during the calendar year 1943, or (2) has taught for at least two years between January 1, 1940, and January 1, 1943, or at least two years from January 1, 1945, to January 1, 1948, or (3) has taught at least one year between January 1, 1945, and January 1, 1948, and has 15 years of service previous to January 1, 1948, shall file a detailed statement of all services rendered by him as a teacher prior to January 1, 1945, for which he claims credit. If any person who would otherwise have qualified under this subsection is on leave in the armed forces of the United States, he shall have until six months after termination of his military service to file a statement of such services.   Upon verification of such statement of service, the board of trustees shall issue to each such member a prior service certificate certifying to the service prior to January 1, 1945, with which he is credited on the basis of his statement of service and the amount of his prior service accumulations. So long as membership continues, a prior service certificate shall be final and conclusive evidence of such service for retirement purposes, provided that a member may request the board of trustees to modify or correct his prior service certificate within one year of the date of issuance or any previous modification or correction. When membership ceases, such prior service certificate shall become void.   Any member who is unable to qualify for prior service under subsection (a) of this Code section may qualify for prior service he has rendered in the public schools or University System of Georgia after he has been a contributing member for five years and upon compliance with other requirements of this chapter.   Any teacher who previously elected not to become a member and signed a nonmembership card to that effect, but who desires to become a member, may receive credit for prior service upon making a contribution equal to 5 percent of all earnable compensation between January 1, 1945, and July 1, 1961, and 6 percent of all earnable compensation after July 1, 1961, plus accrued regular interest on such amounts compounded annually to the date on which the contribution is paid.    (Ga. L. 1943, p. 640, § 4; Ga. L. 1947, p. 872, § 1; Ga. L. 1953, Nov.-Dec. Sess., p. 390, § 1; Ga. L. 1960, p. 1116, § 2; Ga. L. 1961, p. 388, § 1; Ga. L. 1962, p. 723, § 12; Ga. L. 1963, p. 542, § 1; Ga. L. 1965, p. 438, § 2; Ga. L. 1977, p. 825, § 2; Ga. L. 1982, p. 3, § 47.)   OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL    Prior service certificate cannot be issued for service in 1944.  1948-49 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 136 (rendered under Ga. L. 1943, p. 640, § 4, as amended, prior to amendment by Ga. L. 1962, p. 723, § 12).   Limit time to qualify or file for prior service.   - Board of trustees is authorized to enact such rules and regulations as the board deems fit limiting the time within which a member may qualify as the recipient of prior service credit, and limiting the time in which a qualified member may file the detailed statement of the member's prior service, and the regulatory power granted the board of trustees is a plenary grant and is more than sufficient to authorize regulations. 1948-49 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 134.    Teachers who are veterans have period of six months after discharge  in which to qualify under the statutory provisions by accomplishing sufficient teaching services. 1948-49 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 134.   No limit as to when teacher discharged.    - Statute does not state any limitation as to when teacher must be discharged from the armed services to be eligible for the six months' additional period for qualification; thus it is not clear whether a teacher must be discharged during a national emergency or for some years thereafter to obtain the extra period; further, this statute is silent as to whether the six months' period of service shall be made retroactive to qualify a teacher within one of the several periods set out. 1948-49 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 134 (see O.C.G.A. § 47-3-86).   Prior service certificate conclusive for active contributing and retired member.    - Word "membership," as used in this statute, viz., "so long as membership continues a prior service certificate shall be final and conclusive . . . when membership ceases, such prior service certificate shall become void," includes and means both an active contributing member and a retired member receiving benefits, and a retired member has "membership" as that word is used in this statute. 1950-51 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 56 (see O.C.G.A. § 47-3-86).   Teacher not allowed pension based on local retirement fund years.   - If a teacher has 13 years of accrued creditable service under the retirement system acquired before July 1, 1943 (now January 1, 1945), immediately prior to joining a local system, and that teacher applies ten of those years toward a local retirement fund, that retired teacher would have to serve five years of membership service under the retirement system at some time to be eligible for the normal retirement benefits payable on the three years not applied to the local system, or alternatively, the minimum "floor" benefit on those three years, whichever is greater; also, if this teacher acquires the necessary five years of membership service in order to qualify for the creditation of prior service as a "regular member" of the retirement system, the teacher would be entitled to a benefit based on what would have been the annuity contributions during the ten transferred years had that teacher actually been paying contributions during that period; this teacher, however, would not be entitled to the pension amounts on these ten years applied to the local fund because those amounts must be paid to the local fund. 1950-51 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-113.