2023 Pennsylvania Consolidated & Unconsolidated Statutes › Title 71 - STATE GOVERNMENT › Chapter 53 - Membership, Credited Service, Classes of Service, and Eligibility for Benefits › Section 5304 - Creditable nonstate service

§ 5304. Creditable nonstate service.
(a) Eligibility.--
(1) An active member who first becomes an active member before January 1, 2011, or before December 1, 2010, as a member of the General Assembly, or a multiple service member who first becomes an active member before January 1, 2011, or before December 1, 2010, as a member of the General Assembly, and who is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall be eligible for Class A service credit for creditable nonstate service as set forth in subsections (b) and (c) except that intervening military service shall be credited in the class of service for which the member was eligible at the time of entering into military service and for which he makes the required contributions to the fund and except that a multiple service member who is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall not be eligible to purchase service credit for creditable nonstate service set forth in subsection (c)(5).
(2) An active member who first becomes an active member on or after January 1, 2011, or on or after December 1, 2010, as a member of the General Assembly and is an active member of a class of service other than Class A-5 or Class A-6, or a multiple service member who first becomes an active member on or after January 1, 2011, or on or after December 1, 2010, as a member of the General Assembly in a class of service other than Class A-5 or Class A-6, and is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall be eligible for Class A-3 service credit for creditable nonstate service as set forth in subsections (b) and (c) except that intervening military service shall be credited in the class of service for which the member was eligible at the time of entering into military service and for which he makes the required contributions to the fund and except that a multiple service member who is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall not be eligible to purchase service credit for creditable nonstate service set forth in subsection (c)(5).
(3) An active member of Class A-5 or Class A-6 or a multiple service member who has service credited only as Class A-5 or Class A-6 and is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall be eligible for Class A-5 service credit if a Class A-5 member and Class A-6 service credit if a Class A-6 member for creditable nonstate service as set forth in subsections (b) and (c) for which the member makes the required contributions to the fund.
(a.1) Additional eligibility upon transferring nonschool service.--
A State employee who converts nonschool service from the Public School Employees' Retirement System to the system pursuant to section 5303.2 (relating to election to convert school service to State service) shall receive one year or fractional part of a year of nonstate service credit for each year or fractional part of a year, as the case may be, of nonschool service credited in the Public School Employees' Retirement System, provided, however, that no more than one year of State and nonstate service of all classes will be credited for any one calendar year. Converted nonschool service shall be credited as Class A as set forth in section 5306(d) (relating to classes of service).
(b) Limitations on eligibility.--
An active member or a multiple service member who is a school employee and an active member of the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall be eligible as provided under subsection (a) to receive credit for nonstate service provided that he does not have credit for such service in the system or in the Public School Employees' Retirement System and is not entitled to receive, eligible to receive now or in the future, or is receiving retirement benefits for such service in the system or under a retirement system administered and wholly or partially paid for by any other governmental agency or by any private employer, or a retirement program approved by the employer in accordance with section 5301(a)(12) (relating to mandatory and optional membership in the system and participation in the plan), and further provided, that such service is certified by the previous employer and contributions are agreed upon and made in accordance with section 5505 (relating to contributions for the purchase of credit for creditable nonstate service).
(c) Limitations on nonstate service.--
Creditable nonstate service credit shall be limited to:
(1) intervening military service if the member returned to State service before January 1, 2012;
(2) (i) military service other than:
(A) intervening military service;
(B) military service purchasable under former section 5302(d) (relating to credited State service) or 5302(f)(1); and
(C) military service performed during USERRA leave if the member was reemployed from USERRA leave.
(ii) the total creditable nonstate service under this paragraph may not exceed five years, provided that a member with multiple service may not purchase more than a total of five years of military service in both the system and the Public School Employees' Retirement System;
(3) in the case of an academic administrator, teacher or instructor employed in the Department of Education, the State System of Higher Education, any State-owned educational institution or The Pennsylvania State University, provided that the total amount of service creditable under this paragraph shall not exceed the lesser of ten years or the number of years of active membership in the system as an academic administrator, teacher or instructor in the Department of Education, State System of Higher Education, any State-owned educational institution or The Pennsylvania State University:
(i) nonstudent service as an academic administrator, teacher or instructor in any public school or public educational institution in any state other than this Commonwealth; or
(ii) nonstudent service as an academic administrator, teacher or instructor in the field of education for any agency or department of the Federal Government, whether or not such area was under the jurisdiction of the United States;
(4) previous service with a governmental agency other than the Commonwealth which employment with said agency was terminated because of the transfer by statute of the administration of such service or of the entire agency to the Commonwealth;
(5) service as a temporary Federal employee assigned to an air quality control complement for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources at any time during the period of 1970 through 1975. This service time may be purchased only if the member makes an election to purchase within one year of the effective date of this paragraph, and the member shall pay an amount which is equal to the full actuarial cost of the increased benefit obtained by virtue of the purchase as provided in section 5505(f);
(6) service in the Cadet Nurse Corps with respect to any period of training as a student or graduate nurse under a plan approved under section 2 of the act of June 15, 1943 (Public Law 78-73, 57 Stat. 153), if the total period of training under such plan was at least two years, the credit for such service not to exceed three years;
(7) service prior to July 1, 1971, at a community college established under the act of August 24, 1963 (P.L.1132, No.484), known as the Community College Act of 1963; or
(8) service as a justice of the peace prior to January 1970.
(c.1) Nonstate service exception.--
Notwithstanding the limitations on eligibility enumerated in subsection (c)(3), any person who was an officer or employee in the Office of the Chancellor of the State System of Higher Education at any time between July 1, 1983, and August 4, 1991, inclusive, and was an active member during that period or has continued as an active member without interruption of service since August 4, 1991, shall be eligible to purchase creditable nonstate service under this section, subject to the same terms, conditions and limitations, including the calculation of the amount and method of paying for the purchase, as was enjoyed by officers and employees of the Department of Education between July 1, 1983, and August 4, 1991. Service rendered in the Chancellor's Office for purposes of the purchase of creditable nonstate service under this subsection shall be deemed to be service as an officer or employee in the Department of Education.
(c.2) Additional limitation on nonstate service.--
No credit for nonstate service shall be granted for the portion of such service for which the required contributions would cause a violation of the limitations applicable to governmental plans contained in IRC § 415. In the event that such nonstate service credit is granted after the effective date of this subsection, then such service credit shall be canceled and benefits calculated without regard to such service or contributions and any member contributions in excess of the limitations and statutory interest credited on those contributions shall be refunded to the member by the board.
(d) Limitation on years of credit.--
In no case shall the total credit for nonstate service other than that listed in subsection (c)(1), (4) and (5) exceed the number of years of State service credited in the system, plus, in the case of a multiple service member, any additional years of school service credited in the Public School Employees' Retirement System.
(e) Purchase of nonintervening military service.--
(Repealed).
(f) Temporary expansion of intervening military service.--
(1) For active military service rendered between August 2, 1990, and the effective date of this act, inclusive, the following definitions shall apply. These definitions shall not apply to members who rendered active military service on or after August 2, 1990, if the member is receiving or elects to receive credit in the system for such service pursuant to 51 Pa.C.S. Ch. 73 (relating to military leave of absence).
(2) As used in this section, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection:
"Induction." To be drafted or, if a member of a reserve component of the armed forces, to be ordered on or after August 2, 1990, into active military service, other than active duty to meet periodic training requirements.
"Military obligation." A draft obligation or, if a member of a reserve component of the armed forces, an order on or after August 2, 1990, to enter into active military service, other than an order to enter into active duty to meet periodic training requirements.
"Reserve component of the armed forces." The United States Army Reserve, United States Navy Reserve, United States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Coast Guard Reserve, United States Air Force Reserve, Pennsylvania Army National Guard and Pennsylvania Air National Guard.
(Oct. 7, 1975, P.L.348, No.101, eff. imd.; Apr. 4, 1984, P.L.203, No.42, eff. 60 days; June 13, 1985, P.L.40, No.19, eff. imd.; Oct. 21, 1988, P.L.844, No.112, eff. Jan. 1, 1989; Aug. 5, 1991, P.L.183, No.23, eff. imd.; Nov. 30, 1992, P.L.737, No.112, eff. imd.; Apr. 29, 1994, P.L.159, No.29, eff. 60 days; June 22, 1999, P.L.75, No.12, eff. imd.; May 17, 2001, P.L.26, No.9, eff. imd.; Apr. 23, 2002, P.L.272, No.38, eff. imd.; Nov. 23, 2010, P.L.1269, No.120, eff. imd.; Oct. 24, 2012, P.L.1436, No.181, eff. Dec. 31, 2012; Dec. 28, 2015, P.L.529, No.93, eff. imd.; June 12, 2017, P.L.11, No.5, eff. imd.)
2017 Amendment.
Act 5 amended subsecs. (a) and (b).
2015 Amendment.
Act 93 added subsec. (c.2).
2012 Amendment.
Act 181 amended subsec. (c).
2002 Amendment.
Act 38 added subsec. (a.1).
1994 Repeal.
Act 29 repealed subsec. (e).
1992 Amendment.
Act 112 added subsec. (c.1).
1991 Amendment.
Act 23 amended subsec. (c) and added subsec. (f).
1984 Amendment.
Act 42 amended subsecs. (c) and (d).
References in Text.
The Department of Environmental Resources, referred to in subsec. (c), was abolished by Act 18 of 1995. Its functions were transferred to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Department of Environmental Protection.
Cross References.
Section 5304 is referred to in sections 5306.6, 5505, 5708.4 of this title.