Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 58 - RETIREMENT › Part V - Firefighters' Pension and Relief Fund for the City of New Orleans and Vicinity › Chapter 13 - Service Credit › Section V-1303 - Transfer of Service Credits

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A.
				In accordance with
				R.S.
				11:143, an employee shall transfer any
				service credits accumulated under a public retirement system to the
				Firefighters' Pension and Relief Fund for the City of New Orleans (fund),
				including all employee and employer contributions and interest accrued thereon,
				at the rate specified herein; or shall transfer any service credits accumulated
				under this fund to a public retirement system, including all employee and
				employer contributions and interest accrued thereon, at the rate specified
				herein.
1. Definitions
Employee
- a firefighter eligible under the
				  Firefighters' Pension and Relief Fund for the City of New Orleans.
Fund
- the Firefighters' Pension and Relief
				  Fund for the City of New Orleans.
Public Retirement System
- the
				  following:
i. any public retirement or pension system, fund, or program
				  offered within the state of Louisiana;
ii. any retirement or pension plan, fund, or program
				  maintained primarily for officers and employees of the state of
				  Louisiana;
iii. any retirement or pension plan, fund, or program
				  maintained primarily for officers and employees of any political subdivision of
				  the state of Louisiana, or any district, board, commission, agency, or any
				  other such public entity of the state of Louisiana.
Receiving System
-
i. this fund when it receives service credits accumulated by
				  an employee under another public retirement system; or
ii. the public retirement system when it receives service
				  credits accumulated by an employee under this fund.
i. this fund when it transfers service credits accumulated by
				  the employee under this fund to another public retirement system; or
ii. the public retirement system when it transfers service
				  credits accumulated by the employee under that public retirement system to this
				  fund.
2. Eligibility
a. An employee may transfer credits from the
				transferring system to the receiving system upon satisfying the following
				conditions.
i. The employee must have been a
				member of the transferring system for at least six months.
ii. The employee must have membership credit
				in the receiving system at the time the receiving system receives the
				transferred service credit.
iii.
				The employee must not have previously received a refund of his employee
				contributions from either the transferring system or the receiving system. If
				an employee has received a refund of his employee contributions from this fund,
				he may repay his employee contributions plus compounded interest at the
				actuarial rate approved by the board of trustees from the date of the refund of
				his employee contributions until the date of repayment.
iv.
(a).If
				this fund is the receiving system, the employee must file an application with
				this fund requesting this fund to receive his service credits accumulated under
				the transferring system. An application to transfer credits to this fund shall
				be made on the application form approved by the board of trustees. Any other
				application form or document shall be unacceptable and void.
(b). If this fund is the transferring system,
				the employee must file an application with this fund requesting this fund to
				transfer the employee's service credits accumulated under this fund to the
				receiving system designated by the employee. An application to transfer credits
				from this fund shall be made on the application form approved by the board of
				trustees. The trustees shall accept, in lieu thereof, any similar written
				application from the receiving system designated by the employee, provided the
				requisite information is contained therein.
(c). At any time prior to completing the
				transfer of credit to the receiving system the employee may rescind, cancel, or
				withdraw his application by notifying the board of trustees, in writing, of his
				rescission, cancellation, or withdrawal.
3. Transfer of Credits from a
				Transferring System to This Fund as the Receiving System
a. If an employee transfers accumulated
				service credits from a transferring system to this fund (receiving fund), the
				following information with regard to the employee must be furnished to this
				fund from the transferring system:
i. the
				total number of credits accumulated by the employee under the transferring
				system and dates of service, including prior years of service, military
				service, or any other credit accumulated under the transferring
				system;
ii. the amount of
				contributions accumulated under the transferring system attributable to:
(a). employer contributions; and
(b). employee contributions;
iii. an amount of interest equal
				to the actuarial valuation rate approved by the board of the transferring
				system, compounded annually, calculated from the year of contribution to the
				date of the desired transfer of credits attributable to:
(a). employer contributions; and
(b). employee contributions;
iv. the total of all contributions
				accumulated by the employee under the transferring system, plus interest
				attributable thereto as specified herein. If the employer contributions
				referred to under §1303. A.3.a ii.(a) and §1303. A.3.a iii.(a) are not at least
				a fixed percentage of the employee's earnings, the amount of employer
				contributions shall equal the amount of employee contributions;
v. the job classification, grade, and salary
				earned under the transferring system as of the date of the last contribution to
				the transferring system, together with all job classifications and grades held
				during the time any and all service credit was earned and accrued under the
				transferring system.
b.
				Upon receipt of the appropriate information from the transferring system, as
				set forth above, the following calculations shall be performed:
i. the amount that would have been
				contributed by the employee, together with a duplicate amount designated as an
				employer contribution, including interest equal to the actuarial valuation rate
				approved by the board of trustees of this fund, compounded annually, from the
				date of the contribution until the date of transfer, just as if all of the
				employee's service credit had originally been accrued and contributions had
				been made in accordance with the law governing contributions to this
				fund;
ii. the total amount that
				would be transferred to this fund from the transferring system based on the
				total amount of all contributions and interest earned thereon, as further
				provided under §1303. A.3 a
c. If the total of the amount determined
				under §1303. A.3.b ii is equal to or greater than the amount determined under
				§1303. A.3.b i, the trustees shall approve the transfer of the employee's
				service credit upon payment of the amount calculated under §1303. A.3.b ii from
				the transferring system to this fund.
d. If the total amount determined under
				§1303. A.3.b.i is greater than the amount determined under §1303. A.3.b ii, the
				trustees shall not approve said transfer of service credit unless:
i. the employee pays to this fund the deficit
				or difference between the sums calculated under §1303. A.3.b.i and §1303.
				A.3.b ii, including both employer and employee contributions, plus interest
				compounded thereon, equal to the actuarial valuation rate approved by the board
				of trustees of this fund; or
ii. in
				lieu of paying said deficit or difference, the employee, at his option, may
				elect to have his transferred service credit prorated under this fund, as
				calculated by the trustees, based on the amount of funds that would be
				transferred to this fund from the transferring system, including the amount of
				all contributions and interest earned thereon, as further provided under §1303.
				A.3.a Said election may be made only at the time of transfer.
e. Notwithstanding the above
				provisions, the trustees shall not approve any application for transfer of
				credits to this fund from a transferring system unless the assets transferred,
				as determined under §1303. A.3.b ii, amount to at least 100 percent of the
				increase in accrued liability that is occasioned by the employee's transfer to
				this fund, as calculated by the trustees and their consulting actuaries.
				However, the trustees shall approve any such application if the employee pays
				the difference in said accrued liability.
f. Credits transferred to this fund in
				accordance with §1303. A.3 shall be counted toward the eligibility requirement
				of 20 years of service under
				R.S.
				11:3381 and
				R.S.
				11:3384 to entitle the employee to a
				retirement benefit from this fund.
g. If an employee accumulates a combined
				total of 20 or more years of service credit after the transfer of service
				credits to this fund from a transferring system, and at such time the employee
				is continuing to make employee contributions in accordance with the law
				governing employee contributions to this fund under
				R.S.
				11:3365.A, the employee shall no longer be
				subject to
				R.S.
				11:3365.A pertaining to employee
				contributions through salary deductions and shall not be required to submit
				employee contributions to this fund thereafter. An employee who accumulates
				more than a combined total of 20 years of service credit after the transfer of
				credits to this fund from a transferring system shall not be entitled to apply
				any excess employee contributions resulting therefrom as a credit, refund, or
				offset against any deficiency or disparity that may result under §1303. A 3,
				even though the combined total years of service credit, after the transfer of
				credit to this fund, exceed 20 years of service credit.
h. If the employee had accumulated under the
				transferring system any free service credit, he may transfer said credit to
				this fund only upon payment to this fund of the employee and employer
				contributions that would have been earned during the same period had the
				employee been a member of this fund, plus interest compounded thereon, equal to
				the actuarial valuation rate approved by the board of trustees of this fund
				from the date the contributions would have been due until the date paid. Said
				payment must be made at the time of transfer.
i. In calculating the retirement benefit of
				an employee who transfers service credit to this fund from a transferring
				system, in accordance with
				R.S.
				11:143 and these rules and regulations, the
				trustees and their consulting actuary shall use the retirement percentage
				factor of the transferring system, based on the number of years of service
				credit transferred.
j. In the event
				an employee should die after filing with this fund his written application for
				transfer of credits from the transferring system to this fund, the trustees
				shall complete the transfer of service credit provided, however, that the
				application complies with
				R.S.
				11:143 and with these rules and regulations.
				The trustees shall consider the application completed as of the day before the
				death of the employee.
4. Transfer of Credits from This Fund as the
				Transferring System to the Receiving System
a. If an employee transfers accumulated
				service credits from this fund (transferring system) to the receiving system
				designated by the employee, the following information with regard to the
				employee shall be furnished to the receiving system from this fund:
i. the number of credits accumulated under
				this fund and dates of service, including prior years of service, military
				service, or any other service credit;
ii. the amount of contributions accumulated
				under this fund as the transferring system attributable to:
(a). employer contributions; and
(b). employee contributions;
iii. the amount of interest equal
				to the actuarial valuation rate approved by the board of trustees of this fund,
				compounded annually, calculated from the year of contribution to the date of
				the desired transfer of credits attributable to:
(a). employer contributions; and
(b). employee contributions;
iv. the total of all contributions
				accumulated under this fund as the transferring system, plus interest
				attributable thereto, as specified herein. If the employer contributions
				referenced in §1303. A.4.a ii.(a) and §1303. A.4.a iii.(a) are not at least a
				fixed percentage of the employee's earnings, the amount of employer
				contributions shall equal the amount of employee contributions;
v. the job classification, grade, and salary
				earned under the transferring system at the date of the last contribution to
				the transferring system, together with all job classifications and grades held
				during the time any and all service credit was earned and accrued under the
				transferring system.
b.
				If the trustees should receive notification from the receiving system that it
				has approved said transfer of service credits, the trustees shall transfer to
				the receiving system the total contributions and interest accumulated thereon,
				as specified herein.
c. In the
				event an employee should die after filing his written application with this
				fund or the receiving system designated by the employee for transfer of service
				credits from this fund to the receiving system, the trustees shall complete the
				transfer of service credit provided, however, that the application complies
				with
				R.S.
				11:143 and with these rules and regulations.
				The trustees shall consider the application completed as of the day before the
				death of the employee.
5. General Provisions
a. After an application is completed, this
				fund, as the transferring system, shall have no future liability with respect
				to any employee who elects to have his service credits transferred from this
				fund to a receiving system. Similarly, any transferring system transferring
				service credits to this fund, as the receiving system, shall have no future
				liability with respect to any employee who elects to transfer credits to this
				fund.
b. The trustees shall not
				consider any request for transfer of a deceased employee's credits if the
				request is made by his survivor, heir, or estate.
c. In the event an employee completes a
				transfer of service credit in accordance with
				R.S.
				11:143 and these rules and regulations, and
				either retires with a benefit or takes a deferred retirement from this fund or
				from any other public retirement system, and subsequently becomes employed in
				employment that would otherwise render him eligible to participate in a public
				retirement system which has previously transferred credit, he shall not be
				permitted, under
				R.S.
				11:143.H, to become a member of said public
				retirement system. Accordingly, the trustees shall not permit membership in
				this fund of any employee who has retired with a benefit or has taken a
				deferred benefit from any other public retirement system if this fund has
				previously transferred credits for that employee.
d. The trustees, in their sole and absolute
				discretion, shall assess an actuarial transfer fee in such amount as they may
				deem fit and appropriate.