North Dakota Administrative Code › Title 71 - Retirement Board › Article 71-02 - Public Employees Retirement System › Chapter 71-02-03 - Service Credit › Section 71-02-03-07 - Employer purchase of service credit or sick leave program

Current through Supplement No. 393, July, 2024
An employer may elect to purchase up to five years of service
				  credit for an employee and purchase an employee's unused sick leave that meets
				  the requirements of section
				  71-02-03-08. Before offering a
				  purchase program to its employees, the employer must create a program and an
				  employer must document the program in writing and submit a copy to the public
				  employees retirement system. The governing authority of the employer shall also
				  submit to the executive director of the public employees retirement system a
				  letter indicating:
1. The program
				meets all the requirements of the North Dakota Century Code.
2. The program meets all applicable federal
				requirements.
3. The employer
				agrees to remit to the public employees retirement system a lump sum payment of
				the cost of the purchase upon being billed.
4. The employer has not given the employee
				the option of a cash payment in lieu of the employer purchase.
5. The employer shall clearly specify who is
				eligible for the program and indicate if the program is intended to be
				permanent or will be for a specific time period only.
6. The employer agrees that all purchases for
				service credit will be based upon actuarial cost as determined by the public
				employees retirement system and all unused sick leave purchases will be based
				upon the computation specified in the North Dakota Century Code. The employer
				also agrees that all purchases will be completed no later than the fifteenth
				day of the month following the month of the employee's termination or sixty
				days from the date the employer and employee agree to the purchase, whichever
				comes first.
7. The employer
				agrees that in offering such a program the employer will direct each employee
				interested in the program to first apply to the employer's authorized agent who
				will then certify the eligibility of the member, the amount of service credit
				to be purchased or sick leave to be converted, and send such certification to
				the public employees retirement system. The employer also agrees that the
				employer's authorized agent will coordinate the program, authorize all
				purchases in writing to the public employees retirement system, and be the
				focal point for communications between the public employees retirement system,
				the employer, and the employee.
8.
				The employer agrees that for each employee certified to be eligible to have
				service credit purchased or sick leave converted, the employer will first
				obtain from the employee authorization for the public employees retirement
				system to share confidential information with the employer.
9. The employer certifies that in offering
				the program, the employer is making it available to all employees or a
				specified class of employees on a nondiscriminatory basis.
10. The employer agrees to provide
				information and policies relating to an employer purchase program pursuant to
				North Dakota Century Code section
				54-52-26.
When an employer files the above letter with the public
				  employees retirement system, it may offer the program to its employees. An
				  employer may terminate this program at any time upon the governing authority of
				  the employer sending to the executive director of the public employees
				  retirement system a letter indicating when the program is to be canceled
General Authority: NDCC
					 54-52-04
Law
					 Implemented: NDCC
					 54-52-17.4,
					 54-52-29