New Mexico Administrative Code › Title 2 - PUBLIC FINANCE › Chapter 82 - EDUCATIONAL RETIREMENT › Part 3 - MEMBER AND ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT CONTRIBUTIONS › Section 2.82.3.9 - REFUNDS OF CONTRIBUTIONS

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 13, July 16, 2024
A. In
				the event that a member should terminate employment for reasons other than
				retirement, disability, or death, the member shall be entitled to a refund of
				the member's contributions, plus interest calculated at the refund rate,
				reduced by the sum of any disability benefits which that member might have
				previously received. Contributions made by an employer on behalf of an employee
				(also referred to as a "member") pursuant to Subsection A of Section 22-11-21
				NMSA 1978 are "employee contributions" and are subject to refund. A member is
				not entitled to a refund of any "employer contributions" (also referred to as
				"local administrative unit contributions") made pursuant to Subsection B of
				Section 22-11-21 NMSA 1978. Interest paid by a member to reinstate withdrawn
				service credit is nonrefundable.
B.
				Any employee who was retired pursuant to the Public Employees Retirement Act
				(Chapter 10, Article 11 NMSA 1978) and who had made contributions to the fund
				prior to July 1, 2003, shall be entitled to a refund of such contributions,
				with interest calculated at the refund rate upon a bona fide termination of
				employment with the local administrative unit.
C. In order to obtain a refund of
				contributions, the eligible member must file a written request with the
				director on forms provided by the board.
D. A refund of a terminated member's
				contributions shall be made as soon as practical after receipt of a fully
				executed refund request form in the office of the board. If the member's record
				has been inactive for a full calendar quarter, the refund may be processed
				without further certification of termination by the last employer or the final
				monthly report upon which the member appears. If the member requesting a refund
				has an active record (i.e., a record reflecting contributions made in the
				preceding completed calendar quarter), the refund request shall not be
				processed without the last employer's certification of termination and the
				final monthly report upon which the refunding member will appear. No refund
				shall be processed until the board has received all required contributions. The
				board shall not accept contributions subsequent to the submission of the final
				monthly report, as certified by the employer. If a refunding member returns to
				employment with any local administrative unit before the refund process is
				complete, the refund request shall be denied. For purposes of this rule,
				"termination" means a complete severance of the employment relationship with no
				contract for, promise of, or expectation of future employment with any local
				administrative unit.
E. Refund of
				contributions for any period of service performed subsequent to July 1, 1957,
				will cancel all "prior service" credit which may have been credited to the
				member at the time of the refund. Restoration of all contributions withdrawn,
				together with interest calculated at the refund rate, will cause the prior
				service to be restored; provided, however, that as set forth Subsection C of
				2.82.3.11
				NMAC, effective July 1, 2011, a member who was a member at any time prior to
				July 1, 2010 and who, on or before June 30, 2010, had all of his or her member
				contributions refunded pursuant to Section
				22-11-15
				NMSA 1978, and who, on or after July 1, 2010, returns to employment or returns
				the withdrawn contributions to the fund together with interest at the rate set
				by the board, is eligible to retire as if initially becoming a member on or
				after July 1, 2010.
F. Whenever a
				terminated member leaves a balance of $500.00 or less in the member's account,
				the account shall be closed into "unallocated income" after the member has been
				terminated for a period of not less than two years. The record of the
				terminated member's contribution balance at the time that it was closed into
				"unallocated income" shall be maintained. If the terminated member subsequently
				returns to employment, the balance shall be restored to that member's account.
				Alternatively, if the terminated member should later claim or request a refund
				of the amount transferred to unallocated income, such amount shall be restored
				to the terminated member's account and refunded.
G. Whenever a terminated member has received
				a refund in excess of the amount due the member, such excess may be "closed
				out" into unallocated income by the director if it does not exceed $1,000.00
				after the excess refund has been outstanding for a period of not less than two
				years, provided that staff has first made two or more separate attempts to
				contact the terminated member in writing and collect the excess refund. All
				such attempts must be documented by staff. All such "close out" actions shall
				be reported to the board in writing at its first regular meeting following that
				action. If a terminated member who received an excess refund that was closed
				into "unallocated income" should return to employment, such excess refund shall
				be charged to the member's contribution account.
H. If a terminated member shall have received
				a refund in excess of $1,000.00 over the amount due that member, and two or
				more separate attempts have been made to contact the terminated member and
				collect the excess refund, the director may, after taking into account the
				costs of doing so, direct staff to pursue legal action to recover the excess.
				If the amount is deemed uncollectible by the director, the matter shall be
				brought before the board to determine any further action.
I. Member contributions which have been
				withheld and paid to the educational retirement fund in error for a member who
				is not eligible to receive service credit for the time covered by the
				withholding, shall be returned to the employer, without interest, upon the
				member's written request or upon the board learning that the member was not
				eligible to receive service credit for the time covered. The employer shall be
				responsible for returning such contributions to the member.