H. B. 4101
(By Delegates Jenkins, Hubbard, J. Smith, Campbell,
Williams, Hall and Harrison)
[Introduced January 20, 2000; referred to the
Committee on Pensions and Retirement then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article seven-a,
chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to definitions
of terms pertaining to interest rates used in teacher
retirement legislation.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article seven-a, chapter eighteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7A. STATE TEACHERS RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
§18-7A-3. Definitions.
"Teacher member" means the following persons, if regularly
employed for full-time service: (a) Any person employed for
instructional service in the public schools of West Virginia; (b)
principals; (c) public school librarians; (d) superintendents of schools and assistant county superintendents of schools; (e) any
county school attendance director holding a West Virginia
teacher's certificate; (f) the executive secretary of the
retirement board; (g) members of the research, extension,
administrative or library staffs of the public schools; (h) the
state superintendent of schools, heads and assistant heads of the
divisions under his supervision, or any other employee thereunder
performing services of an educational nature; (i) employees of
the state board of education who are performing services of an
educational nature; (j) any person employed in a nonteaching
capacity by the state board of education, the West Virginia board
of regents [abolished], any county board of education, the state
department of education or the teachers retirement board, if such
person was formerly employed as a teacher in the public schools;
(k) all classroom teachers, principals and educational
administrators in schools under the supervision of the department
of corrections, the department division of health or the
department division of human services; and (l) employees of the
state board of school finance, if such person was formerly
employed as a teacher in the public schools.
"Nonteaching member" means any person, except a teacher
member, who is regularly employed for full-time service by: (a)
Any county board of education; (b) the state board of education;
(c) the West Virginia board of regents [abolished]; or (d) the teachers retirement board.
"Members of the administrative staff of the public schools"
means deans of instruction, deans of men, deans of women, and
financial and administrative secretaries.
"Members of the extension staff of the public schools" means
every agricultural agent, boys' and girls' club agent, and every
member of the agricultural extension staff whose work is not
primarily stenographic, clerical or secretarial.
"Retirement system" means the state teachers retirement
system provided for in this article.
"Present teacher" means any person who was a teacher within
the thirty-five years beginning the first day of July, one one
thousand nine hundred thirty-four, and whose membership in the
retirement system is currently active.
"New entrant" means a teacher who is not a present teacher.
"Regularly employed for full-time service" means employment
in a regular position or job throughout the employment term
regardless of the number of hours worked or the method of pay.
"Employment term" means employment for at least ten months,
a month being defined as twenty employment days.
"Present member" means a present teacher who is a member of
the retirement system.
"Total service" means all service as a teacher while a
member of the retirement system since last becoming a member and, in addition thereto, credit for prior service, if any.
"Prior service" means all service as a teacher completed
prior to the first day of July, first one thousand nine hundred
forty-one, and all service of a present member who was employed
as a teacher, and did not contribute to a retirement account
because he was legally ineligible for membership during such the
service.
"Average final salary" means the average of the five highest
fiscal year salaries earned as a member within the last fifteen
fiscal years of total service credit, including military service
as provided herein, or if total service is less than fifteen
years, the average annual salary for the period on which
contributions were made.
"Accumulated contributions" means all deposits and all
deductions from the earnable compensation of a contributor minus
the total of all supplemental fees deducted from his
compensation.
"Regular interest" means interest at three percent
compounded annually, or a higher earnable rate if approved by the
retirement board set forth in the formula established in
legislative rules, series seven of the consolidated public
retirement board.
"Refund interest" means interest compounded, annually at a
rate of three percent according to the formula established in legislative rules, series seven of the consolidated public
retirement board.
"Employer" means the agency of and within the state which
has employed or employs a member.
"Contributor" means a member of the retirement system who
has an account in the teachers accumulation fund.
"Beneficiary" means the recipient of annuity payments made
under the retirement system.
"Refund beneficiary" means the estate of a deceased
contributor, or such a person as he shall have nominated as
beneficiary of his contributions by written designation duly
executed and filed with the retirement board.
"Earnable compensation" means the full compensation actually
received by members for service as teachers whether or not a part
of such the
compensation is received from other funds, federal or
otherwise, than those provided by the state or its subdivisions.
Allowances from employers for maintenance of members shall be
deemed considered
a part of earnable compensation for such
members whose allowances were approved by the teachers retirement
board and contributions to the teachers retirement system were
made, in accordance therewith, on or before the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred eighty.
"Annuities" means the annual retirement payments for life
granted beneficiaries in accordance with this article.
"Member" means a member of the retirement system.
"Public schools" means all publicly supported schools,
including normal schools, colleges and universities in this
state.
"Deposit" means a voluntary payment to his account by a
member.
The masculine gender shall be construed so as to include the
feminine.
Age in excess of seventy years shall be deemed considered
to
be seventy years.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.