H. B. 3167


(By Delegates Ellem, Anderson, Azinger,
Border and Beane)
[Introduced February 21, 2003; 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 state teachers retirement system; and defining "average final salary" to include lump sum payments for accrued leave.

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.
(a) "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 or her supervision, or any other employee under the state superintendent 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 higher education policy commission, any county board of education, the state department of education or the teachers retirement board, if that 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 division of corrections, the division of juvenile services, the division of health or the division of human services department of health and human resources; and (l) employees of the state board of school finance, if that person was formerly employed as a teacher in the public schools.
(b) "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 higher education policy commission; or (d) the teachers retirement board.
(c) "Members of the administrative staff of the public schools" means deans of instruction, deans of men, deans of women, and financial and administrative secretaries.
(d) "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.
(e) "Retirement system" means the state teachers retirement system provided for in this article.
(f) "Present teacher" means any person who was a teacher within the thirty-five years beginning the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred thirty-four, and whose membership in the retirement system is currently active.
(g) "New entrant" means a teacher who is not a present teacher.
(h) "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.
(i) "Employment term" means employment for at least ten months, a month being defined as twenty employment days.
(j) "Present member" means a present teacher who is a member of the retirement system.
(k) "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.
(l) "Prior service" means all service as a teacher completed prior to the first day of July, 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 or she was legally ineligible for membership during the service.
(m) "Pick-up service" means service that a member was entitled to, but which the employer has not withheld or paid for.
(n) "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 in this article, or if total service is less than fifteen years, the average annual salary for the period on which contributions were made: Provided, That "average final salary" includes lump sum payments made for accumulated leave at the conclusion of employment.
(o) "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 or her compensation.
(p) "Regular interest" means interest at four percent compounded annually, or a higher earnable rate if set forth in the formula established in legislative rules, series seven of the consolidated public retirement board.
(q) "Refund interest" means interest compounded, according to the formula established in legislative rules, series seven of the consolidated public retirement board.
(r) "Employer" means the agency of and within the state which has employed or employs a member.
(s) "Contributor" means a member of the retirement system who has an account in the teachers accumulation fund.
(t) "Beneficiary" means the recipient of annuity payments made under the retirement system.
(u) "Refund beneficiary" means the estate of a deceased contributor or a person he or she has nominated as beneficiary of his or her contributions by written designation duly executed and filed with the retirement board.
(v) "Earnable compensation" means the full compensation actually received by members for service as teachers whether or not a part of 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 considered a part of earnable compensation for those 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.
(w) "Annuities" means the annual retirement payments for life granted beneficiaries in accordance with this article.
(x) "Member" means a member of the retirement system.
(y) "Public schools" means all publicly supported schools, including normal schools, colleges and universities in this state.
(z) "Deposit" means a voluntary payment to his or her account by a member.
(aa) "Plan year" means the twelve-month period commencing on the first day of July and ending the following thirtieth day of June of any designated year.
(bb) "Internal Revenue Code" means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as it has been amended.
(cc) "Required beginning date" means the first day of April of the calendar year following the later of: (a) The calendar year in which the member attains age seventy and one-half; or (b) the calendar year in which the member retires or ceases covered employment under the system.
The masculine gender shall be construed so as to include the feminine.
Age in excess of seventy years shall be considered to be seventy years.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to include lump sum payments for accumulated leave in the average final salary of a member of the Teachers Retirement System.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.