79-992. Employees retirement system; termination of employment; refunds; reemployment.
(1) A member who has five years or more of creditable service, excluding years of prior service acquired pursuant to section 79-990, 79-991, 79-994, 79-995, or 79-997, and who terminates his or her employment may elect to leave his or her contributions in the retirement system, in which event he or she shall receive a retirement allowance at normal retirement age based on the annuity earned to the date of such termination of employment. Such member may elect to receive a retirement allowance at early retirement age if such member retires at an early retirement date. Such annuity shall be adjusted in accordance with section 79-9,100. Upon termination of employment, except on account of retirement, a member shall be entitled to receive refunds as follows: (a) An amount equal to the accumulated contributions to the retirement system by the member; and (b) any contributions made to a previously existing system which were refundable under the terms of that system. Any member receiving a refund of contributions shall thereby forfeit and relinquish all accrued rights in the retirement system including all accumulated creditable service, except that if any member who has withdrawn his or her contributions as provided in this section reenters the service of the district and again becomes a member of the retirement system, he or she may restore any or all money previously received by him or her as a refund, including the interest on the amount of the restored refund for the period of his or her absence from the district's service as determined using the interest rate for interest on such restored refunds, and he or she shall then again receive credit for that portion of service which the restored money represents. Such restoration may be made as the board may direct until September 1, 2024, and as the retirement board may direct beginning September 1, 2024, through direct payments to the system or on an installment basis pursuant to a binding irrevocable payroll deduction authorized between the member and the school district over a period of not to exceed five years from the date of reemployment. Interest on delayed payments shall be at the rate of interest for determining interest on delayed payments by members to the retirement system. Creditable service may be purchased only in one-tenth-year increments, starting with the most recent years' salary.
(2) Except as provided in section 79-992.01:
(a) A retired member who returns to employment as an employee of the school district shall again participate in the retirement system as a new member and shall make contributions to the retirement system commencing upon reemployment. The retirement annuity of a retired member who returns to employment with the school district shall continue to be paid by the retirement system. A retired member who returns to employment as an employee of the school district shall receive creditable service only for service performed after his or her return to employment and in no event shall creditable service which accrues or the compensation paid to the member after such return to employment after retirement increase the amount of the member's original retirement annuity; and
(b) Upon termination of employment of the reemployed member, the member shall receive in addition to the retirement annuity which commenced at the time of the previous retirement (i) if the member has accrued five years or more of creditable service after his or her return to employment, excluding years of prior service acquired pursuant to section 79-990, 79-991, 79-994, 79-995, or 79-997, a retirement annuity as provided in section 79-999 or 79-9,100, as applicable, calculated solely on the basis of creditable service and final average compensation accrued and earned after the member's return to employment after his or her original retirement, and as adjusted to reflect any payment in other than the normal form or (ii) if the member has not accrued five years or more of creditable service after his or her return to employment, a refund equal to the member's accumulated contributions which were credited to the member after the member's return to employment. In no event shall the member's creditable service which accrued prior to a previous retirement be considered as part of the member's creditable service after his or her return to employment for any purpose of the Class V School Employees Retirement Act.
(3) In the event a member is entitled to receive a refund of contributions pursuant to subsection (1) or subdivision (2)(b)(ii) of this section in an amount greater than one thousand dollars, if the member does not elect to have the refund paid directly to himself or herself or transferred to an eligible retirement plan designated by the member as a direct rollover pursuant to section 79-998, then the refund of contributions shall be paid in a direct rollover to an individual retirement plan as designated by the board until September 1, 2024, and as designated by the retirement board beginning September 1, 2024.
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