BILL REQ. #:  Z-0207.1 

Read first time 01/15/2003.   Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

     AN ACT Relating to allowing fire fighter emergency medical technicians to transfer public employees' retirement system service credit to the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' plan 2; adding a new section to chapter 41.26 RCW; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 41.26 RCW under the subchapter heading "plan 2" to read as follows:
     (1) An employee who is eligible for membership in plan 2 and was a member of the public employees' retirement system while employed providing emergency medical services for a city, town, county, or district and whose job was relocated from another department of a city, town, county, or district to a fire department has the following options:
     (a) Remain a member of the public employees' retirement system; or
     (b) Leave any service credit earned as a member of the public employees' retirement system in the public employees' retirement system, and have all future service earned in the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2, becoming a dual member under the provisions of chapter 41.54 RCW; or
     (c) Make an election, filed in writing with the department of retirement systems, to transfer service credit previously earned as an emergency medical technician for a city, town, county, or district in the public employees' retirement system plan 1 or plan 2 to the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2 as defined in RCW 41.26.030. Service credit that a member elects to transfer from the public employees' retirement system to the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system under this section shall be transferred no earlier than five years after the effective date the member elects to transfer, and only after the member earns five years of service credit as a fire fighter following the effective date the member elects to transfer.
     (2) An employee who is eligible for membership in plan 1 and was a member of the public employees' retirement system while employed providing emergency medical services for a city, town, county, or district and whose job was relocated from another department of a city, town, county, or district to a fire department has the following options:
     (a) Remain a member of the public employees' retirement system; or
     (b) Leave any service credit earned as a member of the public employees' retirement system in the public employees' retirement system, and have all future service earned in the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 1, becoming a dual member under the provisions of chapter 41.54 RCW.
     (3)(a) A member who elects to transfer service credit under subsection (1)(c) of this section shall make the payments required by this subsection prior to having service credit earned as an emergency medical technician for a city, town, county, or district under the public employees' retirement system plan 1 or plan 2 transferred to the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2. However, in no event shall service credit be transferred earlier than five years after the effective date the member elects to transfer, or prior to the member earning five years of service credit as a fire fighter following the effective date the member elects to transfer.
     (b) A member who elects to transfer service credit under this subsection shall pay, for the applicable period of service, the difference between the contributions the employee paid to the public employees' retirement system plan 1 or plan 2 and the contributions that would have been paid by the employee had the employee been a member of the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2, plus interest on this difference as determined by the director. This payment must be made no later than five years from the effective date of the election made under subsection (1)(b) of this section.
     (c) No earlier than five years after the effective date the member elects to transfer service credit under this section and upon completion of the payment required in (b) of this subsection, the department shall transfer from the public employees' retirement system plan 1 or plan 2 to the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2: (i) All of the employee's applicable accumulated contributions plus interest and an equal amount of employer contributions; and (ii) all applicable months of service, as defined in RCW 41.26.030(14)(b), credited to the employee under this chapter for service as an emergency services provider for a city, town, county, or district as though that service was rendered as a member of the law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system plan 2.
     (d) Upon transfer of service credit, contributions, and interest under this subsection, the employee is permanently excluded from membership in the public employees' retirement system for all service transfers.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   This act expires July 1, 2007.