Effective 28 Aug 1997

287.856. Administrative law judges and legal advisors serving in Armed Forces may elect to purchase creditable prior service — contributions, payment period — surviving spouse may receive refund. — 1. Any administrative law judge or legal advisor as defined in section 287.812 who had performed active service in the United States Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, Army or Air National Guard, Coast Guard, or any reserve component thereof prior to becoming a member and who became a member after his discharge under honorable conditions may elect, prior to retirement, to purchase all of the member's creditable prior service equivalent to such service in the Armed Forces, but not to exceed four years. The purchase shall be effected by the member's submission of appropriate documentation verifying the member's dates of active service and by paying to the Missouri state employees' retirement system an amount equal to what would have been contributed by the state on the member's behalf had he been a member for the period for which the member is electing to purchase credit and had the member's compensation during such period of membership been the same as the annual salary rate at which the member was initially employed by a department, with the calculations based on the contribution rate in effect on the date of employment as an administrative law judge or legal advisor with simple interest at the same rate in effect at the time of election used by the Missouri state employees' retirement system calculated from the date of such employment from which the member could first receive creditable service to the date of election under this subsection. The payment shall be made over a period of not longer than two years, measured from the date of election, and with simple interest on the unpaid balance. Payments made for such creditable prior service under this section shall be treated by the Missouri state employees' retirement system as would contributions made by the state and shall not be subject to any prohibition on member contributions or refund provisions in effect August 28, 1992.

2. The surviving spouse of any deceased member who purchased creditable prior service for service in the Armed Forces of the United States pursuant to subsection 1 of this section and who died prior to retirement may, upon written request, receive a refund of the amount contributed for such purchase of creditable prior service provided the surviving spouse is not entitled to a survivorship benefit payable under the provisions of section 104.420.

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(L. 1992 S.B. 499, et al. § 287.860, A.L. 1997 H.B. 356)