84-1504. Deferred compensation; treatment; participation; requirements.

(1) The Public Employees Retirement Board, on behalf of the state, may contract with any individual to defer a portion of such individual's compensation or with the Legislative Council to defer any other amount that the Legislative Council agrees to credit to an individual's account pursuant to section 457 of the Internal Revenue Code.

(2) The compensation to be deferred at the election of the individual and any other amount credited on behalf of such individual by the Legislative Council shall not exceed the total compensation to be received by the individual from the employer or exceed the limits established by the Internal Revenue Code for such a plan.

(3) The deferred compensation program shall serve in addition to but not be a part of any existing retirement or pension system provided for state or county employees or any other benefit program.

(4) Any compensation deferred at the election of the individual under such a deferred compensation plan shall continue to be included as regular compensation for the purpose of computing the retirement, pension, or social security contributions made or benefits earned by any employee.

(5) Any sum so deferred shall not be included in the computation of any federal or state taxes withheld on behalf of any such individual.

(6) The state, the board, the state investment officer, the agency, or the county shall not be responsible for any investment results entered into by the individual in the deferred compensation agreement.

(7) Nothing in this section shall in any way limit, restrict, alter, amend, invalidate, or nullify any deferred compensation plan previously instituted by any instrumentality or agency of the State of Nebraska, and any such plan is hereby authorized and approved.

(8) On and after July 1, 2010, no employee of the state or any political subdivision of the state shall be authorized to participate in a deferred compensation plan unless the employee (a) is a United States citizen or (b) is a qualified alien under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq., as such act existed on January 1, 2009, and is lawfully present in the United States.

(9) For purposes of this section, individual means (a) any state employee, whether employed on a permanent or temporary basis, full-time or part-time, (b) a person under contract providing services to the state who is not employed by the University of Nebraska or any of the state colleges or community colleges and who has entered into a contract with the state to have compensation deferred prior to August 28, 1999, and (c) any county employee designated as a permanent part-time or full-time employee or elected official whose employer does not offer a deferred compensation plan and who has entered into an agreement pursuant to section 48-1401.

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