43:1-3 Receipt of pension, retirement benefits conditioned upon honorable service; forfeiture of pension, service credit due to misconduct; evaluation.

1. a. The receipt of a public pension or retirement benefit is hereby expressly conditioned upon the rendering of honorable service by a public officer or employee.

b. The board of trustees of any State or locally-administered pension fund or retirement system created under the laws of this State is authorized to order the forfeiture of all or part of the earned service credit or pension or retirement benefit of any member of the fund or system for misconduct occurring during the member's public service which renders the member's service or part thereof dishonorable and to implement any pension forfeiture ordered by a court pursuant to section 2 of P.L.2007, c.49 (C.43:1-3.1).

c. In evaluating a member's misconduct to determine whether it constitutes a breach of the condition that public service be honorable and whether forfeiture or partial forfeiture of earned service credit or earned pension or retirement benefits is appropriate, the board of trustees shall consider and balance the following factors in view of the goals to be achieved under the pension laws:

(1) the member's length of service;

(2) the basis for retirement;

(3) the extent to which the member's pension has vested;

(4) the duties of the particular member;

(5) the member's public employment history and record covered under the retirement system;

(6) any other public employment or service;

(7) the nature of the misconduct or crime, including the gravity or substantiality of the offense, whether it was a single or multiple offense and whether it was continuing or isolated;

(8) the relationship between the misconduct and the member's public duties;

(9) the quality of moral turpitude or the degree of guilt or culpability, including the member's motives and reasons, personal gain and similar considerations;

(10) the availability and adequacy of other penal sanctions; and

(11) other personal circumstances relating to the member which bear upon the justness of forfeiture.

d. Whenever a board of trustees determines, pursuant to this section, that a partial forfeiture of earned service credit or earned pension or retirement benefits is warranted, it shall order that benefits be calculated as if the accrual of pension rights terminated as of the date the misconduct first occurred or, if termination as of that date would in light of the nature and extent of the misconduct result in an excessive pension or retirement benefit or in an excessive forfeiture, a date reasonably calculated to impose a forfeiture that reflects the nature and extent of the misconduct and the years of honorable service.

L.1995, c.408, s.1; amended 2007, c.49, s.1.