(A) As used in this section, "armed forces" of the United States includes both:

(1) Army, navy, air force, marine corps, coast guard, auxiliary corps as established by congress, army nurse corps, navy nurse corps, red cross nurse serving with the army, navy, air force, or hospital service of the United States, full-time service with the American red cross in a combat zone, and such other service as is designated by the congress as included therein;

(2) Personnel of the Ohio national guard, the Ohio military reserve, the Ohio naval militia, and the reserve components of the armed forces enumerated in division (A)(1) of this section who are called to active duty pursuant to an executive order issued by the president of the United States or an act of congress.

(B) Upon presentation of an honorable discharge or certificate of service, and subject to rules adopted by the state teachers retirement board, any member of the state teachers retirement system participating in the STRS defined benefit plan who was or is out of active service as a teacher by reason of having become a member of the armed forces of the United States on active duty or service shall be considered as on indefinite leave of absence and shall have such service not in excess of ten years considered as the equivalent of prior service, provided the member returns to service as a teacher within two years after the effective date of discharge and establishes one year of service credit, or becomes a member of either the public employees retirement system or the school employees retirement system within such two-year period and establishes at least one year of service credit. The retirement board shall extend such two-year period an additional year if failure to return is due to continuous professional training as determined by said board. If such member, otherwise qualified for such credit, canceled membership by the withdrawal of the member's accumulated account, such military service credit shall be granted following the restoration of the member's canceled service credit as provided by section 3307.71 of the Revised Code. Any member of the state teachers retirement system or anyone who becomes a new entrant who is assigned or called to take charge of special training for essential national defense work or veterans' training courses in any of the public schools or universities of the state may make regular contributions to the state teachers retirement system even though the member's or new entrant's salary is paid from federal funds, provided the member's or new entrant's salary is disbursed by an employer.

(C) A member of the state teachers retirement system is ineligible to receive service credit under this section for any year of military service credit used in the calculation of any retirement benefit currently being paid to the member or payable in the future under any other retirement program, except social security, or used to obtain service credit pursuant to section 3307.751 or 3307.752 of the Revised Code. At the time such credit is requested, the member shall certify on a form supplied by the board that the member does and will conform to this requirement. This division does not cancel any military service credit earned prior to March 15, 1979.

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.147, SB 342, §1, eff. 1/7/2013.

Effective Date: 07-13-2000 .