(A) There is created the Preretirement Death Benefit Program for all employers under the system except counties, municipalities, other political subdivisions, and those state departments, agencies, or other institutions which pay directly to the system the total employer contributions for the participating members in their employ.

(B) The program is available to those employers exempted in subsection (A) by written application of the employer. An application is an irrevocable commitment to participate under the program. Applications are effective July first next following the date of receipt by the system of the application.

(C)(1) Upon receipt of proof, satisfactory to the board, of the death of: (a) a contributing member in service who had completed at least one full year of membership in the system or of the death of a contributing member as a result of an injury arising out of and in the course of the performance of his duties regardless of length of membership, as of the effective date of his employer's participation, or (b) a retired contributing member of the system, there must be paid to the person he nominated for the refund of his accumulated contributions, unless he has nominated a different beneficiary by written designation filed with the board, in the event of his death pursuant to Section 9-1-1650, if the person is living at the time of the member's death, otherwise to the member's estate, a death benefit equal to the annual earnable compensation of the member at the time his death occurs. The death benefit is payable apart and separate from the payment of the member's accumulated contributions on his death pursuant to Sections 9-1-1650 or 9-1-1660.

(2) For purposes of this subsection, a member described in item (1)(a) is considered to be in service at the date of his death if the last day the member was employed in a continuous, regular pay status, while earning regular or unreduced wages and regular or unreduced retirement service credit, whether the member was physically working on that day or taking continuous accrued annual leave or sick leave while receiving a full salary, occurred not more than ninety days before the date of his death and he has not retired.

(3) For purposes of this subsection, a member described in (1)(b) is considered a retired contributing member if the last day the member was employed in a continuous, regular pay status, while earning regular or unreduced wages and paying retirement system contributions whether the member was physically working on that day or taking continuous accrued annual leave or sick leave while receiving a full salary, occurred not more than ninety days before the date of his death.

(D) RESERVED

(E) Upon the death of a retired member who is not a retired contributing member after December 31, 2000, there must be paid to the designated beneficiary or beneficiaries, if living at the time of the retired member's death, otherwise to the retired member's estate, a benefit of two thousand dollars if the retired member had ten years of creditable service but less than twenty years, four thousand dollars if the retired member had twenty years of creditable service but less than twenty-eight, and six thousand dollars if the retired member had at least twenty-eight years of creditable service at the time of retirement, if the retired member's most recent employer, before the member's retirement, is covered by the preretirement Death Benefit Program.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 61-124; 1968 (55) 2497; 1972 (57) 2207; 1973 (58) 169; 1974 (58) 2176; 1977 Act No. 26 Section 2; 1984 Act No. 386, Section 1; 1985 Act No. 201, Part II, Section 51A; 1990 Act No. 412, Section 8, eff January 1, 1991; 1991 Act No. 171, Part II, Section 44A, eff June 12, 1991; 1996 Act No. 458, Part II, Section 46A, eff June 19, 1996; 2001 Act No. 1, Part II, Section 2A5, eff January 1, 2001; 2001 Act No. 1, Part II, Section 2B2, eff July 1, 2000; 2005 Act No. 153, Pt II, Section 6, eff July 1, 2005; 2010 Act No. 176, Section 1, eff May 19, 2010.