The following as used in this chapter, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context, shall have the following meanings:

(1) "System" means the Retirement System for Judges and Solicitors of the State of South Carolina.

(2) "State" means the State of South Carolina.

(3) "Board" means the Board of Directors of the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority.

(4) "Member of the System" means any person included in the membership of the System, as set forth in Section 9-8-40.

(5) "Credited service" means service for which credit is allowable as provided in Section 9-8-50.

(6) "Retirement allowance" means monthly payments for life under the System payable as provided in Section 9-8-80.

(7) "Beneficiary" means any person in receipt of a retirement allowance or other benefit as provided by the System.

(8) "Aggregate contributions" means the sum of all the amounts deducted from the compensation of a member of the System, or directly remitted by him to the System, and credited to his individual account in the System.

(9) "Regular interest" means interest compounded annually at such rates as shall be determined by the Board for a particular purpose in accordance with Section 9-8-30.

(10) "Accumulated contributions" means the member's aggregate contributions, together with regular interest thereon.

(11) "Actuarial equivalent" means a benefit of equal value when computed on the basis of the tables and regular interest rate last adopted for the particular purpose by the Board, as provided in Section 9-8-30.

(12) "Date of establishment" means July 1, 1979.

(13) "Compensation" means the total salary paid to a judge, solicitor, or circuit public defender for service rendered to the State.

(14) "Employee annuity" means annual payments for life derived from the accumulated contributions of a member.

(15) "Employer annuity" means annual payments for life derived from money provided by the State.

(16) "Judge" means a justice of the Supreme Court or a judge of the court of appeals, circuit or family court of the State of South Carolina. Subject to the provisions of Section 9-8-40, "judge" also means an administrative law judge.

(17) "Solicitor" means the person holding office as described under Section 1-7-310 of the 1976 Code.

(18) "Earned service" means paid employment as a judge, solicitor, or circuit public defender where the judge, solicitor, or circuit public defender makes regular contributions to the system.

(19) "Circuit public defender" means a person holding the office defined in Section 17-3-5(4).

HISTORY: 1979 Act No. 150 Section 1; 1983 Act No. 151 Part II Section 54; 2004 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff July 1, 2004; 2007 Act No. 108, Sections 8.A, 8.B, eff June 21, 2007; 2012 Act No. 278, Pt IV, Subpt 2, Section 46, eff July 1, 2012; 2014 Act No. 263 (S.1008), Section 1, eff June 6, 2014.