Okla. Stat. tit. 70, § 70-17-103: Membership

Except as provided in the Alternate Retirement Plan for

Comprehensive Universities Act, the membership of the retirement

system shall consist of the following:

A. All classified personnel shall become members of the

retirement system as a condition of their employment.

B. For the period from August 2, 1969, to June 30, 2021, all

full-time nonclassified optional personnel regularly employed for

more than one (1) year may join the Teachers’ Retirement System of

Oklahoma subject to the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to

the Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma. On or after July 1,

2021, all nonclassified optional personnel regularly employed for

twenty (20) hours or more per week may join the System upon hiring

or eligibility, subject to the provisions of subsection C of this

section and the rules and regulations adopted by the System pursuant

to Section 17-101 et seq. of this title.

C. 1. Nonclassified optional personnel shall have thirty (30)

days from the initial date of hire or eligibility to make a one-time

irrevocable election to opt out of participation in the System, in a

manner required by the Board of Trustees. If an eligible employee

fails to make an election within the thirty-day period, the eligible

employee shall be deemed to participate in the System.

2. If an eligible employee elects to opt out of participation

in the System, the employee shall not make any required employee

contributions to the System and the employee’s employer shall not

make any required employer contributions to the System.

3. If an eligible nonclassified optional employee does not

timely opt out of participation in the System, such an employee

shall make employee contributions to the System pursuant to Section

17-116.2 of this title and the employer shall make employer

contributions to the System pursuant to Section 17-108.1 of this

title. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit

the employer from making the contribution of the employee to the

System on behalf of the employee.

4. Nonclassified optional personnel who opt out of

participation in the System shall be ineligible for future

participation in the System; provided, however, that if such an

employee is hired for a classified position, he or she shall become

a member of the System pursuant to subsection A of this section but

shall not be eligible for prior service credit for service performed

while employed in a nonclassified position during which the employee

opted out of participation in the System.

D. The Board of Trustees may, in its discretion, deny the right

to become members to any class of members whose compensation is only

partly paid by the state, or who is serving on a temporary or other

than per annum basis, and it also may, in its discretion, make the

individual entrance into the retirement system for members in any

such class optional.

E. Should any non-vested member, in any period of six (6)

consecutive years after becoming a member, be absent from service

more than five (5) years, withdraw his or her contributions, retire

or die, he or she shall thereupon cease to be a member. The

provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any member of the

Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma who has been a member of

such classes of military services as may be approved by the Board of

Trustees, until a period of one and one-half (1 1/2) years from date

of termination of such service shall have elapsed.

F. Effective November 1, 2019, a retired member of the

Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma who becomes employed by the

State Department of Education for the first time on or after

November 1, 2019, shall have the option to remain a member of the

Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma subject to any applicable

limitations placed on retired members returning to work or may

choose to participate as an active member in the Oklahoma Public

f the

Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma who becomes employed by the

State Department of Education for the first time on or after

November 1, 2019, shall have the option to remain a member of the

Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma subject to any applicable

limitations placed on retired members returning to work or may

choose to participate as an active member in the Oklahoma Public

Employees Retirement System defined benefit plan or the Oklahoma

Public Employees Retirement System defined contribution system,

whichever is applicable under the laws and rules governing those

systems.