{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-6.505","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 6.505","heading":"Election to participate -- Amendment of benefits and rights -- Contribution --","body":"Effect on membership in other retirement plans -- Repurchase of Kentucky\nEmployees Retirement System credit lost by refund.\n(1) (a) Each legislator in office on July 1, 1980, may within thirty (30) days after that\ndate, and any legislator thereafter taking office may within thirty (30) days\nafter the date thereof, elect to make monthly contributions to the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan, in an amount equal to five perce nt (5%) of his or her\nmonthly creditable compensation, as defined in KRS 61.510(13). The election\nshall be effective to establish membership in the plan as of July 1, 1980, or as\nof the date from which the thirty (30) day period is measured, as the case ma y\nbe. Provided, however, that any legislator who was in office on July 1, 1980,\nand who is in office at the time he or she makes the election may, after the\nexpiration of the thirty (30) day period and until May 1, 1982, make the\nelection, in which event h e or she shall pay to the Legislators' Retirement\nPlan, for the months between July 1, 1980, and the date of his or her election\nsuch sum as, when added to any member's contribution by him or her that is\ntransferred from another retirement system under KRS  6.535, will equal the\nmember's contribution required by this section. If the member makes his or\nher election after February 1, 1981, he or she shall in addition pay to the plan\ninterest on the foregoing sum, at six percent (6%) per annum, calculated as i f\nthe sum consisted of equal monthly payments, one (1) of which was due at the\nend of each month between July 1, 1980, and the date the election was made.\nThe election shall be addressed to and filed with the secretary of the Finance\nand Administration Cab inet and shall constitute an authorization to the\nsecretary to thereafter cause to be deducted from the member's monthly\ncreditable compensation an amount equal to five percent (5%) thereof, as a\nvoluntarily elected contribution by the member towards the f unding of the\nLegislators' Retirement Plan.\n(b) 1. For a member who begins participating in the Legislators' Retirement\nPlan prior to January 1, 2014, the election shall operate to create an\ninviolable contract between such member and the Commonwealth,\nguaranteeing to and vesting in the member the rights and benefits\nprovided for under KRS 6.515 to 6.530.\n2. a. For members who begin participating in the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan on or after January 1, 2014, the General Assembly\nreserves the right to amen d, suspend, or reduce the benefits and\nrights provided under KRS 6.500 to 6.577 if, in its judgment, the\nwelfare of the Commonwealth so demands, except that the amount\nof benefits the member has accrued at the time of amendment,\nsuspension, or reduction shall not be affected.\nb. For purposes of this subparagraph, the amount of benefits the\nmember has accrued at the time of amendment, suspension, or\nreduction shall be limited to the accumulated account balance the\nmember has accrued at the time of amendment,  suspension, or\nreduction.\nc. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to limit the\nGeneral Assembly's authority to change any other benefit or right\nspecified by KRS 6.500 to 6.577, for members who begin\nparticipating in the Legislators' Retirement Plan on or after January\n1, 2014, except the benefits specified by subparagraph 2.b. of this\nparagraph.\n3. The provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed to limit the\nGeneral Assembly's authority to amend, reduce, or suspend the benefits\nand rights of members of the Legislators' Retirement Plan as provided by\nKRS 6.500 to 6.577 that the General Assembly had the authority to\namend, reduce, or suspend, prior to July 1, 2013.\n(c) An election once made under this section either to participate  or not to\nparticipate in the Legislators' Retirement Plan, shall be considered to apply to\nall future service as a legislator, whether in the same or a different office as a\nlegislator, and whether or not it is in successive terms.\n(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection:\n1. A legislator who becomes a member of the Legislators' Retirement Plan\non or after September 1, 2008, but prior to January 1, 2014, shall make\nmonthly contributions to the Legislators' Retirement Plan in an amount\nequal to six percent (6%) of his or her monthly creditable compensation,\nas defined in KRS 61.510(13);\n2. A legislator who becomes a member of the Legislators' Retirem ent Plan\non or after January 1, 2014, shall make monthly contributions to the\nLegislators' Retirement Plan in an amount equal to six percent (6%) of\nhis or her monthly creditable compensation, as defined in KRS\n61.510(13), of which:\na. Five percent (5%) of  his or her monthly creditable compensation,\nas defined in KRS 61.510(13), shall be used to provide funding for\nbenefits provided under KRS 21.402; and\nb. One percent (1%) of his or her monthly creditable compensation,\nas defined in KRS 61.510(13), shall b e used exclusively to help\nfund retiree health benefits as provided by KRS 6.577 and shall not\nbe refunded to the member if the member withdraws his or her\naccumulated account balance as provided by KRS 21.460. The\namounts deducted under this subdivision s hall be credited to an\naccount established pursuant to 26 U.S.C. sec. 401(h), within the\nfund established by KRS 6.530.\n(2) A legislator entitled to elect membership in the retirement system who failed to\nelect membership within thirty (30) days after taki ng office may elect membership\nnot later than August 31, 2005. An election, upon being made pursuant to this\nsection, shall operate to create an inviolable contract between the member entitled\nto elect membership under this subsection and the Commonwealth,  guaranteeing to\nand vesting in the member the rights and benefits provided for under the terms and\nconditions of KRS 6.500 to 6.577.\n(3) When any legislator makes a delayed election of membership in the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan under subsection (2) of  this section, his or her active membership\nin the Kentucky Employees Retirement System shall terminate, as of the date his or\nher membership in the Legislators' Retirement Plan becomes effective, and any\ncredit in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System,  earned for service as a\nlegislator, which he or she then has or which he or she subsequently regains while\nbeing an active member of the Legislators' Retirement Plan, shall be transferred to\nand counted as service credit in the Legislators' Retirement Plan, and shall no longer\nconstitute credit in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System, except for the\npurpose of validating any other credit in that system if the member pays the\ndifference, if any, between the amount transferred from the Kentucky Employees\nRetirement System and the actuarial value of the transferred service. However, any\ncredit he or she then has in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System, earned for\nservice in any capacity other than a legislator, shall not be affected. No person may\nattain credit in more than one (1) of the retirement plans or systems mentioned in\nthis section for the same period of service. When credit is transferred from the\nKentucky Employees Retirement System to the Legislators' Retirement Plan, the\nKentucky Employees  Retirement System shall transfer to the Legislators'\nRetirement Fund an amount equal to the employee's and employer's contributions\nattributable to that credit, together with interest on the contributions from the date\nmade to the date of transfer at the actuarially assumed interest rate of the Kentucky\nEmployees Retirement System in effect at the time the contributions were made,\ncompounded annually at that same interest rate.\n(4) The state shall, solely for the purpose of compliance with Section 414(h) o f the\nUnited States Internal Revenue Code, pick up the employee contributions required\nby this section for all compensation earned after August 1, 1982, and the\ncontributions so picked up shall be treated as employer contributions in determining\ntax treatment under the United States Internal Revenue Code and KRS 141.010. The\npicked-up employee contribution shall satisfy all obligations to the retirement\nsystem satisfied prior to August 1, 1982, by the employee contribution, and the\npicked-up employee contribution shall be in lieu of an employee contribution. The\nstate shall pay these picked -up employee contributions from the same source of\nfunds which is used to pay earnings to the employee. The employee shall have no\noption to receive the contributed amount s directly instead of having them paid by\nthe employer to the system. Employee contributions picked up after August 1, 1982,\nshall be treated for all purposes of KRS 6.500 to 6.535 in the same manner and to\nthe same extent as employee contributions made prior to August 1, 1982.\n(5) When any legislator elects membership in the Legislators' Retirement Plan in\naccordance with this section, his or her active membership in the Kentucky\nEmployees Retirement System, State Police Retirement System, County Employees\nRetirement System, or Teachers' Retirement System shall terminate, as of the date\nhis or her membership in the Legislators' Retirement Plan becomes effective, and\nany credit in such other system or systems, earned for service as a legislator, which\nhe or she then has or which he or she subsequently regains while being an active\nmember of the Legislators' Retirement Plan, shall be transferred to and counted as\nservice credit in the Legislators' Retirement Plan, and shall no longer constitute\ncredit in such other retirement system except for the purpose of validating any other\ncredit in that system. However, any credit he or she then has in such other\nretirement system, earned for service in any capacity other than a legislator, shall\nnot be affected. No pers on may attain credit in more than one (1) of the retirement\nplans or systems mentioned in this section, for the same period of service.\n(6) A member of the Legislators' Retirement Plan who would be entitled, under KRS\n61.552, to repurchase credit in the Ke ntucky Employees Retirement System, for\nprevious service as a legislator, which credit had been lost by refund of\ncontributions, may pay the amount required by KRS 61.552 directly to the\nLegislators' Retirement Plan and thereby obtain credit in that plan f or such service,\nrather than making payment to the Kentucky Employees Retirement System for\ncredit which would be transferred to the Legislators' Retirement Plan. In such event,\nthe Kentucky Employees Retirement System shall transfer to the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan an amount equal to the employer's contributions that originally\nwere made to the Kentucky Employees Retirement System for the regained service\ncredit, with interest as provided in KRS 6.535. Six (6) months' current service shall\nbe required in the Legislators' Retirement Plan in order for the repurchased credit to\nremain in force, the same as provided in KRS 61.552. Service purchased under this\nsubsection on or after January 1, 2014, shall not be used to determine the member's\nparticipation date in the Legislators' Retirement Plan.","path":["KRS Chapter 6"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=52630","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:48:24Z","sha256":"3d3d7919e714f6cb67fed17586bcd489589fb8e07909cc93858dc6343b0e5f29","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-6.500","next":"us-ky/krs-6.515"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}