{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-6.515","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 6.515","heading":"Terms of service to qualify -- Military service credit acquisition for members","body":"who began participating before January 1, 2014 -- Special provisions for active\nmembers who began participating before January 1, 2014.\n(1) Service credit in the Legislator s' Retirement Plan shall be acquired only by service\nas a legislator after July 1, 1980, while a member of the plan, by transfer of credit as\nprovided in KRS 6.505, or by purchase or transfer of credit as provided in this\nsection.\n(2) (a) 1. Any active mem ber who began participating in the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan prior to January 1, 2014, who has at least five (5) years\nof service credit in the Legislators' Retirement Plan, or his beneficiary\nacting in his place if the member dies prior to retirement, shall receive\nservice credit for a maximum of four (4) years for his period of service\nin the Armed Forces of the United States, if his discharge therefrom is\nhonorable and he has not been credited with the service by any other\nretirement system administer ed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, by\npaying the retirement system thirty -five percent (35%) of the actuarial\ncost of the service as determined by the board of trustees, based on\nassumptions used in the most recent biennial evaluation. The service\ncredit shall be awarded and the cost shall be determined in conformity\nwith the rate which applies to the legislator in question under KRS\n6.520. Service credit awarded under this subsection shall be equivalent,\nfor all purposes of the Legislators' Retirement Pla n, to other service\ncredit earned in the plan.\n2. Any active member who began participating in the Legislators'\nRetirement Plan prior to January 1, 2014, who has at least five (5) years\nof service credit in the Legislators' Retirement Plan may purchase and\nreceive service credit for one (1) month of service for each six (6)\nmonths of service in the reserves or the National Guard by paying the\nretirement system one hundred percent (100%) of the actuarial cost of\nthe service as determined by the board of trus tees, based on the\nassumptions used in the most recent biennial evaluation. The service\ncredit shall be awarded and the cost shall be determined in conformity\nwith the rate that applies to the legislator in question under KRS 6.520.\nService credit awarded as provided in this subsection shall be\nequivalent, for all purposes of the Legislators' Retirement Plan, to other\nservice credit earned in the plan. The service in the military reserves or\nthe National Guard shall be treated as service earned prior to\nparticipation in the plan. The purchase can be made by the member by\ntransfer, if authorized under subsection (7)(d) of this section, or in a\nlump-sum payment or by installment payments, as set forth in paragraph\n(b) of this subsection. The payment shall not be picked up by the\nemployer as provided in KRS 6.505(4).\n(b) The member, if the member began participating in the Legislators' Retirement\nPlan prior to January 1, 2014, may purchase all of his military service credit at\none (1) time, or in increments of n o less than one (1) year, unless there is a\nfraction remaining after all full years have been paid for. Payment of the total\nor the increment may be made by lump -sum or by monthly installments\nthrough payroll deduction. If the member chooses to pay by inst allment, the\ncost of the service credit shall be computed in the same manner as for a lump -\nsum payment, which shall be the principal. Interest, at the annual actuarial rate\nin effect at the time each payment is made, shall be added to each monthly\npayment at the rate of one -twelfth (1/12) of the annual interest rate applied to\nthe declining principal amount. Installment purchases shall be for no less than\ntwelve (12) nor more than sixty (60) months. If the member leaves office\nbefore completing his installm ent payments, he may satisfy his contract by a\nlump-sum payment of the remaining principal amount, but no further\ninstallment payments shall be accepted thereafter. In this case, the member\nshall be credited with the military service credit for which he ha s paid, in\nyears or months but no fraction less than a full month, and any payment\nremaining after credit for full months has been awarded shall be returned to\nthe member.\n(c) The payments made under this section shall be considered accumulated\ncontributions of the member and shall not be picked up by the employer under\nKRS 6.505(4).\n(3) In the event of divorce, rights to benefits shall be considered marital property\nsubject to the provisions of KRS 403.190.\n(4) A member who began participating in the Legis lators' Retirement Plan prior to\nJanuary 1, 2014, who has qualified for benefits under KRS 6.525(1) may transfer to\nthe Legislators' Retirement Plan up to ten (10) years of service credit which he has\nearned in a retirement system administered by Kentucky Retirement Systems. If the\nmember elects to transfer his service credit, the system from which the transfer is\nmade shall transfer to the legislators' retirement fund an amount equal to the\nemployee's and employer's contributions attributable to that credi t, together with\ninterest on the contributions from the date made to date of transfer at the actuarially\nassumed interest rate of the system from which the transfer is made in effect at the\ntime the contributions were made, compounded annually at that same  interest rate.\nThe member shall be entitled to the transferred service credit, at the rate at which he\nqualifies under KRS 6.520, when he pays the total difference between the amount of\nthe funds transferred and the cost of the credit to the Legislators' Retirement Plan, as\ndetermined by the actuary for the Legislators' Retirement Plan. The member may\npay by transfer, if authorized under subsection (7)(d) of this section, by lump sum,\nor by increments, as provided for in this section. The payments made und er this\nsection shall be considered accumulated contributions of the member and shall not\nbe picked up by the employer under KRS 6.505(4).\n(5) (a) Any active member who began participating in the Legislators Retirement\nPlan prior to January 1, 2014, who is vested in the Legislators Retirement Plan\nunder KRS 6.525 shall receive service credit for a maximum of four (4) years\neach for his period of service as a Domestic Relations Commissioner, a\nMaster Commissioner, or a District Court Trial Commissioner of th e\nCommonwealth of Kentucky, or a combination thereof, if the service has not\nbeen credited to the member's account with any other public defined benefit\nplan, by paying the retirement system one hundred percent (100%) of the\nactuarial cost of the service a s determined by the board of trustees, based on\nassumptions used in the most recent biennial evaluation. The period of service\nto be purchased shall be certified to the board of trustees by the custodian of\nthe records. The service credit shall be awarded and the cost shall be\ndetermined in conformity with the rate that applies to the member in question\nunder KRS 6.520. Service credit awarded under this subsection shall be\nequivalent, for all purposes of the Legislators Retirement Plan, to other\nservice credit earned in the plan. The member may pay by transfer, by lump\nsum, or by increments as set forth in this section. The payments made under\nthis section shall be considered accumulated contributions of the member and\nshall not be picked up by the employer under KRS 6.505(4).\n(b) Any active member who began participating in the Legislators Retirement\nPlan prior to January 1, 2014, who is vested in the Legislators Retirement Plan\nunder KRS 6.525, shall receive service credit for his period of service to the\nUnited States Government, other than service in the Armed Forces, if the\nservice has not been credited to the member's account with any other public\ndefined benefit plan, by paying the retirement system one hundred percent\n(100%) of the actuarial cost of th e service as determined by the board of\ntrustees, based on assumptions used in the most recent biennial evaluation.\nThe period of service to be purchased shall be certified to the board of trustees\nby the custodian of the records. The service credit shall be awarded and the\ncost shall be determined in conformity with the rate that applies to the\nmember in question under KRS 6.520. Service credit awarded under this\nsubsection shall be equivalent, for all purposes of the Legislators Retirement\nPlan, to other service credit earned in the plan. The member may pay by\ntransfer, by lump sum, or by increments as set forth in this section. The\npayments made under this section shall be considered accumulated\ncontributions of the member and shall not be picked up by the employer under\nKRS 6.505(4).\n(c) Any member who began participating in the Legislators Retirement Plan prior\nto January 1, 2014, who was in office on June 21, 2001, and who was in active\ncontributing status to the applicable retirement plan on June 21, 2 001, and\nwho has at least one hundred eighty (180) months of service credit may\npurchase a combined maximum total of five (5) years of retirement service\ncredit that is not otherwise purchasable, by paying the retirement system one\nhundred percent (100%) o f the actuarial cost of the service as determined by\nthe board of trustees, based on assumptions used in the most recent biennial\nevaluation. The member shall be entitled to the service credit at the rate at\nwhich he qualifies under KRS 6.520. Service cred it awarded under this\nsubsection shall be equivalent, for all purposes of the Legislators Retirement\nPlan, to other service credit earned in the plan, except that the service\npurchased under this subsection shall not be used in determining a retirement\nallowance until the member has accrued at least two hundred forty (240)\nmonths of service, excluding service purchased under this subsection. If the\nmember does not accrue at least two hundred forty (240) months of service,\nexcluding service purchased under t his subsection, then upon retirement,\ndeath, or written request following termination, the payment shall be refunded.\nThe member may pay by transfer, by lump sum, or by increments as set forth\nin this section. The payments made under this section shall be considered\naccumulated contributions of the member and shall not be picked up by the\nemployer under KRS 6.505(4).\n(d) A member who began participating in the Legislators Retirement Plan prior to\nJanuary 1, 2014, may purchase service credit under the provisions of this\nsection by transferring funds through a direct trustee -to-trustee transfer as\npermitted under the applica ble sections of the Internal Revenue Code and any\nregulations or rulings issued thereunder or through a direct rollover as\ncontemplated by and permitted under 26 U.S.C. sec. 401(a)(31) and any\nregulations or rulings issued thereunder. Service credit may al so be purchased\nby a rollover of funds pursuant to and permitted under the rules specified in 26\nU.S.C. sec. 402(c) and 26 U.S.C. sec. 408(d)(3). The Legislators Retirement\nFund shall accept the transfer or rollover to the extent permitted under the\nrules specified in the applicable provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and\nany regulations and rulings issued thereunder. The amount shall be credited to\nthe individual member's account and shall be considered accumulated\ncontributions of the member and shall not be picked up by the employer under\nKRS 6.505(4).","path":["KRS Chapter 6"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=42642","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:48:24Z","sha256":"a7bd802ad3a389291c676c3452bbdcc7f5d7ce04d1ab73a4b6e17a87e1aa72f1","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-6.505","next":"us-ky/krs-6.518"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}