{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-11-11-49-106.1","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 11, § 11-49-106.1","heading":"Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan","body":"A. In lieu of terminating employment and accepting a service\n\nretirement pension pursuant to Sections 49-101 and 49-106 of this\n\ntitle, any member of the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and\n\nRetirement System serving as an active firefighter in a fire\n\ndepartment of a participating municipality who has not less than\n\ntwenty (20) years of creditable service may elect to participate in\n\nthe Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan and defer the\n\nreceipts of benefits in accordance with the provisions of this\n\nsection.\n\nB. For purposes of this section, creditable service shall\n\ninclude service credit reciprocally recognized pursuant to Sections\n\n49-100.1 through 49-100.8 and Sections 49-101, 49-101.1 and 49-101.2\n\nof this title but for eligibility purposes only.\n\nC. The duration of participation in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan for active firefighters shall not exceed five\n\n(5) years. Participation in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred\n\nOption Plan must begin the first day of a month and end on the last\n\nday of a month. At the conclusion of a member’s participation in\n\nthe Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan, the member shall\n\nterminate employment with all participating municipalities as a\n\nfirefighter, and shall start receiving the member’s accrued monthly\n\nretirement benefit from the System. Such a member may be reemployed\n\nby a participating municipality but only in a position not covered\n\nunder the System, and receive in-service distributions of such\n\nmember’s accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System.\n\nD. When a member begins participation in the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan, the contribution of the member\n\nshall cease. The employer contributions shall continue to be paid\n\nin accordance with subsection B of Section 49-122 of this title.\n\nEmployer contributions for members who elect the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan shall be credited equally to the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System and to the\n\nmember’s Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan account. The\n\nmonthly retirement benefits that would have been payable had the\n\nmember elected to cease employment and receive a service retirement\n\nshall be paid into the member’s Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred\n\nOption Plan account.\n\nE. 1. A member who participates in this plan shall be eligible\n\nto receive cost-of-living increases.\n\n2. A member who participates in this plan shall earn interest\n\nat a rate of two percentage points below the rate of return of the\n\ninvestment portfolio of the System, but no less than the actuarial\n\nassumed interest rate as certified by the actuary in the yearly\n\nevaluation report of the actuary. The interest shall be credited to\n\nthe individual account balance of the member on an annual basis.\n\n3. Effective November 1, 2013, the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan account for a member whose first service with a\n\nparticipating municipality of the System occurs on or after November\n\n1, 2013, and who participates for the first time in the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan on or after November 1, 2013, and\n\nhas completed active participation in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan, shall earn interest at a rate equal to the\n\nactual rate of return of the investment portfolio of the System,\n\nless one (1) percentage point to offset administrative costs of the\n\nSystem as determined by the System.\n\nF. A member in the plan shall receive, at the option of the\n\nmember, a lump-sum payment from the account equal to the payments to\n\nthe account or an annuity based upon the account of the member or\n\nmay elect any other method of payment if approved by the Board of\n\nTrustees. If a member becomes so physically or mentally disabled\n\nwhile in, or in consequence of, the performance of his or her duty\n\nas to prevent the effective performance of his or her duties that\nber, a lump-sum payment from the account equal to the payments to\n\nthe account or an annuity based upon the account of the member or\n\nmay elect any other method of payment if approved by the Board of\n\nTrustees. If a member becomes so physically or mentally disabled\n\nwhile in, or in consequence of, the performance of his or her duty\n\nas to prevent the effective performance of his or her duties that\n\nthe State Board approves an in-line-of-duty disability pension, the\n\npayment from the account shall be an in-line-of-duty disability\n\npayment. Notwithstanding any other provision contained herein to\n\nthe contrary, commencement of distributions under the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan shall be no later than the time as\n\nset forth in subsection B of Section 49-106 of this title and a\n\nmember whose first service with a participating municipality of the\n\nSystem occurs on or after November 1, 2013, and who participates for\n\nthe first time in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan on\n\nor after November 1, 2013, must receive a distribution of the entire\n\nremaining balance in the member’s Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred\n\nOption Plan account no later than April 1 of the calendar year\n\nfollowing the later of:\n\n1. The calendar year in which the member reaches seventy and\n\none-half (70 1/2) years of age for a member who attains age seventy\n\nand one-half (70 1/2) before January 1, 2020, or effective for\n\ndistributions required to be made after December 31, 2019, but\n\nbefore January 1, 2023, the calendar year in which the member\n\nreaches seventy-two (72) years of age for an individual who attains\n\nage seventy and one-half (70 1/2) after December 31, 2019, or\n\neffective for distributions required to be made after December 31,\n\n2022, the calendar year in which the member reaches seventy-three\n\n(73) years of age for an individual who attains age seventy-two (72)\n\nafter December 31, 2022, or “the applicable age”, as defined in\n\nSection 401(a)(9)(C)(v) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as\n\namended, if later; or\n\n2. The actual retirement date of the member.\n\nG. If a member dies while maintaining an account balance in the\n\nplan the System shall pay to the designated recipient or recipients\n\nof the member, or if there is no designated recipient or if the\n\ndesignated recipient predeceases the member, to the spouse of the\n\nmember, or if there is no spouse or if the spouse predeceases the\n\nmember, to the estate of the member a lump-sum payment equal to the\n\naccount balance of the member. If such member was receiving, or\n\neligible to receive, an in-line-of-duty disability pension at the\n\ntime of his or her death, payment of the account balance shall be an\n\nin-line-of-duty disability payment. If a designated recipient is\n\nthe surviving spouse of the member, the surviving spouse shall\n\nreceive his or her portion of the account balance of the member\n\npursuant to subsection F of this section. The surviving spouse,\n\nwhether or not he or she is a designated recipient of the member,\n\nmay elect to receive his or her portion of the account balance of\n\nthe member in the same manner as was applicable to the member.\n\nH. In lieu of participating in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, E and F of\n\nthis section, a member may elect to participate in the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection as\n\nfollows:\n\n1. For purposes of this subsection and subsection I of this\n\nsection, the following definitions shall apply:\n\na. “back drop date” means the member’s normal retirement\n\ndate or the date five (5) years before the member\n\nelects to participate in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan, whichever date is later,\n\nb. “termination date” means the date the member elects to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred\ndefinitions shall apply:\n\na. “back drop date” means the member’s normal retirement\n\ndate or the date five (5) years before the member\n\nelects to participate in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan, whichever date is later,\n\nb. “termination date” means the date the member elects to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred\n\nOption Plan pursuant to this subsection, and the date\n\nthe member terminates employment with all\n\nparticipating municipalities as an active firefighter,\n\nc. “earlier attained credited service” means the credited\n\nservice earned by a member as of the back drop date,\n\nand\n\nd. “deferred benefit balance” means all monthly\n\nretirement benefits that would have been payable had\n\nthe member elected to cease employment on the back\n\ndrop date and receive a service retirement from the\n\nback drop date to the termination date, all the\n\nmember’s contributions and one-half (1/2) of the\n\nemployer contributions from the back drop date to the\n\ntermination date, with interest based on how the\n\nbenefit would have accumulated on a compound annual\n\nbasis as if the member had participated in the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan pursuant to\n\nsubsections A, B, C, D, E and F of this section from\n\nthe back drop date to the termination date; and\n\n2. At the termination date, the monthly pension benefit shall\n\nbe determined based on earlier attained credited service and on the\n\nfinal average salary as of the back drop date. The member’s\n\nindividual deferred option account shall be credited with an amount\n\nequal to the deferred benefit balance, the member shall terminate\n\nemployment with all participating municipalities as a firefighter,\n\nand shall start receiving the member’s accrued monthly retirement\n\nbenefit from the System. Such a member may be reemployed by a\n\nparticipating municipality but only in a position not covered under\n\nthe System, and receive in-service distributions of such member’s\n\naccrued monthly retirement benefit from the System. The provisions\n\nof subsections B, C, E, F and G of this section shall apply to this\n\nsubsection. A member shall not participate in the Oklahoma\n\nFirefighters Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection if the\n\nmember has elected to participate in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, E and F of\n\nthis section.\n\nI. Certain surviving spouses and members shall be eligible to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan\n\npursuant to subsection H of this section and this subsection.\n\n1. For purposes of this subsection, the following definitions\n\nshall apply:\n\na. “back drop election date” means the date the surviving\n\nspouse or member elects to commence participation in\n\nthe Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan\n\npursuant to subsection H of this section and this\n\nsubsection,\n\nb. “interest” means the actuarial assumed interest rate\n\nas certified by the actuary in the yearly evaluation\n\nreport of the actuary,\n\nc. “monthly adjustment amount” means the difference\n\nbetween the monthly pension prior to the back drop\n\nelection and the adjusted monthly pension due to the\n\nback drop election,\n\nd. “back drop pension adjustment amount” means the sum of\n\nall the monthly adjustment amounts adjusted for\n\ninterest from the pension commencement date to the\n\nback drop election date, and\n\ne. “deferred benefit balance adjustment amount” means the\n\ninterest on the deferred benefit balance from the\n\npension commencement date to the back drop election\n\ndate.\n\n2. If a member who has more than twenty (20) years of\n\ncreditable service and is eligible to receive a service retirement\n\npension dies on or after June 4, 2007, and prior to terminating\n\nemployment, the member’s surviving spouse shall be eligible to elect\n\nto receive a benefit determined as if the member had elected to\nbalance from the\n\npension commencement date to the back drop election\n\ndate.\n\n2. If a member who has more than twenty (20) years of\n\ncreditable service and is eligible to receive a service retirement\n\npension dies on or after June 4, 2007, and prior to terminating\n\nemployment, the member’s surviving spouse shall be eligible to elect\n\nto receive a benefit determined as if the member had elected to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan in\n\naccordance with subsection H of this section on the day immediately\n\npreceding such member’s death. Prior to July 1, 2010, the surviving\n\nspouse must make any such election within one (1) year from the date\n\nof the member’s death. Effective July 1, 2010, the surviving spouse\n\nmust make any such election within ninety (90) days from the date of\n\nthe member’s death. If on or after June 4, 2007, such election is\n\nmade, the monthly pension such surviving spouse is entitled to\n\nreceive shall be adjusted in accordance with the provisions of\n\nsubsection H of this section to account for the member’s\n\nparticipation in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan.\n\nThe surviving spouse may only make this election if the member has\n\nnot previously elected to participate in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan. For purposes of this election, the surviving\n\nspouse must have been married to the firefighter for the thirty (30)\n\ncontinuous months preceding the firefighter’s death; provided, the\n\nsurviving spouse of a member who died while in, or as a consequence\n\nof, the performance of the member’s duty for a participating\n\nmunicipality shall not be subject to the marriage limitation for\n\nthis election.\n\n3. If a member has more than twenty (20) years of creditable\n\nservice and is eligible for a retirement for disability monthly\n\npension pursuant to Section 49-109 of this title on or after June 4,\n\n2007, such member shall be eligible to elect to receive a benefit\n\ndetermined as if the member had elected to participate in the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan, in accordance with\n\nsubsection H of this section, on the day immediately preceding the\n\ndate of the member’s disability retirement, provided such election\n\nis made within two (2) years from the date of the member’s\n\ndisability retirement. The disability monthly pension such member\n\nis receiving, or entitled to receive, shall be adjusted in\n\naccordance with the provisions of subsection H of this section to\n\naccount for the member’s participation in the Oklahoma Firefighters\n\nDeferred Option Plan. The deferred benefit balance such member is\n\nentitled to receive shall be reduced by the back drop pension\n\nadjustment amount and increased by the deferred benefit balance\n\nadjustment amount. The member may only make a back drop election if\n\nthe deferred benefit balance after the adjustment described in this\n\nparagraph is greater than Zero Dollars ($0.00). The member may only\n\nmake this election if the member has not previously elected to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan.\n\n4. If a member has more than twenty (20) years of creditable\n\nservice and filed a grievance for wrongful termination occurring on\n\nor after June 4, 2007, or is not a member of a collective bargaining\n\norganization as a firefighter, is involuntarily terminated and is\n\nseeking to have his or her position as a firefighter reinstated\n\nthrough a legal process, but is not reinstated as an active member,\n\nsuch member shall be eligible to elect to receive a benefit\n\ndetermined as if the member had elected to participate in the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan in accordance with\n\nsubsection H of this section on the day immediately preceding the\n\ndate of the member’s termination. Such election must be made within\n\ntwo (2) years from the date of the member’s termination as an active\n\nmember and, if the member’s case pertaining to the member’s\nbenefit\n\ndetermined as if the member had elected to participate in the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan in accordance with\n\nsubsection H of this section on the day immediately preceding the\n\ndate of the member’s termination. Such election must be made within\n\ntwo (2) years from the date of the member’s termination as an active\n\nmember and, if the member’s case pertaining to the member’s\n\ntermination is on appeal to a court of competent jurisdiction,\n\nwithin such period set by the State Board in its sole discretion.\n\nThe monthly pension such member is receiving, or entitled to\n\nreceive, shall be adjusted in accordance with the provisions of\n\nsubsection H of this section to account for the member’s\n\nparticipation in the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan.\n\nThe deferred benefit balance such member is entitled to receive\n\nshall be reduced by the back drop pension adjustment amount and\n\nincreased by the deferred benefit balance adjustment amount. The\n\nmember may only make a back drop election if the deferred benefit\n\nbalance after the adjustment described in this paragraph is greater\n\nthan Zero Dollars ($0.00). The member may only make this election\n\nif the member has not previously elected to participate in the\n\nOklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan.\n\n5. Subparagraphs d and e of paragraph 1 and paragraphs 3 and 4\n\nof this subsection are effective June 4, 2007, provided the Internal\n\nRevenue Service issues a favorable determination letter for the\n\nSystem which includes the provisions of such subparagraphs and\n\nparagraphs without modification or as modified to conform to any\n\nchanges required by the Internal Revenue Service as part of its\n\ndetermination letter review process. In the event the Internal\n\nRevenue Service does not issue such a determination letter which\n\nincludes the provisions of such subparagraphs or paragraphs without\n\nmodification or as modified to conform to any changes required by\n\nthe Internal Revenue Service as part of its determination letter\n\nreview process, then subparagraphs d and e of paragraph 1 and\n\nparagraphs 3 and 4 of this subsection shall be repealed effective\n\nJune 4, 2007.","path":["OK Code","Title 11"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os11.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"5e9442a86b94b8315dec353024aea37e53c300db7fc73764225be6a0446c56b6","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-11-11-49-106","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-11-11-49-106.2"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}