ORIGINAL SENATE ENGROSSED

FILE NO. 0087

ENROLLED ACT NO. 31, SENATE

FIFTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING

2001 GENERAL SESSION

AN ACT relating to the Wyoming retirement system;
establishing additional benefits and contributions for
Wyoming air national guard firefighter members as
specified; defining and specifying eligibility; clarifying
retirement system provisions accordingly; conditioning
additional benefit implementation and payment upon timely
contribution payments as specified; and providing for an
effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.  W.S. 9-3-431 is created to read:

9-3-431. Firefighter members; contributions; benefit
eligibility; service and disability retirement benefits;
termination of benefits upon failure to make timely
contribution payments.

(a) In addition to contributions paid under W.S.
9-3-412 and 9-3-413, each firefighter member shall pay into
the account nine and sixty-five hundredths percent (9.65%)
of his salary to qualify for benefits under this section.
The employer of the firefighter member may pay any or all
of the employee contributions imposed under this
subsection. The board may increase the contribution
percentage required under this subsection by not more than
one percent (1%), as necessary to maintain the actuarial
integrity of the account as affected by benefits payable
under this section. Payments under this subsection shall be
made monthly to the account in accordance with W.S. 9-3-412
and 9-3-413.

(b) Normal retirement benefits are payable under this
section to any firefighter member who:

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(i) Has at least four (4) years of service
credit as a firefighter member and is at least sixty (60)
years of age;

(ii) Has at least twenty-five (25) years of
service credit as a firefighter member and is at least
fifty (50) years of age; or

(iii) Is at least fifty-five (55) years of age
and has a combined total years of age and years of service
credit as a firefighter member which equals not less than
seventy-five (75).

(c) Early retirement benefits are payable under this
section to any firefighter member who:

(i) Has at least four (4) but less than twenty-
five (25) years of service credit as a firefighter member
and is at least fifty (50) but less than sixty (60) years
of age; or

(ii) Is less than fifty (50) years of age and
has at least twenty-five (25) years of service credit as a
firefighter member.

(d) The early retirement benefit amount payable under
subsection (c) of this section is equal to the normal
retirement benefit amount payable under subsection (b) of
this section reduced to an actuarial equivalent amount as
prescribed by rule and regulation of the board.

(e) The normal benefit for a firefighter member under
this section is equal to two and one-half percent (2 ½%) of
the highest average salary multiplied by the member's years
of service credit as a firefighter member.

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(f) Upon retirement for a partial or total disability
as determined and for which the member otherwise qualifies
under W.S. 9-3-422, a firefighter member shall receive a
monthly disability retirement benefit for the period of
qualified disability equal to sixty-five percent (65%) of
his salary at the time the disability was incurred.
Disability benefits are payable under this subsection for
the life of the firefighter member or until the firefighter
member is no longer disabled. The firefighter member is
subject to reporting, evaluation and excess earnings
deduction requirements imposed under W.S. 9-3-423.

(g) The firefighter member retirement benefit program
established under this section shall be discontinued by the
board, and retirement benefits prescribed under this
section shall be discontinued, if at any time contributions
for all firefighter members required under subsection (a)
of this section are not paid monthly to the retirement
system when due as required by subsection (a) of this
section. Upon termination of benefits under this
subsection, the retirement benefits for firefighter members
shall revert to and be paid under W.S. 9-3-415 and as
otherwise prescribed for general members under this
article. The firefighter member retirement program may be
reactivated following application to and approval by the
board and payment of the required contributions to cover
both normal costs and any additional liability accruing
during the period of program termination as determined by
the system actuary. If benefits are terminated and not
reactivated under this subsection, a firefighter member may
receive additional benefits in proportion to the additional
contributions paid on his behalf under this section, as
determined by the system's actuary.

Section 2.  W.S. 9-3-402(a)(vii)(intro), (xx) and by
creating a new paragraph (xxv), 9-3-412(a), 9-3-413,

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9-3-415(a)(intro), 9-3-418 by creating a new subsection
(e), 9-3-420(c), 9-3-422(a) and (b), 9-3-423(a) and (b) and
9-3-430(b) are amended to read:

9-3-402. Definitions.

(a) As used in this article:

(vii) "Member", except as provided by W.S.
9-3-405(a)(ii), means and includes any full-time or regular
part-time employee of an employer, including substitute
teachers if treated by the employer as regular, part-time
employees and including law enforcement officers and
firefighter members, but "member" does not mean:

(xx) "General member" means a member who is not
a law enforcement officer or a firefighter member;

(xxv) "Firefighter member" means any employee of
the Wyoming air national guard fire department crash and
rescue unit employed on a full-time basis for firefighting
and rescue operations within the department.

9-3-412. Members' contributions; payroll deductions;
employer authorized to pay employee's share.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section and
W.S. 9-3-431, every member covered under this article and
firefighter members, shall pay into the account five and
fifty-seven hundredths percent (5.57%) of his salary.
Payments shall be deducted each pay period from each
member's salary by the chief fiscal officer of each
participating employer.

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9-3-413. Employer's contributions; transfer to
account; recovery of delinquent contributions with
interest.

Except as provided by W.S. 9-2-1022(a)(xi)(F)(III) or (IV)
and W.S. 9-3-431, each employer including employers of
firefighter members, shall pay into the account a
contribution equal to five and sixty-eight hundredths
percent (5.68%) of the salary paid to each of its members
covered under this article and may pay into the account any
amount of the members' share of retirement contributions.
These contributions, together with the members'
contributions, if any, shall be transferred and credited to
the account in a manner as directed by the board. If the
contributions are not transferred to the board when due,
they may be recovered, together with interest at the rate
of twelve percent (12%) per annum, in an action brought for
that purpose in the district court in and for the county in
which the employer has its principal office or place of
activity.

9-3-415. When retirement permitted; service credit.

(a) Except as provided under subsection (f) of this
section and W.S. 9-3-431, normal retirement benefits under
the system are payable to a member who:

9-3-418. Amount of service retirement benefit;
firefighter members excluded.

(e) This section does not apply to any firefighter
member covered and vested under W.S. 9-3-431.

9-3-420. Option as to form of benefit; beneficiary
designations.

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(c) The retirement benefits payable under optional
forms available under this section shall be the actuarial
equivalent amount of the normal benefit form under W.S.
9-3-415 and 9-3-431, if applicable.

9-3-422. Disability retirement; board determination;
reports and examinations; amount; options as to form of
benefit.

(a) Any member in service who has ten (10) or more
years of service credit during which contributions have
been paid because of illness or injury outside of or in the
scope of employment, or any law enforcement officer in
service for whom contributions have been paid because of
injury in the scope of employment, or any firefighter
member in service for whom contributions have been paid
because of injury in the scope of employment, may retire on
account of a total or partial disability in accordance with
rules and regulations adopted by the board. In determining
mental or physical incapacitation for disability retirement
under this section, the board may require physician
reports, medical examinations, functional capacity
evaluations, vocational examinations and other necessary
reports and examinations for purposes of this section. The
costs of any functional capacity evaluation, vocational
examination or other specialized test required under this
subsection shall be paid from the retirement account.

(b)  Upon retirement for a total disability and except
as provided under W.S. 9-3-431(f), a member shall receive a
monthly disability retirement benefit for the period of his
disability equal to one hundred percent (100%) of his
service retirement benefit under this article as if the
member was eligible for normal retirement benefits. Upon
retirement for a partial disability, a member shall receive
a monthly disability retirement benefit for the period of

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his disability equal to fifty percent (50%) of the normal
retirement benefit payable to the member as if the member
were eligible for normal retirement benefits. Disability
benefits are payable for the life of the member or until
the member is no longer disabled.

9-3-423. Disability; medical and other examinations,
tests and evaluations subsequent to retirement; failure to
submit to examinations, tests and evaluations; restoration
to service; deduction from benefit for excess earnings.

(a) Once each year during the first five (5) years
following retirement of a member for disability under the
system, and once in every three (3) year period thereafter,
the board may require a member who is not eligible for
normal retirement benefits pursuant to W.S. 9-3-415(a) or
9-3-431 to undergo a medical examination by a physician
designated by the board or any other examination, test or
evaluation determined necessary by the board. If the member
refuses to submit to a medical or other examination, test
or evaluation, his benefit payments shall be discontinued.

(b) If any member receiving a disability benefit
under this article is restored to service, the payment of
the benefit shall be discontinued, and he that member shall
become a contributing member of the system and all previous
years of service credit including the period of the
disability retirement, shall be credited to his service for
the purpose of determining eligibility under W.S. 9-3-415
or 9-3-431.

9-3-430. Application for benefits; benefit payment
effective dates; minimum distribution rules.

(b) Benefits are payable the last day of the month
following the month in which the member's final

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contributions and employer contributions are remitted to
the system and the member has submitted a complete and
accurate application under subsection (a) of this section.
Retirement is effective the day following the member's last
working day in the system or anytime after that time when
the member qualifies under W.S. 9-3-413 or 9-3-414 9-3-415,
9-3-416 or 9-3-431.

Section 3.  W.S. 9-3-431, as created under section 1
of this act, shall not be implemented by the Wyoming
retirement board until contributions required under W.S.
9-3-431(a), as created under section 1 of this act, are
paid to the Wyoming retirement system for disposition into
the retirement account for the period of covered service
beginning July 1, 2001, and ending August 31, 2001.

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Section 4.  This act is effective July 1, 2001.

(END)

Speaker of the House President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the Senate.

Chief Clerk

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