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AN ACT

RELATING TO JUDICIAL RETIREMENT; AMENDING THE JUDICIAL

RETIREMENT ACT TO PROVIDE FOR PURCHASE OF SERVICE CREDIT OF

ONE YEAR BY ANY MEMBER.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. Section 10-12B-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1992,

Chapter 111, Section 5, as amended) is amended to read:

"10-12B-5. SERVICE CREDIT--REINSTATEMENT OF FORFEITED

SERVICE--PRIOR SERVICE--MILITARY SERVICE.--

A. Personal service rendered by a member shall be

credited to the member's service credit account in accordance

with board rules and regulations. Service shall be credited

to the nearest month. In no case shall any member be credited

with a year of service for less than twelve months of service

in any calendar year or more than a month of service for all

service in any calendar month or more than a year of service

for all service in any calendar year.

B. Service credit shall be forfeited if a member

leaves office and withdraws the member's accumulated member

contributions. A member or former member who is a member of a

state system or the educational retirement system who has

forfeited service credit by withdrawal of member contributions

may reinstate the forfeited service credit by repaying the

amount withdrawn plus compound interest from the date of

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withdrawal to the date of repayment at a rate set by the

board. Withdrawn member contributions may be repaid in

increments of one year in accordance with procedures

established by the board. Full payment of each one-year

increment shall be made in a single lump-sum amount in

accordance with procedures established by the board.

C. Service credit that a member would have earned

if the member had not elected to be excluded from membership

may be purchased if the member pays the purchase cost

determined pursuant to the provisions of Subsection F of this

section.

D. A member who during a term of office enters a

uniformed service of the United States shall be given service

credit for periods of service in the uniformed services

subject to the following conditions:

(1) the member returns to office within

ninety days following termination of the period of intervening

service in the uniformed services or the affiliated employer

certifies in writing to the association that the member is

entitled to reemployment rights under the Uniformed Services

Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994;

(2) the member retains membership in the

association during the period of service in the uniformed

services;

(3) free service credit shall not be given

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for periods of intervening service in the uniformed services

following voluntary reenlistment. Service credit for such

periods shall only be given after the member pays the

association the sum of the contributions that the person would

have been required to contribute had the person remained

continuously employed throughout the period of intervening

service following voluntary reenlistment, which payment shall

be made during the period beginning with the date of

reemployment and whose duration is three times the period of

the person's intervening service in the uniformed services

following voluntary reenlistment, not to exceed five years;

(4) service credit shall not be given for

periods of intervening service in the uniformed services that

are used to obtain or increase a benefit from another state

system or the retirement program provided under the

Educational Retirement Act; and

(5) the member must not have received a

discharge or separation from uniformed service under other

than honorable conditions.

Notwithstanding any provision of this plan to the

contrary, contributions, benefits and service credit with

respect to qualified military service will be provided in

accordance with Section 4l4(u) of the Internal Revenue Code of

1986, as amended.

E. A member who entered uniformed service of the

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United States may purchase service credit for periods of

active duty in the uniformed services, subject to the

following conditions:

(1) the member pays the purchase cost

determined pursuant to the provisions of Subsection F of this

section;

(2) the member has five or more years of

service credit accrued according to the provisions of the

Judicial Retirement Act;

(3) the aggregate amount of service credit

purchased pursuant to the provisions of this subsection does

not exceed five years, reduced by any period of service credit

acquired for military service under any other provision of the

Judicial Retirement Act;

(4) service credit may not be purchased for

periods of service in the uniformed services that are used to

obtain or increase a benefit from another retirement program;

and

(5) the member must not have received a

discharge or separation from uniformed service under other

than honorable conditions.

F. The purchase cost for each year of service

credit purchased pursuant to the provisions of this section

shall be the increase in the actuarial present value of the

pension of the member under the Judicial Retirement Act as a

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consequence of the purchase, as determined by the association.

Full payment shall be made in a single lump-sum amount in

accordance with procedures established by the board. Except

as provided in Subsection G of this section, seventy-five

percent of the purchase cost shall be considered to be

employer contributions and shall not be refunded to the member

in the event of cessation of membership.

G. A member shall be refunded, after retirement

and upon written request filed with the association, the

portion of the purchase cost of service credit purchased

pursuant to the provisions of this section that the

association determines to have been unnecessary to provide the

member with the maximum pension applicable to the member. The

association shall not pay interest on the portion of the

purchase cost refunded to the member.

H. At any time prior to retirement, a member may

purchase service credit in monthly increments, subject to the

following conditions:

(1) the member has at least five years of

service credit acquired as a result of personal service

rendered under the Judicial Retirement Act;

(2) the aggregate amount of service credit

purchased pursuant to this subsection does not exceed one

year;

(3) the member pays full actuarial present

value of the amount of the increase in the member's pension as

a consequence of the purchase, as determined by the

association;

(4) the member pays the full cost of the

purchase within sixty days of the date the member is informed

of the amount of the payment; and

(5) the purchase of service credit under

this subsection cannot be used to exceed the pension maximum."

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