§18-7A-17. Statement and computation of teachers' service.

(a) Under rules adopted by the retirement board, each teacher and nonteaching member shall file a detailed statement of his or her length of service as a teacher or nonteacher for which he or she claims credit. The retirement board shall determine what part of a year is the equivalent of a year of service. In computing the service, however, it shall credit no period of more than a month's duration during which a member was absent without pay, nor shall it credit for more than one year of service performed in any calendar year.

(b) For service as a teacher in the employment of the federal government, or a state or territory of the United States, or a governmental subdivision of that state or territory, the retirement board shall grant credit to the member: Provided, That the member shall pay to the system 12 percent of that member's gross salary earned during the first full year of current employment whether a member of the Teachers Retirement System or the Teachers' Defined Contribution Retirement System, times the number of years for which credit is granted, plus interest at a rate to be determined by the retirement board. The interest shall be deposited in the reserve fund and service credit granted at the time of retirement may not exceed the lesser of 10 years or 50 percent of the member's total service as a teacher in West Virginia. Any purchase of out-of-state service, as provided in this article, may not be used to establish eligibility for a retirement allowance and the retirement board shall grant credit for the purchased service as additional service only: Provided, however, That a purchase of out-of-state service is prohibited if the service is used to obtain a retirement benefit from another retirement system: Provided further, That salaries paid to members for service prior to entrance into the retirement system may not be used to compute the average final salary of the member under the retirement system.

(c) No members may be considered absent from service while serving as a member or employee of the Legislature of the State of West Virginia during any duly constituted session of that body or while serving as an elected member of a county commission during any duly constituted session of that body.

(d) No member may be considered absent from service as a teacher or nonteacher while serving as an officer with a statewide professional teaching association, or who has served in that capacity, and no retirant, who served in that capacity while a member, may be considered to have been absent from service as a teacher by reason of that service: Provided, That the period of service credit granted for that service may not exceed 10 years: Provided, however, That a member or retirant who is serving or has served as an officer of a statewide professional teaching association shall make deposits to the Teachers Retirement System, for the time of any absence, in an amount double the amount which he or she would have contributed in his or her regular assignment for a like period of time.

(e) The Teachers Retirement System shall grant service credit to any former or present member of the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System who has been a contributing member of the Teachers Retirement System for more than three years, for service previously credited by the Public Employees Retirement System upon his or her written request and: (1) Shall require the transfer of the member's Public Employees Retirement System accumulated contributions to the Teachers Retirement System; or (2) shall require a repayment of the amount withdrawn from the Public Employees Retirement System, plus interest at a rate to be determined by the retirement board, compounded annually from the date of withdrawal to the date of payment, any time prior to the member's effective retirement date: Provided, That there shall be added by the member to the amounts transferred or repaid under this subsection an amount which shall be sufficient to equal the contributions he or she would have made had the member been under the Teachers Retirement System during the period of his or her membership in the Public Employees Retirement System, plus interest at a rate determined by the retirement board, compounded annually from the date the additional contribution would have been made had the member been under the Teachers Retirement System to the date of payment: Provided, however, That members of the Public Employees Retirement System who first became a member of the Public Employees Retirement System on or after July 1, 2023, may only transfer service credit to the Teachers Retirement System if they first became a member of the Teachers Retirement System on or after July 1, 2015. All interest paid or transferred shall be deposited in the reserve fund.

(f) For service as a teacher in an elementary or secondary parochial school, located within this state and fully accredited by the West Virginia Department of Education, the retirement board shall grant credit to the member: Provided, That the member shall pay to the system 12 percent of that member's gross salary earned during the first full year of current employment whether a member of the Teachers Retirement System or the Teachers' Defined Contribution Retirement System, times the number of years for which credit is granted, plus interest at a rate to be determined by the retirement board. The interest shall be deposited in the reserve fund and service granted at the time of retirement may not exceed the lesser of 10 years or 50 percent of the member's total service as a teacher in the West Virginia public school system. Any purchase of parochial school service, as provided in this section, may not be used to establish eligibility for a retirement allowance and retirement board shall grant credit for the purchase as additional service only: Provided, however, That a purchase of parochial school service is prohibited if the service is used to obtain a retirement benefit from another retirement system.

(g) Active members who previously worked in Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) may receive service credit for time served in that capacity: Provided, That in order to receive service credit under the provisions of this subsection the following conditions shall be met: (1) The member shall have moved from temporary employment with the participating employer to permanent full-time employment with the participating employer within 120 days following the termination of the member's CETA employment; (2) the retirement board shall receive evidence that establishes to a reasonable degree of certainty as determined by the retirement board that the member previously worked in CETA; and (3) the member shall pay to the retirement board an amount equal to the employer and employee contribution plus interest at the amount set by the retirement board for the amount of service credit sought pursuant to this subsection: Provided, however, That the maximum service credit that may be obtained under the provisions of this subsection is two years: Provided further, That a member shall apply and pay for the service credit allowed under this subsection and provide all necessary documentation by March 31, 2003: And provided further, That the retirement board shall exercise due diligence to notify affected employees of the provisions of this subsection.

(h) If a member is not eligible for prior service credit or pension as provided in this article, then his or her prior service may not be considered a part of his or her total service.

(i) A member who withdrew from membership may regain his or her former membership rights as specified in §18-7A-13 of this code only in case he or she has served two years since his or her last withdrawal.

(j) Subject to the provisions of subsections (a) through (k), inclusive, of this section, the retirement board shall verify as soon as practicable the statements of service submitted. The retirement board shall issue prior service certificates to all persons eligible for the certificates under the provisions of this article. The certificates shall state the length of the prior service credit, but in no case shall the prior service credit exceed 40 years.

(k) Notwithstanding any provision of this article to the contrary, when a member is or has been elected to serve as a member of the Legislature, and the proper discharge of his or her duties of public office require that member to be absent from his or her teaching or administrative duties, the time served in discharge of his or her duties of the legislative office are credited as time served for purposes of computing service credit: Provided, That the retirement board may not require any additional contributions from that member in order for the retirement board to credit him or her with the contributing service credit earned while discharging official legislative duties: Provided, however, That nothing in this section may be construed to relieve the employer from making the employer contribution at the member's regular salary rate or rate of pay from that employer on the contributing service credit earned while the member is discharging his or her official legislative duties. These employer payments shall commence as of June 1, 2000: Provided further, That any member to which the provisions of this subsection apply may elect to pay to the retirement board an amount equal to what his or her contribution would have been for those periods of time he or she was serving in the Legislature. The periods of time upon which the member paid his or her contribution shall then be included for purposes of determining his or her final average salary as well as for determining years of service: And provided further, That a member using the provisions of this subsection is not required to pay interest on any contributions he or she may decide to make.

(l) The Teachers Retirement System shall grant service credit to any former member of the State Police Death, Disability and Retirement System who has been a contributing member for more than three years for service previously credited by the State Police Death, Disability and Retirement System; and: (1) Shall require the transfer of the member's contributions to the Teachers Retirement System; or (2) shall require a repayment of the amount withdrawn any time prior to the member's retirement: Provided, That the member shall add to the amounts transferred or repaid under this paragraph an amount which is sufficient to equal the contributions he or she would have made had the member been under the Teachers Retirement System during the period of his or her membership in the State Police Death, Disability and Retirement System plus interest at a rate to be determined by the retirement board compounded annually from the date of withdrawal to the date of payment. The interest paid shall be deposited in the reserve fund.