§5-13-2. Definitions.

The following words and phrases as used in this article, unless a different meaning is clearly indicated by the context, shall have the following meanings:

(a) "Accumulated contributions" means the sum of the amounts deducted from the compensation of a member and credited to his or her individual account in a state system, together with interest, if any, credited thereto.

(b) "Annuity" means the annuity payable by a state system.

(c) "Member" means a member of either the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System or the State Teachers Retirement System. The term "member" does not include any person who has retired under either state system.

(d) "Public final average salary" means a member's final average salary computed according to the law governing the public system. In computing his or her public final average salary, the compensation, if any, received by the member for services rendered in positions covered by the teacher system shall be used in the same manner as if the compensation were received for services covered by the public system: Provided, That for persons who first became members of the retirement system on or after July 1, 2015, no compensation for services rendered in positions covered by the teacher system may be used to compute his or her public system final average salary.

(e) "Public system" means the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System established in article ten of this chapter.

(f) "Reciprocal service credit" for a member of the public system who subsequently becomes a member of the teacher system, or vice versa, means the sum of his or her credited service in force acquired as a member of the public system and his or her credited service in force acquired as a member of the teacher system: Provided, That persons who first became members of the public system or teacher system on or after July 1, 2015, must be employed and contributed for ten years or more in each system to receive reciprocal service credit.

(g) "State system" means the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System and the State Teachers Retirement System.

(h) "Teacher final average salary" means a member's final average salary computed according to the law governing the teacher system. In computing his or her teacher final average salary, the compensation, if any, received by the member for services rendered in positions covered by the public system shall be used in the same manner as if the compensation were received for services covered by the teacher system: Provided, That for persons who first became members of the retirement system on or after July 1, 2015, no compensation for services rendered in positions covered by the public system may be used to compute his or her teacher system final average salary.

(i) "Teacher system" means the State Teachers Retirement System established in article seven-a, chapter eighteen of this code.

(j) The masculine gender includes the feminine, and words of the singular number with respect to persons include the plural number, and vice versa.