Retirement Medical Benefit Fund - Right to benefits. There is hereby established a System for the payment of retirement benefits and certain medical and hospital expenses of members of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System. Effective July 1, 2014, the System intends to satisfy Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, by meeting the requirements of Section 414(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time. Such System shall constitute an amendment and continuation of the Retirement and Pension Plan of the Department of Public Safety and members in the Retirement and Pension Plan on June 30, 1980, shall continue as members of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System. There is established in the State Treasury a special fund designated as the "Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement Fund" for the benefit of members of the System and certain dependents of deceased members of the System. Such fund shall be a continuation, under a new name, of the Retirement and Pension Fund of the Department of Public Safety. There is hereby created the Retirement Medical Benefit Fund. The fund shall be maintained as a subaccount of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement Fund. The Retirement Medical Benefit Fund is composed of all assets which may be contributed to this subaccount to pay the retirement system's portion of the monthly retiree health insurance premium benefit described by Section 1316.2 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes. Such monthly retiree health insurance premium benefit is in addition to, and subordinate to, the retirement benefits provided by this System. All such allocated assets and any earnings thereon in the Retirement Medical Benefit Fund shall be held for the exclusive purpose of providing retiree medical benefits. The Retirement Medical Benefit Fund is to be administered in accordance with the requirements of Section 401(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time. It shall be impossible, at any time prior to the satisfaction of all liabilities for these benefits, for any part of this subaccount to be used for or diverted to, any purpose other than the providing of the retiree health insurance premium benefit and the payment of necessary and appropriate related expenses. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 401(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, effective July 1, 2014, upon the satisfaction of all liabilities under the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System to provide Section 401(h) medical benefits, any amount remaining in such separate subaccount must be returned to the employer. Effective July 1, 2014, in the event an individual's interest in the medical benefits subaccount is forfeited prior to the termination of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System, an amount equal to the amount of the forfeiture must be applied as soon as possible to reduce employer contributions to fund the medical benefits described in Section 401(h). The Board of Trustees may promulgate such rules as are necessary to implement the funding and administration of the fund pursuant to the provisions of this subsection. All contributions to fund the retiree health insurance benefit shall be made on the basis of a generally accepted actuarial method. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, the aggregate of contributions to provide retiree health insurance benefits and life insurance, if any, shall not exceed twenty-five percent (25%) of the aggregate contributions made to fund all benefits under this System, other than contributions to fund past service costs. For this purpose, "life insurance" means, as to any member, the in-service death benefit that would be payable upon the member's death, but only to the extent that the lump-sum value of such death benefit would exceed the lump-sum value of the member's accrued benefit at the date of the member's death. Appointment to any position within a covered agency which comes under this System shall not jeopardize the rights of any person who has previously qualified for membership under this System, provided that the individual contributions are continued, and such person remains a member of this System. Any person who has previously qualified for membership under the System who voluntarily seeks and accepts appointment to any position within a covered agency which is not a covered position excludes the member from further participation in this System; provided, this provision shall not apply to any person who is a member of the System and who, on or before June 30, 2002, has already accepted appointment to a position which is not a covered position of the System nor shall it apply if that person seeks and accepts any other position within a covered agency which is not a covered position of the System. Added by Laws 1961, p. 330, § 2-301, eff. Sept. 1, 1961. Amended by Laws 1967, c. 56, § 1, emerg. eff. April 14, 1967; Laws 1980, c. 357, § 3, eff. July 1, 1980; Laws 1981, c. 227, § 2, operative July 1, 1981; Laws 1982, c. 328, § 2, operative July 1, 1982; Laws 1988, c. 267, § 21, operative July 1, 1988; Laws 1992, c. 376, § 4, eff. July 1, 1992; Laws 1996, c. 55, § 2, eff. July 1, 1996; Laws 2002, c. 399, § 2, eff. July 1, 2002; Laws 2003, c. 3, § 29, emerg. eff. March 19, 2003; Laws 2015, c. 171, § 1, emerg. eff. April 27, 2015.
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