2005 Arizona Revised Statutes - Revised Statutes §38-842  Definitions

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Accidental disability" means a physical or mental condition which the local board finds totally and permanently prevents an employee from performing a reasonable range of duties within the employee's job classification and was incurred in the performance of the employee's duty.

2. "Accumulated contributions" means, for each member, the sum of the amount of the member's aggregate contributions made to the fund and the amount, if any, attributable to the employee's contributions prior to the member's effective date under another public retirement system, other than the federal social security act, and transferred to the fund minus the benefits paid to or on behalf of the member.

3. "Actuarial equivalent" means equality in present value of the aggregate amounts expected to be received under two different forms of payment, based on mortality and interest assumptions adopted by the fund manager. The fund manager may from time to time change the mortality and interest assumptions.

4. "Average monthly benefit compensation" means the result obtained by dividing the total compensation paid to an employee during a considered period by the number of months, including fractional months, in which such compensation was received. The considered period shall be the three consecutive years within the last twenty completed years of credited service which yield the highest average. In the computation under this paragraph a period of nonpaid or partially paid industrial leave shall be considered based on the compensation the employee would have received in the employee's job classification if the employee was not on industrial leave.

5. "Catastrophic disability" means a physical and not a psychological condition that the local board determines prevents the employee from totally and permanently engaging in any gainful employment and that results from a physical injury incurred in the performance of the employee's duty.

6. "Certified peace officer" means a peace officer certified by the Arizona peace officers standards and training board.

7. "Claimant" means any member or beneficiary who files an application for benefits pursuant to this article.

8. "Compensation" means, for the purpose of computing retirement benefits, base salary, overtime pay, shift differential pay and holiday pay paid to an employee by the employer on a regular monthly, semimonthly or biweekly payroll basis and longevity pay paid to an employee at least every six months for which contributions are made to the system pursuant to section 38-843, subsection D. Compensation does not include, for the purpose of computing retirement benefits, payment for unused sick leave, payment in lieu of vacation, payment for compensatory time or payment for any fringe benefits. For the purposes of this paragraph, "base salary" means the amount of compensation each employee is regularly paid for personal services rendered to an employer before the addition of any extra monies, including overtime pay, shift differential pay, holiday pay, longevity pay, fringe benefit pay and similar extra payments.

9. "Credited service" means the member's total period of service prior to the member's effective date of participation, plus those compensated periods of the member's service thereafter for which the member made contributions to the fund.

10. "Depository" means a bank in which all monies of the system are deposited and held and from which all expenditures for benefits, expenses and investments are disbursed.

11. "Effective date of participation" means July 1, 1968, except with respect to employers and their covered employees whose contributions to the fund commence thereafter, the effective date of their participation in the system is as specified in the applicable joinder agreement.

12. "Effective date of vesting" means the date a member's rights to benefits vest pursuant to section 38-844.01.

13. "Eligible child" means the unmarried child of a deceased member who is under the age of eighteen or a full-time student who is under the age of twenty-three or under a disability which began before the child attained the age of twenty-three and who remains a dependent of the surviving spouse or guardian.

14. "Eligible groups" means only the following who are regularly assigned to hazardous duty:

(a) Municipal police officers who are certified peace officers.

(b) Municipal fire fighters.

(c) Paid full-time fire fighters employed directly by a fire district organized pursuant to section 48-803 or 48-804 with three or more full-time fire fighters, but not including fire fighters employed by a fire district pursuant to a contract with a corporation.

(d) State highway patrol officers who are certified peace officers.

(e) State fire fighters.

(f) County sheriffs and deputies who are certified peace officers.

(g) Fish and game wardens who are certified peace officers.

(h) Police officers who are certified peace officers and fire fighters of a nonprofit corporation operating a public airport pursuant to sections 28-8423 and 28-8424. A police officer shall be designated pursuant to section 28-8426 to aid and supplement state and local law enforcement agencies and a fire fighter's sole duty shall be to perform fire fighting services, including services required by federal regulations.

(i) Police officers who are certified peace officers and who are appointed by the Arizona board of regents.

(j) Police officers who are certified peace officers and who are appointed by a community college district governing board.

(k) State attorney general investigators who are certified peace officers.

(l) County attorney investigators who are certified peace officers.

(m) Police officers who are certified peace officers and who are employed by an Indian reservation police agency.

(n) Fire fighters who are employed by an Indian reservation fire fighting agency.

(o) Police officers who are certified peace officers and who are appointed by the department of administration.

(p) Department of liquor licenses and control investigators who are certified peace officers.

(q) Arizona department of agriculture officers who are certified peace officers.

(r) Arizona state parks board rangers and managers who are certified peace officers.

(s) County park rangers who are certified peace officers.

15. "Employee" means any person who is employed by a participating employer and who is a member of an eligible group but does not include any persons compensated on a contractual or fee basis. If an eligible group requires certified peace officer status and at the option of the local board, employee may include a person who is training to become a certified peace officer.

16. "Employers" means:

(a) Cities contributing to the fire fighters' relief and pension fund as provided in sections 9-951 through 9-971 or statutes amended thereby and antecedent thereto, as of June 30, 1968 on behalf of their full-time paid fire fighters.

(b) Cities contributing under the state police pension laws as provided in sections 9-911 through 9-934 or statutes amended thereby and antecedent thereto, as of June 30, 1968 on behalf of their municipal policemen.

(c) The state highway patrol covered under the state highway patrol retirement system.

(d) The state, or any political subdivision thereof, including but not limited to towns, cities, fire districts, counties and nonprofit corporations operating public airports pursuant to sections 28-8423 and 28-8424, which has elected to participate in the system on behalf of an eligible group of public safety personnel pursuant to a joinder agreement entered into after July 1, 1968.

(e) Indian tribes which have elected to participate in the system on behalf of an eligible group of public safety personnel pursuant to a joinder agreement entered into after July 1, 1968.

17. "Fund" means the public safety personnel retirement fund, which is the fund established to receive and invest contributions accumulated under the system and from which benefits are paid.

18. "Fund manager" means the fund manager of the system, who are the persons appointed to invest and operate the fund.

19. "Local board" means the retirement board of the employer, who are the persons appointed to administer the system as it applies to their members in the system.

20. "Member" means any employee who meets all of the following qualifications:

(a) Who is either a full-time paid municipal police officer, a full-time paid fire fighter, a law enforcement officer who is employed by the state including the director thereof, a state fire fighter who is primarily assigned to fire fighting duties, a fire fighter or police officer of a nonprofit corporation operating a public airport pursuant to sections 28-8423 and 28-8424, all ranks designated by the Arizona law enforcement merit system council, a state attorney general investigator who is a certified peace officer, a county attorney investigator who is a certified peace officer, a police officer who is appointed by the department of administration and who is a certified peace officer, a department of liquor licenses and control investigator who is a certified peace officer, an Arizona department of agriculture officer who is a certified peace officer, an Arizona state parks board ranger or manager who is a certified peace officer, a county park ranger who is a certified peace officer, a person who is a certified peace officer and who is employed by an Indian reservation police agency, a fire fighter who is employed by an Indian reservation fire fighting agency or an employee included in a group designated as eligible employees under a joinder agreement entered into by their employer after July 1, 1968 and who is or was regularly assigned to hazardous duty.

(b) Who, on or after the employee's effective date of participation, is receiving compensation for personal services rendered to an employer or would be receiving compensation except for an authorized leave of absence.

(c) Whose employment with an employer commenced prior to attainment of age fifty.

(d) Whose customary employment is at least forty hours per week and for more than six months in a calendar year.

(e) Who has not attained age sixty-five prior to the employee's effective date of participation or who was over age sixty-five with twenty-five years or more of service prior to the employee's effective date of participation.

21. "Normal retirement date" means the first day of the calendar month immediately following an employee's completion of twenty years of service or the employee's sixty-second birthday and the employee's completion of fifteen years of service.

22. "Ordinary disability" means a physical condition which the local board determines will prevent an employee totally and permanently from performing a reasonable range of duties within the employee's department or a mental condition which the local board determines will prevent an employee totally and permanently from engaging in any substantial gainful activity.

23. "Pension" means a series of monthly amounts which are payable to a person who is entitled to receive benefits under the plan.

24. "Regularly assigned to hazardous duty" means regularly assigned to duties of the type normally expected of municipal police officers, municipal or state fire fighters, eligible fire district fire fighters, state highway patrol officers, county sheriffs and deputies, fish and game wardens, fire fighters and police officers of a nonprofit corporation operating a public airport pursuant to sections 28-8423 and 28-8424, police officers who are appointed by the Arizona board of regents or a community college district governing board, state attorney general investigators who are certified peace officers, county attorney investigators who are certified peace officers, police officers who are appointed by the department of administration and who are certified peace officers, department of liquor licenses and control investigators who are certified peace officers, Arizona department of agriculture officers who are certified peace officers, Arizona state parks board rangers and managers who are certified peace officers, county park rangers who are certified peace officers, police officers who are certified peace officers and are employed by an Indian reservation police agency or fire fighters who are employed by an Indian reservation fire fighting agency. Those individuals who are assigned solely to support duties such as secretaries, stenographers, clerical personnel, clerks, cooks, maintenance personnel, mechanics and dispatchers are not assigned to hazardous duty regardless of their position classification title. Since the normal duties of municipal police officers, municipal or state fire fighters, eligible fire district fire fighters, state highway patrol officers, county sheriffs and deputies, fish and game wardens, fire fighters and police officers of a nonprofit corporation operating a public airport pursuant to sections 28-8423 and 28-8424, police officers who are appointed by the Arizona board of regents or a community college district governing board, state attorney general investigators who are certified peace officers, county attorney investigators who are certified peace officers, police officers who are appointed by the department of administration and who are certified peace officers, department of liquor licenses and control investigators who are certified peace officers, Arizona department of agriculture officers who are certified peace officers, Arizona state parks board rangers and managers who are certified peace officers, county park rangers who are certified peace officers, police officers who are certified peace officers and are employed by an Indian reservation police agency and fire fighters who are employed by an Indian reservation fire fighting agency are constantly changing, questions as to whether a person is or was previously regularly assigned to hazardous duty shall be resolved by the local board on a case-by-case basis. Resolutions by local boards are subject to rehearing and appeal.

25. "Retirement" means termination of employment after a member has fulfilled all requirements for a pension. Retirement shall be considered as commencing on the first day of the month immediately following a member's last day of employment or authorized leave of absence, if later.

26. "Service" means the last period of continuous employment of an employee by the employers prior to the employee's retirement or the employee's sixty-fifth birthday, whichever first occurs, except that if such period includes employment during which the employee would not have qualified as a member had the system then been effective, such as employment as a volunteer fire fighter, then only twenty-five per cent of such noncovered employment shall be considered as service. Any absence which is authorized by an employer shall not be considered as interrupting continuity of employment if the employee returns within the period of authorized absence. Transfers between employers also shall not be considered as interrupting continuity of employment. Any period during which a member is receiving sick leave payments or a temporary disability pension shall be considered as service. Any period during which a person was employed as a full-time paid fire fighter by a fire district pursuant to a contract with a corporation within that fire district shall be considered as service if it is part of the person's last period of continuous employment with that corporation in that fire district and the fire district has elected to treat the period as service in its applicable joinder agreement. Any reference in this system to the number of years of service of an employee shall be deemed to include fractional portions of a year.

27. "State" means the state of Arizona, including any department, office, board, commission, agency or other instrumentality of the state.

28. "System" means the public safety personnel retirement system established by this article.

29. "Temporary disability" means a physical or mental condition which the local board finds totally and temporarily prevents an employee from performing a reasonable range of duties within the employee's department and which was incurred in the performance of the employee's duty.