2007 California Education Code Chapter 13. Service Credit

CA Codes (edc:22700-22724)

22700.  This chapter governs the computation of service to be
credited under this part to a member of the Defined Benefit Program
for the purpose of determining eligibility for benefits under the
program, the amount of contributions required of the member in the
program, and the amount of benefits paid to a retired member under
the program.



22701.  (a) Service performed prior to July 1, 1972, shall be
credited according to the provisions of law in effect at the time
service was performed.
   (b) Creditable service performed on or after July 1, 1972, and
credited under the Defined Benefit Program, shall be credited in the
proportion that the member's creditable compensation for that service
bears to the member's compensation earnable.




22703.  (a) Service shall be credited to the Defined Benefit
Program, except as provided in subdivision (b).
   (b) A member's creditable service that exceeds 1.000 in a school
year shall not be credited to the Defined Benefit Program. Commencing
July 1, 2002, contributions by the employer and the member that are
deposited in the Teachers' Retirement Fund for creditable
compensation paid to the member for service that exceeds 1.000 in a
school year, exclusive of contributions pursuant to Section 22951,
shall be credited to the Defined Benefit Supplement Program.
   (c) In lieu of any other benefits provided by this part, any
member who performed service prior to July 1, 1956, shall receive
retirement benefits for that service at least equal to the benefits
that the member would have received for that service under the
provisions of this part as they existed on June 30, 1956. This
subdivision shall not apply to service that is credited in the San
Francisco Employees' Retirement System.
   (d) The amendments to this section made during the second year of
the 1999-2000 Regular Session shall become operative on July 1, 2002,
if the revenue limit cost-of-living adjustment computed by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction for the 2001-02 fiscal year is
equal to or greater than 3.5 percent. Otherwise the amendments to
this section made during the second year of the 1999-2000 Regular
Session shall become operative on July 1, 2003.



22704.  In any school district that is conducting a year-round
school operation or a continuous school program, service shall be
credited to the school year in which the service began.



22705.  No service shall be included under this part for which a
member of the Defined Benefit Program is entitled to receive a
retirement benefit in a lump sum or installment payments, for other
than military service, from any public retirement system other than
this system, or under the American Gratuity Act No. 4151 relating to
service in the Philippine Islands under which 15 or more years of
creditable service has accrued, or the San Francisco Employees'
Retirement System. If a retired member under this part becomes
entitled to that retirement benefit, his or her retirement allowance
shall be reduced thereafter to exclude the service upon which the
retirement benefit is based, without other change in his or her
retirement status. This section shall not apply to any retirement
benefit received from a defined contribution plan that is qualified
under Section 401(a), Section 403(b), or Section 457 of the Internal
Revenue Code.


22705.5.  Service subject to coverage by the San Francisco Employees'
Retirement System pursuant to Section 24701 is excluded from
coverage in the Defined Benefit Program. The member shall retain the
right to receive a retirement allowance for creditable service that
is subject to coverage under the Defined Benefit Program unless he or
she withdraws his or her accumulated retirement contributions for
that service.



22706.  A member shall not receive credit for service performed
while receiving a retirement or disability allowance under the
Defined Benefit Program or while receiving a retirement or disability
  benefit under the Defined Benefit Supplement Program.




22708.  The calculations of retirement allowances under this part
for state employees in the personal leave program shall include
credit for service that would have been credited had the employee not
been in the personal leave program.  The costs that result from the
increased service credit shall be paid for by the employer in a
manner prescribed by the system.



22709.  A member shall receive credit under this part for time
during which the member is prevented from performing creditable
service subject to coverage under the Defined Benefit Program, by act
of God, or by reason of the closing of a school by any duly
authorized officer or body.  If by reason of a member's Japanese
ancestry, the member was required by the Wartime Civil Control
Administration to leave his or her teaching position in California
and returned prior to July 1, 1972, to service subject to coverage
under the Defined Benefit Program, the system shall give the member
four years of service credit under this part.



22710.  (a) Service shall be credited under this part, upon payment
of the contributions required under Sections 22901 and 22950, for
that time during which a member is excused from performance of
creditable service and for which the member receives workers'
compensation, or compensation from an insurance carrier of the
employer, due to injury or illness that arose out of and in the
course of the member's employment.  Service for that time shall be
credited in the proportion that the creditable compensation paid to
the member bears to the compensation earnable by the member.
   (b) The amount of creditable compensation paid to the member shall
not exceed the compensation earnable by the member during the period
of absence specified in subdivision (a).



22711.  (a) A member under this part shall be granted service credit
for time during which the member serves as an elected officer of an
employee organization while on a compensated leave of absence
pursuant to Section 44987 or 87768.5, if all of the following
conditions are met:
   (1) The member was employed and performed creditable service
subject to coverage under this Defined Benefit Program in the month
prior to commencement of the leave of absence.
   (2) The member makes contributions to the Teachers' Retirement
Fund in the amount that the member would have contributed had the
member performed creditable service on a full-time basis during the
period the member served as an elected officer of the employee
organization.
   (3) The member's employer contributes to the Teachers' Retirement
Fund at a rate adopted by the board as a plan amendment with respect
to the Defined Benefit Program an amount based upon the creditable
compensation that would have been paid to the member had the member
performed creditable service on a full-time basis during the period
the member served as an elected officer of the employee organization.

   (b) The maximum period of time during which a member may serve as
an elected officer and receive service credit pursuant to this
section shall not exceed 12 calendar years.



22712.  A member under this part shall receive credit for time
served as an exchange teacher in any location.



22712.5.  All members under this part who are employed by a school
district, community college district, or superintendent of schools
and who received credit during the school year ending June 30, 1996,
for service performed as a community service teacher or in a
classified position that does not qualify for membership in the
Public Employees' Retirement System, shall continue to receive credit
for that service performed after June 30, 1996, provided the member
remains continuously employed to perform that service.



22713.  (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the
governing board of a school district or a community college district
or a county superintendent of schools may establish regulations that
allow an employee who is a member of the Defined Benefit Program to
reduce his or her workload from full time to part time, and receive
the service credit the member would have received if the member had
been employed on a full-time basis and have his or her retirement
allowance, as well as other benefits that the member is entitled to
under this part, based, in part, on final compensation determined
from the compensation earnable the member would have been entitled to
if the member had been employed on a full-time basis.
   (b) The regulations shall include, but may not be limited to, the
following:
   (1) The option to reduce the member's workload shall be exercised
at the request of the member and may be revoked only with the mutual
consent of the employer and the member. The agreement to reduce a
member's workload shall be in effect at the beginning of the school
year.
   (2) The member shall have been employed on a full-time basis to
perform creditable service subject to coverage under the Defined
Benefit Program and have a minimum of 10 years of credited service,
including five years of credited service for full-time employment
immediately preceding the reduction in workload.
   (3) The member may not have had a break in service during the five
years immediately preceding the reduction in workload. For purposes
of this subdivision, sabbaticals, other approved leaves of absence,
and unpaid absences from the performance of creditable service for
personal reasons do not constitute a break in service. For purposes
of this subdivision, the period of time during which a member is
retired for service shall constitute a break in service and a member
who reinstates from retirement shall be required to be employed on a
full-time basis to perform creditable service for at least five
school years immediately preceding the reduction in workload.
   (4) The member shall have reached 55 years of age prior to the
reduction in workload.
   (5) The reduced workload shall be performed for a period of time,
as specified in the regulations, up to and including 10 years. The
period of time specified in the regulations may not exceed 10 years.

   (6) The reduced workload shall be equal to at least one-half of
the time the employer requires for full-time employment in accordance
with Section 22138.5 pursuant to the member's contract of employment
during his or her last school year of full-time employment preceding
the reduction in workload.
   (7) The member shall be paid creditable compensation that is the
pro rata share of the creditable compensation the member would have
been paid had the member not reduced his or her workload.
   (c) Prior to the reduction of a member's workload under this
section, the employer, in conjunction with the administrative staff
of the State Teachers' Retirement Plan and the Public Employees'
Retirement System, shall verify the member's eligibility for the
reduced workload program.
   (d) For each school year the member's workload is reduced pursuant
to this section, the member shall make contributions to the Teachers'
Retirement Fund in the amount that the member would have contributed
if the member had performed creditable service on a full-time basis
and if that service was subject to coverage under the Defined Benefit
Program.
   (e) For each school year the member's workload is reduced pursuant
to this section, the employer shall contribute to the Teachers'
Retirement Fund at a rate adopted by the board as a plan amendment
with respect to the Defined Benefit Program an amount based upon the
creditable compensation that would have been paid to the member if
the member had performed creditable service on a full-time basis and
if that service was subject to coverage under the Defined Benefit
Program.
   (f) The employer shall maintain the necessary records to
separately identify each member who participates in the reduced
workload program pursuant to this section.
   (g) A member who retires or otherwise separates from service prior
to the end of the school year shall be in violation of this section
and the member's service credit for that period of the contract shall
be computed in accordance with Section 22701.



22714.  (a) Whenever the governing board of a school district or a
community college district or a county office of education, by formal
action, determines pursuant to Section 44929 or 87488 that, because
of impending curtailment of, or changes in, the manner of performing
services, the best interests of the district or county office of
education would be served by encouraging certificated employees or
academic employees to retire for service and that the retirement will
result in a net savings to the district or county office of
education, an additional two years of service credit shall be granted
under this part to a member of the Defined Benefit Program if all of
the following conditions exist:
   (1) The member is credited with five or more years of service
credit and retires for service under Chapter 27 (commencing with
Section 24201) during a period of not more than 120 days or less than
60 days, commencing no sooner than the effective date of the formal
action of the employer that shall specify the period.
   (2) The employer transfers to the retirement fund an amount
determined by the Teachers' Retirement Board to equal the actuarial
equivalent of the difference between the allowance the member
receives after receipt of service credit pursuant to this section and
the amount the member would have received without the service credit
and an amount determined by the Teachers' Retirement Board to equal
the actuarial equivalent of the difference between the purchasing
power protection supplemental payment the member receives after
receipt of service credit pursuant to this section and the amount the
member would have received without the service credit. The payment
for purchasing power shall be deposited in the Supplemental Benefit
Maintenance Account established by Section 22400 and shall be subject
to Section 24415. The transfer to the retirement fund shall be made
in a manner and a time period, not to exceed eight years, that is
acceptable to the Teachers' Retirement Board. The employer shall
transfer the required amount for all eligible employees who retire
pursuant to this section.
   (3) The employer transmits to the retirement fund the
administrative costs incurred by the system in implementing this
section, as determined by the Teachers' Retirement Board.
   (4) The employer has considered the availability of teachers or
academic employees to fill the positions that would be vacated
pursuant to this section.
   (b) (1) The school district shall demonstrate and certify to the
county superintendent that the formal action taken would result in a
net savings to the district.
   (2) The county superintendent shall certify to the Teachers'
Retirement Board that the result specified in paragraph (1) can be
demonstrated. The certification shall include, but not be limited to,
the information specified in subdivision (c) of Section 14502.1.
   (3) The school district shall reimburse the county superintendent
for all costs to the county superintendent that result from the
certification.
   (c) (1) The county office of education shall demonstrate and
certify to the Superintendent of Public Instruction that the formal
action taken would result in a net savings to the county office of
education.
   (2) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall certify to the
Teachers' Retirement Board that the result specified in paragraph (1)
can be demonstrated. The certification shall include, but not be
limited to, the information specified in subdivision (c) of Section
14502.1.
   (3) The Superintendent of Public Instruction may request
reimbursement from the county office of education for all
administrative costs that result from the certification.
   (d) (1) The community college district shall demonstrate and
certify to the chancellor's office that the formal action taken would
result in a net savings to the district.
   (2) The chancellor shall certify to the Teachers' Retirement Board
that the result specified in paragraph (1) can be demonstrated. The
certification shall include, but not be limited to, the information
specified in subdivision (c) of Section 84040.5.
   (3) The chancellor may request reimbursement from the community
college district for all administrative costs that result from the
certification.
   (e) The opportunity to be granted service credit pursuant to this
section shall be available to all members employed by the school
district, community college district, or county office of education
who meet the conditions set forth in this section.
   (f) The amount of service credit shall be two years.
   (g) Any member of the Defined Benefit Program who retires under
this part for service under Chapter 27 (commencing with Section
24201) with service credit granted under this section and who
subsequently reinstates shall forfeit the service credit granted
under this section.
   (h) Any member of the Defined Benefit Program who retires under
this part for service under Chapter 27 (commencing with Section
24201) with service credit granted under this section and who takes
any job with the school district, community college district, or
county office of education that granted the member the service credit
less than five years after receiving the credit shall forfeit the
ongoing benefit he or she receives from the additional service credit
granted under this section.
   (i) This section does not apply to any member otherwise eligible
if the member receives any unemployment insurance payments arising
out of employment with an employer subject to this part within one
year following the effective date of the formal action under
subdivision (a), or if the member is not otherwise eligible to retire
for service.


22715.  (a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this part,
whenever the Governor, by executive order, determines that because of
an impending curtailment of, or change in the manner of performing
service, the best interest of the state would be served by
encouraging the retirement of state employees, and that sufficient
economies could be realized to offset any cost to state agencies
resulting from this section, an additional two years of service shall
be credited under this part to members of the Defined Benefit
Program, who are state employees, if the following conditions exist:

   (1) The member is credited with five or more years of service and
retires during a period not to exceed 120 days or less than 60 days
commencing no sooner than the date of issuance of the Governor's
executive order specifying that period.
   (2) The appointing power, as defined in Section 18524 of the
Government Code, transfers to the retirement fund an amount
determined by the board to equal the actuarial equivalent of the
difference between the allowance the member receives after the
receipt of service credit under this section and the amount the
member would have received without the service credit.  The transfer
to the retirement fund shall be made in a manner and time period
acceptable to the employer and the board.
   (3) The appointing power determines that it is electing to
exercise the provisions of this section, pursuant to the Governor's
order, and certifies to the Department of Finance and to the
Legislative Analyst, as to the specific economies that would be
realized if the additional service credit toward retirement were
granted.
   (b) As used in this section, "member" means a state employee who
is employed in a job classification, department, or other
organizational unit designated by the appointing power, as defined in
Section 18524 of the Government Code.
   (c) The amount of service credit shall be two years regardless of
credited service, but shall not exceed the number of years
intervening between the date of the member's retirement under this
part and the date the member would be required to be retired because
of age.  The appointing power shall make the payment with respect to
all eligible employees who retire pursuant to this section.
   (d) Any member who qualifies under this section, upon subsequent
reinstatement under this part, shall forfeit the service credit
granted under this section.
   (e) This section shall not be applicable to any member otherwise
eligible if that member receives any unemployment insurance payments
arising out of employment with an employer subject to this part
during a period extending one year beyond the date of issuance of the
executive order or if the member is not eligible to retire without
the additional credit available under this section.
   (f) The benefit provided by this section shall not be applicable
to the employees of any appointing power until the Director of
Finance approves the transmittal of funds by that appointing power or
the Board of Regents or the Board of Trustees to the retirement fund
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).
   (g) The Director of Finance shall approve the transmittal of funds
by the appointing power not sooner than 30 days after notification
in writing of the necessity therefor to the chairperson of the
committee in each house that considers appropriations and the
chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, or not sooner
than any lesser time that the chairperson of the committee, or his or
her designee, may in each instance determine.  If there is any
written communication between the Director of Finance and the
Legislative Analyst, a copy of the communication shall be transmitted
to the chairperson of each appropriate policy committee.



22716.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a member of the
Defined Benefit Program upon any subsequent service under unpaid
contract or any other unpaid basis with the trustees, shall not be
required to forfeit the service credit granted under former Section
22732, as it read on June 29, 1993.



22717.  (a) A member shall be granted credit at service retirement
for each day of accumulated and unused leave of absence for illness
or injury for which full salary is allowed to which the member was
entitled on the member's final day of employment with the employer by
which the member was last employed to perform creditable service
subject to coverage by the Defined Benefit Program.
   (b) The amount of service credit to be granted shall be determined
by dividing the number of days of accumulated and unused leave of
absence for illness or injury by the number of days of service the
employer requires the member's class of employees to perform in a
school year during the member's final year of creditable service
subject to coverage by the Defined Benefit Program, which shall not
be less than the minimum standard specified in Section 22138.5.  The
number of days shall not include school and legal holidays.  In no
event shall the divisor be less than 175.  For members employed less
than full time, the standards identified in Section 22138.5 shall be
considered as the minimum full-time equivalent.  For those standards
identified in Section 22138.5 that are applicable to teachers or
instructors and that are expressed only in terms of hours or
instructional hours, the number of hours or instructional hours shall
be divided by six to determine the number of days.
   (c) When the member has made application for service retirement
under this part, the employer shall certify to the board, within 30
days following the effective date of the member's service retirement,
the number of days of accumulated and unused leave of absence for
illness or injury that the member was entitled to on the final day of
employment.  The board may assess a penalty on delinquent reports.
   (d) This section shall be applicable to any person who retires on
or after January 1, 1999.



22717.5.  (a) A member shall be credited at service retirement for
each day of accumulated and unused leave of absence for education for
which full salary is allowed on the member's final day of employment
with the state.
   (b) The amount of service credit to be granted shall be 0.004
years of service for each unused day of educational leave credit.
   (c) When the member has made application for service retirement
under this part, the employer shall certify to the board, within 30
days following the effective date of the member's service retirement,
the number of days of accumulated and unused leave of absence for
education that the member was entitled to on the final day of
employment.  The board may assess a penalty on delinquent reports.
   (d) This section shall apply to eligible state employees in state
bargaining units that have agreed to this section in a memorandum of
understanding, or as authorized by the Director of the Department of
Personnel Administration for classifications of state employees that
are excluded from the definition of "state employee" by paragraph (c)
of Section 3513 of the Government Code.
   (e) The provisions of this section shall be effective for eligible
members who retire directly from state employment on or after
January 1, 2000.



22718.  (a) The Teachers' Retirement Board shall bill school
employers for service credit granted for unused excess sick leave
under this part, subject to the following provisions:
   (1) (A) In addition to the certification of sick leave days, the
employer shall also certify the number of unused excess sick leave
days.
   (B) Excess sick leave days granted by an employer other than the
member's last employer shall be deemed to be granted by the last
employer and shall be included in the certification if the member was
eligible to use those excess sick leave days while he or she was
employed by the last employer.
   (2) The billing shall be authorized only if the employer grants
more than one day of sick leave per pay period of at least four weeks
to members of the Defined Benefit Program.
   (3) The employer shall be billed only for the present value of the
unused excess sick leave days and any subsequent adjustments to the
billing shall be billed or refunded, as appropriate, to the employer.

   (4) (A) The employer shall remit the amount billed to the system
with the certification required by Section 22717 within 30 days after
the effective date of the member's retirement or within 30 days
after the date the system has notified the employer that a
certification must be made, whichever is later.
   (B) If payment is not received within 30 days, the present value
shall be recalculated to include regular interest from the due date
to the date full payment is received.
   (C) If the system has billed the employer for an additional
amount, the employer shall remit the additional amount within 30 days
after the date of the billing.  If payment is not received for the
additional amount within 30 days, the present value shall be
recalculated to include regular interest from the due date to the
date full payment is received.
   (b) If a school employer fails to pay a bill charged according to
subdivision (a), the Teachers' Retirement Board may request the
Superintendent of Public Instruction or the Chancellor of the
California Community Colleges, as appropriate, to reduce state
apportionments to the school employer by an amount equal to the
amount billed.  The superintendent or chancellor shall make the
reduction, and if requested by the board, direct the Controller to
reduce the amount transferred from the General Fund to Section A or
Section B, as appropriate, of the State School Fund by an equal
amount, which shall instead be transferred to the Teachers'
Retirement Fund.


22719.  If the allowance of a retired member is terminated, the
employer shall not restore sick leave days for which service credit
was granted at retirement.


22720.  The service credited pursuant to Section 22717 may not be
used in the determination of final compensation, except as provided
in Section 22134.5.


22721.  Except as provided in Section 22717, no service credit shall
be granted under this part for any payment made for accumulated sick
leave upon transfer from one employer to another, upon termination
of service, upon retirement, or upon death.  No contributions under
this part shall be withheld from any such payments.  Payments for
accumulated sick leave shall be paid to the member by separate
warrant and shall not be included in any payroll warrant issued to
the member.  The payments shall not be included in the determination
of "final compensation" under this part.  No continued leave of
absence shall be granted a member solely for the purpose of allowing
the member to receive compensation for accumulated sick leave for
which the member could otherwise have elected to receive payment.




22724.  (a) To determine the number of excess sick leave days to
which a member is entitled when he or she retires, the employer shall
deduct the days of sick leave used by the member from the member's
accumulated and unused sick leave balance according to the following
method:
   (1) Sick leave usage shall first be deducted from the accumulated
and unused sick leave balance existing on July 1, 1986.
   (2) Sick leave usage shall next be deducted from basic sick leave
days granted to the member by an employer after June 30, 1986.
   (3) Sick leave usage shall then be deducted from any excess sick
leave days granted to the member by an employer after June 30, 1986.

   (b) Upon request from the board, the employer shall submit sick
leave records of past years for audit purposes.