Membership in the retirement
system shall consist of all regularly compensated employees and
appointive and elective officials of employers, as defined in
this chapter, with the following exceptions:
(1) Persons in ineligible positions;
(2) Employees of the legislature except the officers thereof
elected by the members of the senate and the house and
legislative committees, unless membership of such employees be
authorized by the said committee;
(3)(a) Persons holding elective offices or persons appointed
directly by the governor: PROVIDED, That such persons shall have
the option of applying for membership during such periods of
employment: AND PROVIDED FURTHER, That any persons holding or
who have held elective offices or persons appointed by the
governor who are members in the retirement system and who have,
prior to becoming such members, previously held an elective
office, and did not at the start of such initial or successive
terms of office exercise their option to become members, may
apply for membership to be effective during such term or terms of
office, and shall be allowed to establish the service credit
applicable to such term or terms of office upon payment of the
employee contributions therefor by the employee with interest as
determined by the director and employer contributions therefor by
the employer or employee with interest as determined by the
director: AND PROVIDED FURTHER, That all contributions with
interest submitted by the employee under this subsection shall be
placed in the employee's individual account in the employee's
savings fund and be treated as any other contribution made by the
employee, with the exception that any contributions submitted by
the employee in payment of the employer's obligation, together
with the interest the director may apply to the employer's
contribution, shall not be considered part of the member's
annuity for any purpose except withdrawal of contributions;
(b) A member holding elective office who has elected to
apply for membership pursuant to (a) of this subsection and who
later wishes to be eligible for a retirement allowance shall have
the option of ending his or her membership in the retirement
system. A member wishing to end his or her membership under this
subsection must file, on a form supplied by the department, a
statement indicating that the member agrees to irrevocably
abandon any claim for service for future periods served as an
elected official. A member who receives more than fifteen
thousand dollars per year in compensation for his or her elective
service, adjusted annually for inflation by the director, is not
eligible for the option provided by this subsection (3)(b);
(4) Employees holding membership in, or receiving pension
benefits under, any retirement plan operated wholly or in part by
an agency of the state or political subdivision thereof, or who
are by reason of their current employment contributing to or
otherwise establishing the right to receive benefits from any
such retirement plan except as follows:
(a) In any case where the retirement system has in existence
an agreement with another retirement system in connection with
exchange of service credit or an agreement whereby members can
retain service credit in more than one system, such an employee
shall be allowed membership rights should the agreement so
provide;
(b) An employee shall be allowed membership if otherwise
eligible while receiving survivor's benefits;
(c) An employee shall not either before or after June 7,
1984, be excluded from membership or denied service credit
pursuant to this subsection solely on account of: (i) Membership
in the plan created under chapter 2.14 RCW; or (ii) enrollment
under the relief and compensation provisions or the pension
provisions of the volunteer firefighters' relief and pension fund
under chapter 41.24 RCW;
(d) Except as provided in RCW 41.40.109, on or after July
25, 1999, an employee shall not be excluded from membership or
denied service credit pursuant to this subsection solely on
account of participation in a defined contribution pension plan
qualified under section 401 of the internal revenue code;
(e) Employees who have been reported in the retirement
system prior to July 25, 1999, and who participated during the
same period of time in a defined contribution pension plan
qualified under section 401 of the internal revenue code and
operated wholly or in part by the employer, shall not be excluded
from previous retirement system membership and service credit on
account of such participation;
(5) Patient and inmate help in state charitable, penal, and
correctional institutions;
(6) "Members" of a state veterans' home or state soldiers'
home;
(7) Persons employed by an institution of higher learning or
community college, primarily as an incident to and in furtherance
of their education or training, or the education or training of a
spouse;
(8) Employees of an institution of higher learning or
community college during the period of service necessary to
establish eligibility for membership in the retirement plans
operated by such institutions;
(9) Persons rendering professional services to an employer
on a fee, retainer, or contract basis or when the income from
these services is less than fifty percent of the gross income
received from the person's practice of a profession;
(10) Persons appointed after April 1, 1963, by the liquor
control board as contract liquor store managers;
(11) Employees of a labor guild, association, or
organization: PROVIDED, That elective officials and employees of
a labor guild, association, or organization which qualifies as an
employer within this chapter shall have the option of applying
for membership;
(12) Retirement system retirees: PROVIDED, That following
reemployment in an eligible position, a retiree may elect to
prospectively become a member of the retirement system if
otherwise eligible;
(13) Persons employed by or appointed or elected as an
official of a first-class city that has its own retirement
system: PROVIDED, That any member elected or appointed to an
elective office on or after April 1, 1971, shall have the option
of continuing as a member of this system in lieu of becoming a
member of the city system. A member who elects to continue as a
member of this system shall pay the appropriate member
contributions and the city shall pay the employer contributions
at the rates prescribed by this chapter. The city shall also
transfer to this system all of such member's accumulated
contributions together with such further amounts as necessary to
equal all employee and employer contributions which would have
been paid into this system on account of such service with the
city and thereupon the member shall be granted credit for all
such service. Any city that becomes an employer as defined in
RCW 41.40.010(4) as the result of an individual's election under
this subsection shall not be required to have all employees
covered for retirement under the provisions of this chapter.
Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a city of the first
class with its own retirement system from: (a) Transferring all
of its current employees to the retirement system established
under this chapter, or (b) allowing newly hired employees the
option of continuing coverage under the retirement system
established by this chapter.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, persons
transferring from employment with a first-class city of over four
hundred thousand population that has its own retirement system to
employment with the state department of agriculture may elect to
remain within the retirement system of such city and the state
shall pay the employer contributions for such persons at like
rates as prescribed for employers of other members of such
system;
(14) Employees who (a) are not citizens of the United
States, (b) do not reside in the United States, and (c) perform
duties outside of the United States;
(15) Employees who (a) are not citizens of the United
States, (b) are not covered by chapter 41.48 RCW, (c) are not
excluded from membership under this chapter or chapter 41.04 RCW,
(d) are residents of this state, and (e) make an irrevocable
election to be excluded from membership, in writing, which is
submitted to the director within thirty days after employment in
an eligible position;
(16) Employees who are citizens of the United States and who
reside and perform duties for an employer outside of the United
States: PROVIDED, That unless otherwise excluded under this
chapter or chapter 41.04 RCW, the employee may apply for
membership (a) within thirty days after employment in an eligible
position and membership service credit shall be granted from the
first day of membership service, and (b) after this thirty-day
period, but membership service credit shall be granted only if
payment is made for the noncredited membership service under RCW 41.50.165(2), otherwise service shall be from the date of
application;
(17) The city manager or chief administrative officer of a
city or town, other than a retiree, who serves at the pleasure of
an appointing authority: PROVIDED, That such persons shall have
the option of applying for membership within thirty days from
date of their appointment to such positions. Persons serving in
such positions as of April 4, 1986, shall continue to be members
in the retirement system unless they notify the director in
writing prior to December 31, 1986, of their desire to withdraw
from membership in the retirement system. A member who withdraws
from membership in the system under this section shall receive a
refund of the member's accumulated contributions.
Persons serving in such positions who have not opted for
membership within the specified thirty days, may do so by paying
the amount required under RCW 41.50.165(2) for the period from
the date of their appointment to the date of acceptance into
membership;
(18) Persons serving as: (a) The chief administrative
officer of a public utility district as defined in RCW 54.16.100;
(b) the chief administrative officer of a port district formed
under chapter 53.04 RCW; or (c) the chief administrative officer
of a county who serves at the pleasure of an appointing
authority: PROVIDED, That such persons shall have the option of
applying for membership within thirty days from the date of their
appointment to such positions. Persons serving in such positions
as of July 25, 1999, shall continue to be members in the
retirement system unless they notify the director in writing
prior to December 31, 1999, of their desire to withdraw from
membership in the retirement system. A member who withdraws from
membership in the system under this section shall receive a
refund of the member's accumulated contributions upon termination
of employment or as otherwise consistent with the plan's tax
qualification status as defined in internal revenue code section
401.
Persons serving in such positions who have not opted for
membership within the specified thirty days, may do so at a later
date by paying the amount required under RCW 41.50.165(2) for the
period from the date of their appointment to the date of
acceptance into membership;
(19) Persons enrolled in state-approved apprenticeship
programs, authorized under chapter 49.04 RCW, and who are
employed by local governments to earn hours to complete such
apprenticeship programs, if the employee is a member of a
union-sponsored retirement plan and is making contributions to
such a retirement plan or if the employee is a member of a
Taft-Hartley retirement plan;
(20) Beginning on July 22, 2001, persons employed
exclusively as trainers or trainees in resident apprentice
training programs operated by housing authorities authorized
under chapter 35.82 RCW, (a) if the trainer or trainee is a
member of a union-sponsored retirement plan and is making
contributions to such a retirement plan or (b) if the employee is
a member of a Taft-Hartley retirement plan; and
(21) Employees who are removed from membership under RCW 41.40.823 or 41.40.633.
[2005 c 151 § 12; 2005 c 131 § 7; 2001 c 37 § 1. Prior: 1999 c 286 § 2; 1999 c 244 § 1; 1997 c 254 § 11; prior: 1994 c 298 § 8; 1994 c 197 § 24; 1993 c 319 § 1; prior: 1990 c 274 § 10; 1990 c 192 § 4; 1988 c 109 § 25; 1987 c 379 § 1; 1986 c 317 § 5; 1984 c 184 § 13; 1984 c 121 § 1; 1982 1st ex.s. c 52 § 19; 1975 c 33 § 6; 1974 ex.s. c 195 § 2; 1973 1st ex.s. c 190 § 5; 1971 ex.s. c 271 § 4; 1969 c 128 § 5; 1967 c 127 § 3; 1965 c 155 § 2; 1963 c 225 § 2; 1963 c 210 § 1; 1957 c 231 § 2; 1955 c 277 § 2; 1953 c 200 § 5; 1951 c 50 § 2; 1949 c 240 § 7; 1947 c 274 § 13; Rem. Supp. 1949 § 11072-13. Formerly RCW 41.40.120.]
NOTES:
Reviser's note: This section was amended by 2005 c 131 § 7 and by 2005 c 151 § 12, each without reference to the other. Both amendments are incorporated in the publication of this section under RCW 1.12.025(2). For rule of construction, see RCW 1.12.025(1).
Effective date -- 2005 c 131: See note following RCW 41.40.823.
Intent -- 1999 c 286: "It is the intent of the legislature
that retirement benefits represent a valuable element of the
total compensation and benefits employees receive for their
service. The value of these benefits is contained in the
retirement income and cost-of-living adjustments provided to
employees who remain in public service until retirement. For the
majority of public employees, this requires membership in the
public employees' retirement system.
The legislature recognizes, however, that certain
occupations display a pattern of interstate mobility which
requires retirement benefits which are highly portable.
Incumbents in these occupations gain little value from membership
in the public employees' retirement system. In order to remove
any barrier to employing qualified personnel in positions with
high mobility, membership in the retirement system should be
optional in those occupations." [1999 c 286 § 1.]
Intent -- Construction -- Application -- 1997 c 254: See notes following RCW 41.26.490.
Intent -- 1994 c 298: See note following RCW 41.40.010.
Intent -- Severability -- Effective date -- 1994 c 197: See notes following RCW 41.50.165.
Findings -- Construction -- 1990 c 274: See notes following RCW 41.32.010.
Effective date -- 1988 c 109: See note following RCW 2.10.030.
Legislative findings -- Intent -- Severability -- 1986 c 317: See notes following RCW 41.40.150.
Severability -- 1984 c 184: See note following RCW 41.50.150.
Effective dates -- 1982 1st ex.s. c 52: See note following RCW 2.10.180.
Severability -- 1975 c 33: See note following RCW 35.21.780.
Severability -- 1974 ex.s. c 195: "If any provision of this 1974 amendatory act, or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act, or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected." [1974 ex.s. c 195 § 14.]
Severability -- 1973 1st ex.s. c 190: See note following RCW 41.40.010.
Severability -- 1971 ex.s. c 271: See note following RCW 41.32.260.
Severability -- 1969 c 128: See note following RCW 41.40.010.
Pension benefits or annuity benefits for certain classifications of school district employees: RCW 28A.400.260.