Section 213.4. Creditable nonschool service

(a) Creditable nonschool service may be purchased only by an active member or a multiple service active member of the State Employees’ Retirement System.

(b) Creditable nonschool service shall be available to all members identified in subsection (a), except those who may be entitled to receive, eligible to receive, now or in the future, or are currently receiving retirement or pension benefits for the service under a retirement or pension program administered and wholly or partially paid for by another governmental agency or by a private employer or by a retirement program approved by the employer in accordance with the optional retirement provisions authorized in section 8301(a)(1) of the Retirement Code (relating to mandatory and optional membership).

(c) Intervening military service shall be service of an active nature rendered to the armed forces of the United States for which an active member had school service interrupted so that the member could serve voluntarily or otherwise to fulfill a draft obligation in time of war or armed conflict. Intervening military service shall be disallowed or canceled when the required military tour of duty has been voluntarily extended beyond the time of military obligation, with or without the implied or express consent of the employer.

(d) An active member may purchase other military service, of a nonintervening nature, not exceeding 5 years, for service rendered only to the armed forces of the United States before the member commenced his most recent school employment. An active member who is receiving disability compensation based on a service-connected injury or illness as a result of active military service shall be eligible for credit for intervening or nonintervening military service.

(e) Purchase limitations for intervening and nonintervening military service and conditional credit shall be as follows:

(1) An active member may not purchase intervening or nonintervening military service, if the member has obtained credit and is eligible now or in the future to receive a pension for this service from another employer or governmental agency. Upon application to purchase this service, the member shall be required to submit proof as to eligibility or ineligibility for any pension benefits from the other employer or governmental agency, as the Board may require. If the Board determines that this service is ineligible, the application will be denied. If the Board later determines that the purchased service should have been ineligible, it will cancel the service purchased and refund to the member the accumulated deductions attributable to this service at the time of retirement or termination of service, unless cancellation and refund is requested prior thereto. If subsequent to retirement, the Board learns that a member has falsified a record, it may take action as is otherwise provided in the Retirement Code.

(2) Conditional credit for nonintervening military service shall be available for all active military service actually rendered for which purchase shall be requested but may not exceed 5 years of the service, provided the member has 3 years of credited school service subsequent to the military service for which credit is requested.

(f) Nonschool service may be purchased by an active member who was a teacher or instructor in a public school or public educational institution in a state other than this Commonwealth or in a territory or area under the jurisdiction of the United States and the service may also be purchased by an active member who was an administrator, teacher or instructor in the field of public school education for an agency or department of the United States Government whether under its jurisdiction or not. The nonschool service rendered shall be for not less than 1 full year. The total service purchased may not exceed 12 years or the number of years of school service credited in the system, whichever is less.

(g) Nonschool service in the Cadet Nurse Corps may be purchased by an active member for a period of training as a student or graduate nurse under a plan approved under section 2 of the act of June 15, 1943 (Pub. L. No. 78-73, 57 Stat. 153), if the total period of training under the plan was at least 2 years, and the credit for the service does not exceed 3 years.

(h) Previous nonschool service as a nurse in the employ of a county may be purchased by an active member as follows: For every 3 years or major fraction thereof in previous work experience, an individual may buy 1 year of creditable service, not to exceed a total of 5 years.

(i) Creditable nonschool service may also be purchased for previous service as an employee of a county board of school directors whose employment was terminated because of a transfer of the administration of the service or of the entire agency to another governmental unit. This service is not limited to or subject to the conditions of section 8304(c) of the Retirement Code (relating to creditable nonschool service), dealing with total permissible nonschool service credit.

(j) The total credit of nonschool service, identified in subsections (a)—(i) may not exceed the actual number of years of school service in the System, rendered within this Commonwealth, plus, in the case of an active multiple service member, additional years of State service rendered the Commonwealth and credited in the State Employees’ Retirement System. This limitation on total permissible nonschool service credit does not apply to the service provided in subsection (i).

(k) Retirement Code reference: Section 8304 of the Retirement Code.

The provisions of this § 213.4 amended December 16, 1994, effective December 17, 1994, 24 Pa.B. 6282; amended October 16, 1998, effective October 17, 1998, 28 Pa.B. 5226; amended August 1, 2008, effective August 2, 2008, 38 Pa.B. 4083. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (288185) to (288187).

Notation

Notes of Decisions

Civilian Service By Conscientious Objectors

The civilian service of a conscientious objector does not constitute military service and that service therefore is not creditable nonschool service for retirement credit purposes. Worley v. Public School Employes’ Retirement Board, 689 A.2d 334 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1997); appeal denied 701 A.2d 580 (Pa. 1997); cert. denied 118 S.Ct. 1562 (U. S. 1998).

Maternity Leave

The order of the Retirement Board denying the teacher’s request to purchase retirement credit for out-of-State service for a maternity leave of absence during the 1969-1970 school year was affirmed because the leave was neither certified by the out-of-State employer nor credited by the out-of-State retirement system. Day v. Public School Employees’ Retirement System, 682 A.2d 398 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1996).

Public School

The phrase ‘‘in the field of public school education,’’ as used in 24 Pa.C.S. § 8304(b)(4) does not include service as a manual arts therapist at a Veterans Hospital since the goal of rehabilitating mentally and physically disabled adults is not similar to the goal of seeking ‘‘to educate and advance children aged six to seventeen and to teach them to become responsible members of society.’’ Panko v. Public School Employees’ Retirement System, 492 A.2d 805 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1985).