Part 10. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System Rules

24 CAR § 10-212. Elected trustee nominations — Campaign materials. (a) Upon request of a candidate who is certified to participate in the election for the trustee position, the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall provide a list of mailing addresses of all eligible voters for…

24 CAR § 10-213. Trustee elections. (a) The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall employ an independent election vendor to conduct the trustee elections. (b)(1) The system shall publish ballots and submit the published ballots to the election vendor to be mailed by March 15 to…

24 CAR § 10-214. Unexpired terms of elected trustees. (a) The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System staff shall notify the Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System of a resignation or vacancy by other cause in a trustee position as soon as possible after staff has…

24 CAR § 10-215. Elected and appointed trustee terms. (a)(1) The term of office of each elected trustee shall be six (6) years unless the trustee is elected in a special election. (2) Each trustee shall continue to serve as trustee until the expiration of his or her term unless h…

24 CAR § 10-216. Elected trustee vacancies. (a) An active member trustee shall be ineligible to serve if he or she: (1) Becomes inactive; (2) Retires; or (3) Changes his or her employment category during his or her term of office and the employment category is a requirement of th…

24 CAR § 10-301. Definitions. As used in this subpart: (1) "Administrator" means: (A) An employee of a covered employer who is employed in one (1) of the following positions: (i) Public school superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, or vice principal; (ii) Higher edu…

24 CAR § 10-302. Confidentiality of member accounts. (a) As provided by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System's Code of Ethics, the system shall keep each member's salary, employment history, retirement account, and other personal data or other information compiled by the system…

24 CAR § 10-303. Submission deadlines. (a) Unless otherwise provided by the law, rules, or policy applicable to the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, any application, form, or other document that is required to be submitted to the system by a specified deadline shall be accepte…

24 CAR § 10-304. Employee membership in another state retirement system. Excluding service as a member of the General Assembly, an employee who is eligible for membership in the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System is ineligible for membership in another state retirement system whi…

24 CAR § 10-305. Erroneous employee membership enrollment. (a)(1) An employee who was erroneously enrolled in the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System before January 1, 1979, shall continue to be a member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System if the employee's contributions wer…

24 CAR § 10-306. Membership eligibility — Janitors, bus drivers, and cafeteria workers. An employee shall continue to be a member of the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System if the employee: (1) Was employed before July 1, 1989, as a school janitor, bus driver, or cafeter…

24 CAR § 10-307. Membership eligibility — Nonteaching service employees. (a) Effective July 1, 2001, an employee whose nonteaching service began before July 1, 1989, and is covered or coverable by the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System may elect to be covered by the Ark…

24 CAR § 10-308. Membership eligibility — College plans. (a)(1) A member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System who was employed by a nonmandatory employer before July 1, 2011, may continue to participate in the system instead of an alternative program offered by the nonmandat…

24 CAR § 10-309. Employer participation — Review of employer participation. (a) This section applies to an employer that participates in the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System as provided under Arkansas Code § 24-7-202. (b) Every five (5) years from the effective start date of an…

24 CAR § 10-310. Employer participation — Application for participation. (a) An employer that would prefer to participate in and have its employees become members of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System may submit a written application to the Executive Director of the Arkansas …

24 CAR § 10-311. Employer participation — Education-related agencies or organizations. (a) A person who is employed by an education-related agency or organization is eligible to become a member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System if: (1) The following applies to the person:…

24 CAR § 10-312. Employer participation — Private providers. Effective July 1, 1997, if a public school district privatizes any of its services, a person who is or was employed by the public school district in one (1) or more of the privatized services and who is or has been a me…

24 CAR § 10-313. Employer participation — Educational nonprofit corporations. Effective July 1, 1997, a person who is employed by a nonprofit corporation is eligible to become a member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System if: (1) The following applies: (A) The person is empl…

24 CAR § 10-314. Contributory election. (a)(1) A person's initial status as a contributory or noncontributory member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall be determined by the law in effect at the time the person became a member of the system. (2) All service rendered b…

24 CAR § 10-315. Contributory election — Noncontributory members. (a)(1) A noncontributory member may make a contributory election. (2) If a noncontributory member makes a contributory election before the preparation of the first salary payment to the noncontributory member in th…

24 CAR § 10-316. Contributory election — Member contracts. (a) A member who is not under contract may make a contributory election. (b)(1) A member under contract for one hundred eighty-five (185) days or more shall make contributions to the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System. (2…

24 CAR § 10-317. Contributory election — State agency employees. (a) A full-time employee of a state agency covered by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall be contributory. (b)(1) A part-time employee of a state agency covered by the system shall be noncontributory. (2) A…

24 CAR § 10-318. Contributory election — Employer reporting errors. (a)(1) A member shall be considered to be noncontributory for the first year of service with a covered employer if the member: (A) Was an inactive member who returned to covered employment as an active member aft…

24 CAR § 10-319. Reciprocal service credit. (a) A member who leaves a position covered by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, becomes employed by a reciprocal system, and files a reciprocal service agreement shall become an inactive member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement S…

24 CAR § 10-320. Reciprocal service credit — Calculation of service credit. If a member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System has service credited during the same fiscal year with another reciprocal system and the combined service is greater than one (1) year of service credi…

24 CAR § 10-321. Reciprocal service credit — Contributions and repayments. (a) While an employee participates in a reciprocal system, back contributions, additional contributions, and repayment of refund payments made to the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall be made in acc…

24 CAR § 10-322. Reciprocal service credit — Concurrent service. (a) Unless the reciprocal system is the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System or an alternate retirement plan, beginning July 1, 2013, the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall allow a member who earns con…

24 CAR § 10-323. Reciprocal service credit — Alternate retirement plans. (a) A member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System may establish reciprocal service credit from an alternate retirement plan if he or she completes and submits a request to establish the reciprocal servi…

24 CAR § 10-324. Reciprocal service credit — Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System. From July 1, 1991, until December 31, 1991, an active member of the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System may establish reciprocity between the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement …

24 CAR § 10-325. Reciprocal service credit — Arkansas Rehabilitation Services. (a) Effective July 1, 1993, for a ninety-day period, an employee of the Arkansas Rehabilitation Services may transfer his or her membership from the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System to the …

24 CAR § 10-326. Reciprocal service credit — Department of Human Services. (a) The law applicable to the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall be used to determine the annuity benefits to which an employee is entitled for service provided before or after Acts 1977, No. 793, if…

24 CAR § 10-327. Reciprocal service credit — Effective date of benefits. (a)(1) If the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System is a member's preceding system, the member's annuity benefit payments shall begin after the member attains the normal age of retirement or on the first day of…

24 CAR § 10-328. Reciprocal service credit — Survivor annuity benefits. (a) If survivor annuity benefits are payable by more than one (1) reciprocal system to an eligible survivor of a deceased member, a survivor who receives annuity benefit payments shall not receive, as a perce…

24 CAR § 10-329. Employer Participation – Employers of early childhood workers. (a) A person who is employed as an early childhood worker may elect to become a member of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System if: (1)(A) The person is an employee of a childcare facility described …

24 CAR § 10-401. Definitions. As used in this subpart: (1) "Actual service” means service rendered in a position covered by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, not including: (A) Purchased service credit; (B) Free service credit; or (C) Reciprocal service; (2) “Credited servi…

24 CAR § 10-402. Service credit. (a) The Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall determine the: (1) Number of years and corresponding fractions for service that may be credited to a member; and (2) Amount of service to be credited to a member. (b)(1) A m…

24 CAR § 10-403. Member and employer contributions. (a)(1) The Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall annually set member and employer contribution rates for the following fiscal year. (2) The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall notify annually eac…

24 CAR § 10-404. Member and employer contributions — Overpayments, underpayments, and refunds. (a) A conflict in a member’s service history due to concurrent service shall be resolved at the end of the fiscal year and the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System shall issue refunds as …

24 CAR § 10-405. Employer reports — Submission requirements. (a) A covered employer shall submit: (1) Reports and supporting documentation required by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System on a monthly and quarterly basis; and (2) Reports and supporting documentation electronica…

24 CAR § 10-406. Employer reports — Reporting deadline and penalties. (a) A report and supporting documentation submitted by a covered employer shall not be considered untimely if the report and supporting documentation are received by Arkansas Teacher Retirement System on the te…

24 CAR § 10-407. Employer reports — Payments after member’s death. (a) A salary earned by a member before the member’s death and paid after the member’s death is subject to deductions by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System and the member’s covered employer shall report the mem…

24 CAR § 10-501. Definitions. As used in this subpart: (1) “Armed forces reserve” means one (1) of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces; (2) “Domestic federal service” means service rendered as a teacher or administrator in a school or similar institution loca…

24 CAR § 10-502. Free service credit — Military service. (a)(1) A person may establish free military service credit with the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System at any time after becoming a member. (2) Free military service credit established with the system is effective after the…

24 CAR § 10-503. Purchasable service credit — Military service. (a) A member shall receive service credit for service in the United States Armed Forces that cannot be credited to the member under Arkansas Code § 24-7-602(a) if the member pays the Arkansas Teacher Retirement Syste…

24 CAR § 10-504. Purchasable service credit — National Guard and armed forces reserve. (a) A member may purchase up to five (5) years of service for his or her service in the National Guard or armed forces reserve. (b) A member shall receive credit for service in the National Gua…

24 CAR § 10-505. Purchasable service credit — Domestic federal service. (a) Beginning January 1, 2003, a member may purchase up to ten (10) years of domestic federal service that shall be credited if: (1) The member: (A) Has contributions left on deposit with another system and t…

24 CAR § 10-506. Purchasable service credit — Out-of-state service. (a)(1) Out-of-state service purchased before July 1, 1987, shall be credited as service in accordance with the law in effect before July 1, 1987. (2) A member may purchase up to fifteen (15) years of out-of-state…