(a) Any member or former member with sufficient years of actual service to qualify for a vested termination annuity who has not attained normal retirement age may retire with an early annuity provided in § 24-4-510(a).
(b) In the event a member with five (5) or more years of actual service in the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System ceases employment as a covered member before reaching sixty-five (65) years of age or attaining twenty-eight (28) years of service and does not withdraw his or her accumulated employee contributions to the system, the member is entitled to receive an annuity upon attainment of sixty-five (65) years of age and submission of a retirement application to the system.
(c) If a former member has applied for a refund of contributions but returns to employment with a participating public employer prior to the date the refunded contributions are received, the request is void and employment must be terminated again to request a refund of contributions.