Title 22, Public officers and Employees

As used in ORS 238.500 to 238.585, unless the context requires otherwise: (1) “Court” means the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Oregon Tax Court and a circuit court. (2) “Judge” means a judge of any court. (3) “Judge member” means a judge who is a member of the Public Em…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, a person who is not a judge on December 31, 1983, and who is elected or appointed to the office of judge on or after January 1, 1984, shall become a judge member on the date the person takes the office. (2) A person who, b…

(1)(a) Each judge member shall contribute monthly to the Public Employees Retirement Fund seven percent of the monthly salary of the judge member. The contributions of a judge member and earnings on the contributions shall be credited to the member account of the judge member. (b…

A judge member shall be retired from judicial office at the end of the calendar year in which the judge member attains the age of 75 years. [Formerly 237.219]

(1) Prior to attaining 60 years of age, all judge members shall elect in writing to retire under either paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection. The election shall be irrevocable after the judge member attains 60 years of age. Any judge member who fails to make the election provi…

(1) A judge member who elects to retire under ORS 238.535 (1)(b): (a) Shall continue to be eligible as a nonretired employee for health benefit plans contracted for under ORS 243.135 during the time that the judge member is serving as a pro tem judge under ORS 238.535 (1)(c); and…

(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section: (a) A judge member who has five or more years of service as a judge may withdraw from the Public Employees Retirement Fund the amount credited to the member account of the judge member if: (A) The judge member is separated from al…

(1)(a) A judge member who has not attained the age of 65 years and who is found to be mentally or physically incapacitated for an extended duration, as determined by medical examination by one or more physicians selected by the board, and thereby unable to perform any work for wh…

(1) For the purposes of this section, a judge member may designate a beneficiary or beneficiaries by written designation duly acknowledged and filed with the Public Employees Retirement Board before the death of the judge member. Beneficiaries designated by a judge member may inc…

(1) Every monthly retirement allowance or pension payable to a judge member or surviving spouse of a judge member under ORS 238.500 to 238.585 shall be adjusted annually as provided in ORS 238.360. (2) ORS 238.368 applies to judge members, and for that purpose the monthly retirem…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, ORS 238.005 (4) and (27), 238.025, 238.078, 238.082, 238.092, 238.115 (1), 238.250, 238.255, 238.260, 238.350, 238.362, 238.364, 238.372 to 238.384, 238.410, 238.415, 238.420, 238.445, 238.458, 238.460, 238.465, 238.475, 2…

(1) A judge member who has creditable service as other than a judge member is entitled to the use of all creditable service as a judge member for the purpose of establishing eligibility under ORS 238.115, 238.125, 238.135 or any other provision of this chapter that requires a spe…

(1) A system of retirement and of benefits at retirement or death for employees of public employers hereby is established and shall be known as the Public Employees Retirement System. The Public Employees Retirement System consists of this chapter and ORS chapter 238A. It is the …

The Legislative Assembly finds that the maintenance of a solid, affordable public employees retirement plan is essential to providing effective, efficient services to the citizens of Oregon by allowing the state and political subdivisions of the state to hire and retain employees…

(1) At least once every two years the Public Employees Retirement Board shall cause a competent actuary familiar with public systems of retirement and death benefits to prepare a report evaluating the current and prospective assets and liabilities of the system and indicating its…

(1)(a) At least once every four years, the Secretary of State shall contract with a firm qualified to perform an independent actuarial review of the report on the Public Employees Retirement System prepared under ORS 238.605. The firm shall review the report that was most recentl…

(1) Once every two calendar years, the Public Employees Retirement Board shall adopt actuarial equivalency factor tables for the purpose of computing the payments to be made to members and their beneficiaries, alternate payees and judge members and their spouses and beneficiaries…

(1) The Public Employees Retirement Board shall conduct a study of the life expectancy of members of the Public Employees Retirement System in the categories described in subsection (2) of this section. If the board determines that members in the categories described in subsectio…

(1)(a) The administrative expenses of the Public Employees Retirement System shall be paid from interest earned by the Public Employees Retirement Fund; provided, that if such interest be insufficient the expense in excess thereof shall be paid from the contributions which this c…

(1) On request from the Public Employees Retirement System, the Oregon Department of Administrative Services shall draw warrants on amounts authorized for payment of the administrative expenses of the system for use by the system as a revolving fund. The revolving fund shall not …

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Public Employees Retirement Board may deny or terminate participation by an employer in the Public Employees Retirement System, and may deny or terminate membership in the system for any employee, if the board determines that allowi…

At least 30 days before the Public Employees Retirement Board adopts changes to actuarial methods and assumptions used for purposes of the Public Employees Retirement System, the board shall submit a report to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means or the Joint Interim Committee o…

(1) The governing authority of the system shall be a board known as the Public Employees Retirement Board and consisting of five members appointed by the Governor subject to confirmation by the Senate in the manner provided in ORS 171.562 and 171.565. Except as otherwise provided…

The Public Employees Retirement Board shall include a study of accounting, reporting and related subjects when considering the goals and objectives of the Public Employees Retirement System. [Formerly 237.253]

(1) All members of the Public Employees Retirement Board must be at least 21 years of age, be citizens of the United States and have been residents of the state for at least two years immediately preceding appointment to the board. (2) One member of the board must be: (a) An empl…

The system shall be administered, subject to the limitations of this chapter, ORS chapter 238A and the budget prescribed by the board, by the director provided for by ORS 238.630 and by a staff which the board authorizes and which the director appoints. The director shall hold th…

For the purpose of requesting a state or nationwide criminal records check under ORS 181A.195, the Director of the Public Employees Retirement System may require the fingerprints of a person who: (1)(a) Is employed or applying for employment by the system; or (b) Provides service…

(1) Subject to the limitations of this chapter and ORS chapter 238A, the Public Employees Retirement Board shall, from time to time, establish rules for transacting its business and administering the system in accordance with the requirements of ORS chapter 183. (2) All rules ado…

In order to determine any facts necessary to the administration of the retirement system, the board may conduct hearings, subpoena and examine witnesses and require any person having custody thereof to bring before the board any book, record, document, certificate, writing, artic…

The Attorney General shall consult with the Governor on appointment of separate counsel pursuant to ORS 180.235 to represent the Public Employees Retirement Board in any matter or in any class of matters in which the benefits payable under the Public Employees Retirement System a…

(1) The Public Employees Retirement Fund is declared to be a trust fund, separate and distinct from the General Fund, for the uses and purposes set forth in this chapter and ORS chapter 238A and ORS 237.950 to 237.980, and for no other use or purpose, except that this provision s…

Moneys in the Public Employees Retirement Fund are continuously appropriated to the Public Employees Retirement Board to carry out the purposes of this chapter and ORS chapter 238A. [2001 c.716 §10; 2003 c.733 §61]

Contributions required by this chapter or ORS chapter 238A to be placed in the retirement fund, and interest required to be allocated to the member accounts of members of the retirement system and to participating employers, shall not be included in the biennial departmental budg…

(1) At the close of each calendar year in which the earnings on the Public Employees Retirement Fund equal or exceed the assumed interest rate established by the Public Employees Retirement Board under ORS 238.255, the board shall set aside, out of interest and other income recei…

At least 30 days before crediting any interest or other income received through investment of moneys to any fund or account, the Public Employees Retirement Board shall submit a preliminary proposal for crediting to the appropriate legislative review agency, as defined in ORS 291…

Upon the death or retirement of a member of the Public Employees Retirement System, the Public Employees Retirement Board shall credit earnings to the participating public employer or employers that employed the member. The board shall credit earnings to the amounts charged to ea…

(1)(a) Any benefit payment that is payable as the result of the death of a member may be transferred by the Public Employees Retirement Board to another account or reserve in the fund if: (A) The total benefit payable to the beneficiaries designated by the deceased member is less…

(1) Employees whose membership in a previously established retirement system excludes them from membership in the system established by this chapter may apply to the Public Employees Retirement Board in writing for the former system to be integrated into the latter and for them t…

(1) The school district, which is or expects to become a party to a contract of integration described in ORS 238.680 (3), may provide for payment of all or any part of its unfunded obligation for previous service costs with respect to the association by any one or a combination o…

(1) A retirement plan that has been adopted by a mass transit district organized under ORS 267.010 to 267.394 situated in a metropolitan statistical area with a population exceeding 400,000 may be integrated with, or the district may become a participant in, the Public Employees …

As used in ORS 238.692 to 238.698: (1) “Pension liability” means: (a) Monetary obligations of a participating public employer for which the employer is or will be required to transmit amounts to the Public Employees Retirement Board under the provisions of ORS 238.225, including …

(1) The Legislative Assembly finds that authorizing issuance of revenue bonds to finance pension liabilities may reduce the cost of public pensions to taxpayers and that the reduction of those costs to taxpayers is a matter of statewide concern. (2) Notwithstanding the limitation…

(1) Public bodies may enter into intergovernmental agreements for the collective issuance, administration or payment of bonds authorized under ORS 238.694. An agreement for collective issuance, administration or payment of bonds under this subsection may provide for the contribut…

(1) A public body, or a group of public bodies that enter into an intergovernmental agreement under ORS 238.695, may establish a debt service trust fund for the purpose of paying the principal and interest on bonds issued under ORS 238.692 to 238.698. The trustee of the debt serv…

(1) Before a public body, or an intergovernmental entity formed pursuant to ORS 238.695, may authorize the issuance of bonds under ORS 238.694, the public body or intergovernmental entity must first: (a) Obtain a statistically based assessment from an independent economic or fina…

(1) A public body, or a group of public bodies that enter into an intergovernmental agreement under ORS 238.695, that receives funds from any state agency may enter into a funds diversion agreement with the state agency for the purpose of paying the principal and interest on bond…

All provisions of ORS 238.655, 238.705, 238.710 and 238.715 hereby are made applicable for enforcement of the requirements of this chapter and ORS chapter 238A. [Formerly 237.300; 1997 c.249 §71; 2003 c.733 §64]

(1) All public employers that are members of the system shall promptly and regularly remit to the Public Employees Retirement Board all contributions required of them by law and furnish all reports required by the board. (2) Any public employer delinquent in remitting contributio…

(1) In accordance with ORS 238.705, a participating public employer shall submit timely and accurate data regarding members’ demographic information, salary, hours worked and unused sick leave. (2) The Public Employees Retirement Board may, at its discretion, prevent an employer …

In addition to the remedies otherwise provided by ORS 238.705, the board may, by petition in usual form, apply to the circuit court for the county in which is located the public employer concerned, or the principal office or place of business of the public employer, for, and if w…