Title 41 — Title 41 PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT, CIVIL SERVICE, AND PENSIONS

The legislature recognizes that teachers and school district employees share the same educational work environment and academic calendar.It is the intent of the legislature to achieve similar retirement benefits for all educational employees by transferring the membership of clas…

The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.(1) "Accumulated contributions" means the sum of all contributions standing to the credit of a member in the member's individual account, including any amount paid under R…

For the purposes of this chapter, the terms spouse, marriage, marital, husband, wife, widow, widower, next of kin, and family shall be interpreted as applying equally to state registered domestic partnerships or individuals in state registered domestic partnerships as well as to …

A retirement system is hereby created for the employees of school districts or educational service districts. The administration and management of the retirement system, the responsibility for making effective the provisions of this chapter, and the authority to make all rules ne…

Membership in the retirement system shall consist of all regularly compensated classified employees and appointive and elective officials of employers, as defined in this chapter, with the following exceptions:(1) Persons in ineligible positions;(2)(a) Persons holding elective of…

(1) A substitute employee who works five or more months of seventy or more hours for which earnable compensation is paid in a school year may apply to the department to establish membership after the end of the school year during which the work was performed. The application must…

This section designates charter schools established under chapter 28A.710 RCW as employers and charter school employees as members, and applies only if the department of retirement systems receives determinations from the internal revenue service and the United States department …

Any person who has been employed in a nonelective position for at least nine months and who has made member contributions required under this chapter throughout such period, shall be deemed to have been in an eligible position during such period of employment.[ 1998 c 341 s 5.]

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2034-S2.SL) ***(1)(a) If a retiree enters employment with an employer sooner than one calendar month after his or her accrual date, the retiree's monthly retirement allowance will be reduced by five and one-half percent for every eight hours worked dur…

Those members subject to this chapter who became disabled in the line of duty and who received or are receiving benefits under Title 51 RCW or a similar federal workers' compensation program shall receive or continue to receive service credit subject to the following:(1) No membe…

The deductions from the compensation of members, provided for in RCW 41.35.430, shall be made notwithstanding that the minimum compensation provided for by law for any member shall be reduced thereby. Every member shall be deemed to consent and agree to the deductions made and pr…

(1) The director shall report to each employer the contribution rates required for the ensuing biennium or fiscal year, whichever is applicable.(2) Beginning September 1, 1990, the amount to be collected as the employer's contribution shall be computed by applying the applicable …

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 6346-S.SL) ***(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) of this section, the right of a person to a pension, an annuity, or retirement allowance, any optional benefit, any other right accrued or accruing to any person under the provisions of this chapter,…

A member shall not receive a disability retirement benefit under RCW 41.35.440 or 41.35.690 if the disability is the result of criminal conduct by the member committed after April 21, 1997.[ 1998 c 341 s 12.]

(1) A one hundred fifty thousand dollar death benefit shall be paid to the member's estate, or such person or persons, trust or organization as the member has nominated by written designation duly executed and filed with the department. If no such designated person or persons are…

Any person who knowingly makes any false statements, or falsifies or permits to be falsified any record or records of this retirement system in any attempt to defraud the retirement system as a result of such act, is guilty of a gross misdemeanor.[ 1998 c 341 s 13.]

(1) Any person who was a member of the statewide city employees' retirement system governed by chapter 41.44 RCW and who was never reemployed by an employer as defined in RCW 41.40.010 and who is employed by an employer as defined in RCW 41.35.010, may, in a writing filed with th…

Any person aggrieved by any decision of the department affecting his or her legal rights, duties, or privileges must, before he or she appeals to the courts, file with the director by mail or personally within sixty days from the day the decision was communicated to the person, a…

Following its receipt of a notice for hearing in accordance with RCW 41.35.140, a hearing shall be held by the director or a duly authorized representative, in the county of the residence of the claimant at a time and place designated by the director. Such hearing shall be conduc…

Judicial review of any final decision and order by the director is governed by the provisions of chapter 34.05 RCW.[ 1998 c 341 s 17.]

No bond of any kind shall be required of a claimant appealing to the superior court, the court of appeals, or the supreme court from a finding of the department affecting the claimant's right to retirement or disability benefits.[ 1998 c 341 s 18.]

(1) Except for any period prior to the member's employment in an eligible position, a plan 2 or plan 3 member who is employed by a school district or districts or an educational service district:(a) Shall receive a service credit month for each month of the period from September …

(1) By no later than December 31, 2010, the department shall recalculate service credit for periods of qualifying prior service by an eligible member, as provided for in this section.(2) An eligible member is a member who is active in the retirement system and who earns service c…

(1) A member eligible to retire under RCW 41.35.420 or 41.35.680 may, at the time of filing a written application for retirement with the department, apply to the department to make a one-time purchase of up to five years of additional service credit.(2) To purchase additional se…

RCW 43.01.044 shall not result in any increase in retirement benefits. The rights extended to state officers and employees under RCW 43.01.044 are not intended to and shall not have any effect on retirement benefits under this chapter.[ 1998 c 341 s 20.]

(1) The annual compensation taken into account in calculating retiree benefits under this system shall not exceed the limits imposed by section 401(a)(17) of the federal internal revenue code for qualified trusts.(2) The department shall adopt rules as necessary to implement this…

Beginning July 1, 1979, and every year thereafter, the department shall determine the following information for each retired member or beneficiary whose retirement allowance has been in effect for at least one year:(1) The original dollar amount of the retirement allowance;(2) Th…

(1) Upon retirement for service as prescribed in RCW 41.35.420 or 41.35.680 or retirement for disability under RCW 41.35.440 or 41.35.690, a member shall elect to have the retirement allowance paid pursuant to one of the following options, calculated so as to be actuarially equiv…

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2034-S2.SL) ***(1) Except as provided in RCW 41.35.060, no retiree under the provisions of plan 2 shall be eligible to receive such retiree's monthly retirement allowance if he or she is employed in an eligible position as defined in RCW 41.35.010, 41.…

(1) At the time of retirement, a plan 2 or plan 3 member may purchase an optional actuarially equivalent life annuity benefit from the school employees' retirement system combined plan 2 and 3 fund established in RCW 41.50.075. A minimum payment of five thousand dollars is requir…

RCW 41.35.005 through 41.35.230 apply to members of plan 2 and plan 3.[ 1998 c 341 s 25.]

A member of the retirement system shall receive a retirement allowance equal to two percent of such member's average final compensation for each service credit year of service.[ 1998 c 341 s 101.]

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2124.SL) ***(1) The director may pay a member eligible to receive a retirement allowance or the member's beneficiary, subject to the provisions of subsection (5) of this section, a lump sum payment in lieu of a monthly benefit if the initial monthly be…

(1) NORMAL RETIREMENT. Any member with at least five service credit years who has attained at least age sixty-five shall be eligible to retire and to receive a retirement allowance computed according to the provisions of RCW 41.35.400.(2) EARLY RETIREMENT. Any member who has comp…

(1) Upon application of the member, a member who is diagnosed with a terminal illness shall be removed from the system subject to the following conditions:(a) That the medical adviser, after a medical examination of the member made by or under the direction of the medical adviser…

The required contribution rates to the retirement system for both members and employers shall be established by the director from time to time as may be necessary upon the advice of the state actuary. The state actuary shall use the aggregate actuarial cost method to calculate co…

(1) A member of the retirement system who becomes totally incapacitated for continued employment by an employer as determined by the department upon recommendation of the department shall be eligible to receive an allowance under the provisions of RCW 41.35.400 through 41.35.599.…

Any member or beneficiary eligible to receive a retirement allowance under the provisions of RCW 41.35.420, 41.35.440, or 41.35.460 shall be eligible to commence receiving a retirement allowance after having filed written application with the department.(1) Retirement allowances …

(1) Except as provided in RCW 11.07.010, if a member or a vested member who has not completed at least ten years of service dies, the amount of the accumulated contributions standing to such member's credit in the retirement system at the time of such member's death, less any amo…

(1) A member who is on a paid leave of absence authorized by a member's employer shall continue to receive service credit as provided for under the provisions of RCW 41.35.400 through 41.35.599.(2) A member who receives compensation from an employer while on an authorized leave o…

A member who separates or has separated after having completed at least five years of service may remain a member during the period of such member's absence from service for the exclusive purpose only of receiving a retirement allowance under the provisions of RCW 41.35.420 if su…

A member who ceases to be an employee of an employer except by service or disability retirement may request a refund of the member's accumulated contributions. The refund shall be made within ninety days following the receipt of the request and notification of termination through…

(1) A member, who had left service and withdrawn the member's accumulated contributions, shall receive service credit for such prior service if the member restores all withdrawn accumulated contributions together with interest since the time of withdrawal as determined by the dep…

(1) Every plan 2 member employed by an employer in an eligible position has the option to make an irrevocable transfer to plan 3.(2) All service credit in plan 2 shall be transferred to the defined benefit portion of plan 3.(3) Any plan 2 member who wishes to transfer to plan 3 a…

RCW 41.35.400 through 41.35.510 apply only to plan 2 members.[ 1998 c 341 s 112.]

(1) RCW 41.35.600 through 41.35.720 apply only to plan 3 members.(2) Plan 3 consists of two separate elements: (a) A defined benefit portion covered under this subchapter; and (b) a defined contribution portion covered under chapter 41.34 RCW.(3) Unless otherwise specified, all r…

(1) All classified employees who first become employed by an employer in an eligible position on or after July 1, 2007, shall have a period of ninety days to make an irrevocable choice to become a member of plan 2 or plan 3. At the end of ninety days, if the member has not made a…

Any member receiving or having received a distribution under chapter 41.34 RCW may make an irrevocable choice to waive all rights to a benefit under RCW 41.35.620 by notifying the department in writing of their intention.[ 2003 c 349 s 2.]Notes:Effective date—2003 c 349: See note…

(1) A member of the retirement system shall receive a retirement allowance equal to one percent of such member's average final compensation for each service credit year.(2) The retirement allowance payable under RCW 41.35.680 to a member who separates after having completed at le…

(1) Anyone who requests to transfer under RCW 41.35.510 before March 1, 2001, and establishes service credit for January 2001, shall have their member account increased by one hundred thirty percent of:(a) The member's public employees' retirement system plan 2 accumulated contri…