Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73not60
§331 Retirement of Land-grant College Employees
Title 7 › Chapter 13— AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGES › Subchapter III— RETIREMENT OF EMPLOYEES › § 331
Summary
After March 4, 1940, states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and land-grant colleges may take money from the federal grants they get for agricultural and mechanical colleges and put it into retirement systems as the employer’s share. They can deposit that money into state or college retirement plans. The amounts taken from federal funds cannot be more than 5% of the part of an employee’s salary paid from those federal funds. If an employee’s pay comes from more than one federal fund, no single fund can be charged more than its share of that employee’s federal salary. The federal deposits must be matched by the employee, the state or territory, and counties. No federal funds may be used this way for employees whose pay is wholly state-funded. The rule does not apply to employees covered by subchapter III of chapter 83 of title 5.
Full Legal Text
Title 7, §331
Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Pursuant to the recognized obligations of governments to guarantee the social security of their employees and in order to provide for the retirement on an annuity, or otherwise, of all persons being paid salaries in whole or in part from grants of Federal funds to the several States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam pursuant to the terms of the Act approved July 2, 1862, for the endowment and support of colleges of agriculture and mechanic arts [7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.], and Acts supplementary thereto providing for instruction in agriculture and mechanic arts, for the establishment of agricultural experiment stations, and for cooperative extension work in agriculture and home economics, all States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam are after March 4, 1940, authorized, notwithstanding any contrary provisions in said Acts, to withhold from expenditure, from Federal funds advanced under the terms of said Acts, amounts designated as employer contributions to be made by the States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam to retirement systems established in accordance with the laws of such States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam, or established by the governing boards of colleges of agriculture and mechanic arts in accordance with the authority vested in them, and to deposit such amounts to the credit of such retirement systems for subsequent disbursement in accordance with the terms of the retirement systems in effect in the respective States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam: Provided, That there shall not be deducted from Federal funds and deposited to the credit of retirement accounts as employer contributions, amounts in excess of 5 per centum of that portion of the salaries of employees paid from such Federal funds: Provided further, That, for the purpose of making deposits and contributions in retirement systems in favor of any employee, in no event shall the deductions from any Federal fund advanced pursuant to the foregoing Acts be in greater proportion to the total deductions for such employee than the salary received under such Federal funds bears to the total salary from Federal sources: Provided further, That the deposits and contributions from funds of Federal origin to any retirement system established by a State, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam or a land-grant college must be at least equaled by the total contributions thereto on the part of the individuals concerned, the State, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam, and the counties: And provided further, That no deductions for the foregoing purposes shall be made from Federal funds in support of employees appointed pursuant to the terms of the foregoing Acts, whose salaries are paid wholly by the States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam: Provided further, That the provisions of this section shall not apply to any employee paid in whole or in part from Federal funds who may be subject to subchapter III of chapter 83 of title 5.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Act approved
July 2, 1862, referred to in text, is act
July 2, 1862, ch. 130, 12 Stat. 503, as amended, known as the “Morrill Act” and also known as the “First Morrill Act”, which is classified generally to subchapter I (§ 301 et seq.) of this chapter. “Acts supplementary thereto” include act Aug. 30, 1890, ch. 841, 26 Stat. 417, popularly known as the Agricultural College Act of 1890, and also known as the Second Morrill Act, which is classified generally to subchapter II (§ 321 et seq.) of this chapter. For complete classification of these Acts to the Code, see
Short Title
notes set out under section 301 and 321 of this title and Tables. Codification “Subchapter III of chapter 83 of title 5” substituted in text for “United States Civil Service Retirement Act, as amended” on authority of Pub. L. 89–544, § 7(b), Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 631, 632, the first section of which enacted Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.
Amendments
1972—Pub. L. 92–318 substituted “, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam” and “, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam” for “and Territories” and “or Territories”, respectively, wherever appearing and inserted in third proviso reference to Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, and Guam.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 1972 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 92–318 effective after June 30, 1970, see section 506(n) of Pub. L. 92–318, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 326a of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
7 U.S.C. § 331
Title 7 — Agriculture
Last Updated
Apr 3, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60