(A) All eligible employees shall elect either to join the South Carolina Retirement System or to participate in the State ORP under this chapter within thirty days after entry into service. If an eligible employee fails to make the initial election within the required time, the employee is considered to have elected membership in the South Carolina Retirement System. An election made pursuant to this section must be made in writing and filed with the retirement system and the appropriate officer of the employee’s participating employer and is effective on the date of employment. A State ORP participant who accepts an additional concurrent position with an employer participating in the South Carolina Retirement System must enroll in the State ORP for the second position if the second position is eligible to participate in the State ORP. Also, a member of the South Carolina Retirement System who accepts an additional concurrent position with an employer participating in the South Carolina Retirement System must enroll in the South Carolina Retirement System with respect to that position. An eligible employee electing to participate in the State ORP assumes all investment risk. The election to participate in the State ORP is irrevocable except as set forth in subsections (B) and (C).

(B) A State ORP participant may irrevocably elect to join the South Carolina Retirement System during any open enrollment period after the first annual anniversary but before the fifth annual anniversary of the person’s initial enrollment in the State ORP. The State ORP participant shall become a member of the South Carolina Retirement System effective on the first of April following the participant’s election to join the South Carolina Retirement System under this subsection. For purposes of this subsection, the date of initial enrollment in the State ORP for employees who previously participated in the Optional Retirement Program for Teachers and School Administrators or the Optional Retirement Program for Publicly Supported Four-Year and Postgraduate Institutions of Higher Education is the date of initial enrollment in these programs.

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Terms Used In South Carolina Code 9-20-40

  • Eligible employee: means :

    (a) a person hired on or after July 1, 2001, by an employer as defined in § 9-20-10(1)(a) to fill a permanent full-time position;

    (b) a person hired on or after July 1, 2002, by an employer as defined in § 9-20-10(1)(b), (c), or (d) to fill a permanent full-time position;

    (c) a person hired on or after July 1, 2003, by an employer as defined in § 9-20-10(1) to fill a temporary position or a part-time permanent position;

    (d) a person employed by an employer as defined in § 9-20-10(1) who, as of June 30, 2001, was a participant of the Optional Retirement Program for Teachers and School Administrators or who, as of June 30, 2002, was a participant of the Optional Retirement Program for Publicly Supported Four-Year and Postgraduate Institutions of Higher Education; or

    (e) an employee, hired on or after January 1, 2003, by the State or any of its departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions, or institutions who is not covered by the State Employee Grievance Procedure but who is eligible to participate in either the South Carolina Retirement System or the Police Officers Retirement System. See South Carolina Code 9-20-10
  • Employer: means :

    (a) a school district that receives funding from the State from the annual appropriation to the Department of Education for Aid to School Districts-Employer Contributions in the annual general appropriations act;

    (b) a four-year and postgraduate institution of higher education supported and under the control of the State;

    (c) a technical college supported and under the control of the State;

    (d) the State or any of its departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions, and institutions, provided that such entity does not meet the definition of item (1)(a), (b), or (c) of this section. See South Carolina Code 9-20-10
  • Open enrollment period: means the period from January first to March first of each year. See South Carolina Code 9-20-10
  • Participant: means an eligible employee who participates in the optional retirement program provided by this chapter. See South Carolina Code 9-20-10

(C) Any participant in the State Optional Retirement Program who was a participant in the Optional Retirement Program for Publicly Supported Four-Year and Postgraduate Institutions of Higher Education may irrevocably elect to participate in the South Carolina Retirement System during the open enrollment period from January 1, 2004, to March 1, 2004. A State ORP participant electing to participate in the South Carolina Retirement System under this subsection shall become a member of the South Carolina Retirement System on April 1, 2004.

(D) All participants in the Optional Retirement Program for Teachers and School Administrators on July 1, 2001, and the Optional Retirement Program for Publicly Supported Four-Year and Postgraduate Institutions of Higher Education on July 1, 2002, thereafter are participants in the State ORP.

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