Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 19 > Chapter 20 > Part 4 - Creditable Service

• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• board: means the retirement system's governing board provided for in 2-15-1010. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Earned compensation: means , except as limited by subsections (12)(b) and (12)(c) or by 19-20-715, remuneration paid for the service of a member out of funds controlled by an employer before any pretax deductions allowed under the Internal Revenue Code are deducted. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Employer: means :

  (a)the state of Montana;

  (b)a public school district, as provided in 20-6-101 and 20-6-701;

  (c)the office of public instruction;

  (d)the board of public education;

  (e)an education cooperative;

  (f)the Montana school for the deaf and blind, as described in 20-8-101;

  (g)the Montana youth challenge program, as defined in 10-1-101;

  (h)a correctional facility, as defined in 41-5-103;

  (i)the Montana university system;

  (j)a community college; or

  (k)any other agency, political subdivision, or instrumentality of the state that employs a person who is designated a member of the retirement system pursuant to 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101

• Extra duty service: means service in an educational services capacity that is not compensated as part of the normally assigned duties and functions of a school district teacher, administrator, or other employee but is regularly assigned to one or more school district teachers, administrators, or other employees as part of the regular operation of the school district's curricular and extracurricular programs. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Full-time service: means service that is:

  (a)at least 180 days in a fiscal year;

  (b)at least 140 hours a month during at least 9 months in a fiscal year; or

  (c)at least 1,080 hours in a fiscal year under an alternative school calendar adopted by a school board and reported to the office of public instruction as required by 20-1-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101

• Individual: means a human being. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Internal Revenue Code: has the meaning provided in 15-30-2101. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Member: means a person who has an individual account in the annuity savings account. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Part-time service: means service that is not full-time service. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• plan: means the teachers' retirement system of the state of Montana provided for in 19-20-102. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Position reportable to the retirement system: means a position in which an individual performs duties that would entitle the person to active membership in the retirement system under the provisions of 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• retiree: means a person who is considered in retired member status under the provisions of 19-20-810. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• retirement benefit: means a monthly payment due to a retired member who has qualified for service or disability retirement or due to a joint annuitant or beneficiary. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Service: means the performance of duties that would entitle the person to active membership in the retirement system under the provisions of 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Vested: means that a member has been credited with at least 5 full years of membership service upon which contributions have been made and has a right to a future retirement benefit. See Montana Code 19-20-101