Any retired member or prior class member of the Tennessee consolidated retirement system, and any retiree of a local retirement fund receiving benefits in accordance with chapter 35, part 3 of this title may return to service temporarily in a position covered by the Tennessee consolidated retirement system and continue to draw such person‘s retirement allowance; provided, that all of the following conditions are met:

(1) During a twelve-month period, that person does not work more than one hundred twenty (120) days or the equivalent of one hundred twenty (120) days; or if employed as a teacher by an institution of higher learning, twenty-four (24) quarter credit hours or eighteen (18) semester credit hours;
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 8-36-805

  • Commissioner: means any person in office as a member of the public service commission, as prescribed by title 65, chapter 1, prior to June 30, 1996. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Local retirement fund: means any teachers' retirement fund or other arrangement for payment of retirement benefits to teachers, except this retirement system, supported wholly or in part by contributions made by an employer as defined by chapters 34-37 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Member: means any person included in the membership of the retirement system, as provided in chapter 35, part 1 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Prior class member: means a member who, on the day preceding the date of establishment, shall have been a member of a superseded system and who elects to remain covered by the benefit and contribution provisions of the superseded system, or who fails to elect to become covered by the benefit and contribution provisions of the retirement system applicable to new employees, as the case may be, in accordance with chapter 35, part 1 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Public school: means any school conducted within the state under the authority and supervision of a duly elected or appointed city or county school board, and any educational institution supported by and under the control of the state. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Retirement: means withdrawal from membership with a retirement allowance granted under chapters 34-37 of this title. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Retirement allowance: means the sum of the member annuity and the state annuity. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Retirement system: means the Tennessee consolidated retirement system as defined in §. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Service: means service as a general employee, a teacher, a state police officer, a wildlife officer, a firefighter, a police officer, a state judge, a county judge, an attorney general, a commissioner or a county official which is paid for by an employer, and also includes service for which a former member of the general assembly is entitled to under former §. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Temporary employment: means any general employee can be considered as a temporary employee for a period not to exceed six (6) months before becoming eligible for membership in the retirement system, except as provided in §. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(2) For temporary employment periods commencing on or after July 1, 2002, the entire compensation payable to the retired member for the work shall not exceed an amount equal to the sum of sixty percent (60%) of the annual full-time salary received by the retired member in the year immediately prior to the member’s last paid day of covered employment, adjusted by five percent (5%) for each year since the member’s last paid day of covered employment or by such other percentage as may be determined by the treasurer and the commissioner of human resources. In determining such percentage for any given year, the treasurer and the commissioner of human resources may consider any matter which, in their discretion, they deem relevant including, but not limited to, the condition of the labor market and the ability to fill the respective positions;
(3) The retired member may work in addition to the one hundred twenty (120) days prescribed above if employed as a substitute teacher in a public school system; provided, that the compensation payable to the retired member for such work does not exceed the rate of compensation set by the public school system for substitute teachers filling similar vacant positions, and the total salary paid to any such retired member for teaching during the twelve-month period does not exceed the pertinent pro rata share of average salary being paid at the institution in the academic discipline concerned;
(4) The retired member does not return to service until the expiration of at least sixty (60) calendar days from the member’s effective date of retirement, unless such member returns to service in a position wherein the member renders no more than one-half (1/2) the hours the member was scheduled to work prior to retirement and the head of the employing entity certifies to the division of retirement that no other qualified persons are reasonably available to fill the position;
(5) The head of the employing entity or the head’s designee:

(A) Shall certify to the retirement division the member’s name, period to be employed, number of days to be worked, compensation to be paid, and anticipated termination date. The certification shall be made in the manner prescribed by the retirement division and shall be filed annually, if applicable, and acknowledged by the member;
(B) Shall submit a statement showing working hours and compensation for the retiree when requested; and
(C) Shall be subject to audit to verify working hours and the compensation being paid;
(6) Should the period of return to service or the compensation therefor exceed that specified in this section, the person’s monthly retirement allowance shall be reduced by the greater of the following:

(A) Each day worked in excess of the limitation shall result in the loss of one-twentieth (1/20) of the monthly retirement allowance; or
(B) Any compensation received in excess of the limitation shall reduce the retirement allowance payable by the ratio such compensation exceeds the limitation;
(7) The retirement system is authorized to obtain reimbursement for any retirement benefits overpaid as a result of a retiree’s reemployment in excess of that permitted by this section, by deductions from a retiree’s monthly benefit; and
(8) The retiree will not accrue any additional retirement credit during the retiree’s period of reemployment.
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