Utah Code 49-23-201. System membership — Eligibility
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(1) Except as provided in Subsections (3) and (4), beginning July 1, 2011, a participating employer that employs public safety service employees or firefighter service employees shall participate in this system.
Terms Used In Utah Code 49-23-201
- Board: means the Utah State Retirement Board established under Section 49-11-202. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Contributions: means the total amount paid by the participating employer and the member into a system or to the Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Plan under Chapter 19, Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Act. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- defined contribution plan: means any defined contribution plan or deferred compensation plan authorized under the Internal Revenue Code and administered by the board. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Dispatcher: means the same as that term is defined in Section 53-6-102. See Utah Code 49-23-102
- Emergency medical service personnel: means an individual who:(4)(a) is:(4)(a)(i) a paramedic;(4)(a)(ii) an advanced emergency medical services technician; or(4)(a)(iii) an emergency medical services technician;(4)(b) is required to be licensed or certified under Section 53-2d-402; and(4)(c) has a primary job duty to provide emergency medical services as a first responder. See Utah Code 49-23-102
- Employer: means any department, educational institution, or political subdivision of the state eligible to participate in a government-sponsored retirement system under federal law. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Firefighter service: means employment normally requiring an average of 2,080 hours of regularly scheduled employment per year rendered by a member who is:
(6)(a)(i) a firefighter service employee trained in firefighter techniques and assigned to a position of hazardous duty with a regularly constituted fire department;(6)(a)(ii) the state fire marshal appointed under Section 53-7-103 or a deputy state fire marshal;(6)(a)(iii) a firefighter service employee who is:(6)(a)(iii)(A) hired on or after July 1, 2021;(6)(a)(iii)(B) trained in firefighter techniques;(6)(a)(iii)(C) assigned to a position of hazardous duty; and(6)(a)(iii)(D) employed by the state as a participating employer; or(6)(a)(iv) an emergency medical service personnel. See Utah Code 49-23-102- Firefighter service employee: means an employee of a participating employer who provides firefighter service under this chapter. See Utah Code 49-23-102
- Initially entering: includes an employee of a participating employer, except for an employee that is not eligible under a system or plan under this title, who:
(29)(c)(i) does not have any prior service credit on file with the office;(29)(c)(ii) is covered by a retirement plan other than a retirement plan created under this title; and(29)(c)(iii) moves to a position with a participating employer that is covered by this title. See Utah Code 49-11-102- Member: means a person, except a retiree, with contributions on deposit with a system, the Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Plan under Chapter 19, Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Act, or with a terminated system. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Office: means the Utah State Retirement Office. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Participant: means an individual with voluntary deferrals or nonelective contributions on deposit with the defined contribution plans administered under this title. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Participating employer: means an employer that meets the participation requirements of:
(9)(d) Sections 49-23-201 and 49-23-202. See Utah Code 49-23-102- Plan: means the Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Plan created by Chapter 19, Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Act, the New Public Employees' Tier II Defined Contribution Plan created by Chapter 22, Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan, the New Public Safety and Firefighter Tier II Defined Contribution Plan created by Chapter 23, Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan, or the defined contribution plans created under Section 49-11-801. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Public safety service: means employment normally requiring an average of 2,080 hours of regularly scheduled employment per year rendered by a member who is:
(10)(a)(i) a law enforcement officer in accordance with Section 53-13-103;(10)(a)(ii) a correctional officer in accordance with Section 53-13-104;(10)(a)(iii) a special function officer approved in accordance with Sections 49-15-201 and 53-13-105;(10)(a)(iv) a dispatcher who is certified in accordance with Section 53-6-303;(10)(a)(v) a full-time member of the Board of Pardons and Parole created under Section 77-27-2;(10)(a)(vi) the commissioner of the Department of Public Safety; or(10)(a)(vii) the executive director of the Department of Corrections. See Utah Code 49-23-102- Public safety service employee: means an employee of a participating employer who performs public safety service under this chapter. See Utah Code 49-23-102
- Retirement: means the status of an individual who has become eligible, applies for, and is entitled to receive an allowance under this title. See Utah Code 49-11-102
- Service credit: means :
(50)(a) the period during which an employee is employed and compensated by a participating employer and meets the eligibility requirements for membership in a system or the Utah Governors' and Legislators' Retirement Plan, provided that any required contributions are paid to the office; and(50)(b) periods of time otherwise purchasable under this title. See Utah Code 49-11-102- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- System: means the New Public Safety and Firefighter Tier II Contributory Retirement System created under this chapter. See Utah Code 49-23-102
- Tier I: means a system or plan under this title for which:
(54)(a) an employee is eligible to participate if the employee initially enters regular full-time employment before July 1, 2011; or(54)(b) a governor or legislator who initially enters office before July 1, 2011. See Utah Code 49-11-102- Tier II: includes :
(55)(b)(i) the Tier II hybrid system established under:(55)(b)(i)(A) Chapter 22, Part 3, Tier II Hybrid Retirement System; or(55)(b)(i)(B) Chapter 23, Part 3, Tier II Hybrid Retirement System; and(55)(b)(ii) the Tier II Defined Contribution Plan (Tier II DC Plan) established under:(55)(b)(ii)(A) Chapter 22, Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan; or(55)(b)(ii)(B) Chapter 23, Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan. See Utah Code 49-11-102(2)(2)(a) A public safety service employee or a firefighter service employee initially entering employment with a participating employer on or after July 1, 2011, who does not have service credit accrued before July 1, 2011, in a Tier I system or plan administered by the board, is eligible:(2)(a)(i) as a member for service credit and defined contributions under the Tier II hybrid retirement system established by Part 3, Tier II Hybrid Retirement System; or(2)(a)(ii) as a participant for defined contributions under the Tier II defined contributions plan established by Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan.(2)(b) A public safety service employee or a firefighter service employee initially entering employment with a participating employer on or after July 1, 2011, shall:(2)(b)(i) make an election to participate in the system created under this chapter:(2)(b)(i)(A) as a member for service credit and defined contributions under the Tier II hybrid retirement system established by Part 3, Tier II Hybrid Retirement System; or(2)(b)(i)(B) as a participant for defined contributions under the Tier II defined contribution plan established by Part 4, Tier II Defined Contribution Plan; and(2)(b)(ii) electronically submit to the office notification of the member’s election under Subsection (2)(b)(i) in a manner approved by the office.(2)(c) An election made by a public safety service employee or firefighter service employee initially entering employment with a participating employer under this Subsection (2) is irrevocable beginning one year from the date of eligibility for accrual of benefits.(2)(d) If no election is made under Subsection (2)(b)(i), the public safety service employee or firefighter service employee shall become a member eligible for service credit and defined contributions under the Tier II hybrid retirement system established by Part 3, Tier II Hybrid Retirement System.(3)(3)(a) Beginning July 1, 2015, a public safety service employee who is a dispatcher employed by:(3)(a)(i) the state shall be eligible for service credit in this system; and(3)(a)(ii) a participating employer other than the state shall be eligible for service credit in this system if the dispatcher’s participating employer elects to cover the participating employer’s dispatchers under this system.(3)(b) A participating employer’s election to cover the participating employer’s dispatchers under this system under Subsection (3)(a)(ii) is irrevocable and shall be documented by a resolution adopted by the governing body of the participating employer in accordance with rules made by the office.(3)(c) A dispatcher’s service before July 1, 2015, or before a date specified by resolution of a participating employer under Subsection (3)(b), is not eligible for service credit in this system.(4) An employer is eligible to participate in this system if the employer employs emergency medical service personnel and meets the requirements of Subsections (5) and (6).(5)(5)(a) Beginning July 1, 2023, a firefighter service employee who is an emergency medical service personnel employed by a participating employer shall be eligible for service credit in this system if the emergency medical service personnel’s participating employer elects to cover the participating employer’s emergency service personnel under this system.(5)(b)(5)(b)(i) A participating employer’s election under Subsection (5)(a) to cover the participating employer’s emergency medical service personnel under this system is irrevocable.(5)(b)(ii) A participating employer shall document an election under Subsection (5)(a) by a resolution adopted by the governing body of the participating employer in accordance with rules made by the office.(5)(c)(5)(c)(i) An emergency medical service personnel’s service before July 1, 2023, is not eligible for service credit in this system.(5)(c)(ii) For an emergency medical service personnel employed by a participating employer, the emergency medical service personnel’s service before the date the participating employer adopts a resolution described in Subsection (5)(b)(ii) is not eligible for service credit in this system.(6)(6)(a) The fire chief, or if there is not a fire chief for the participating employer, the emergency services director, shall verify that an individual meets the definition of emergency medical service personnel.(6)(b)(6)(b)(i) Each participating employer participating in this system that employs emergency medical service personnel shall submit annually to the office a schedule indicating which emergency medical service personnel positions are covered under this system under this chapter.(6)(b)(ii) The office may require documentation to justify the inclusion of any position under this section.(7) A public safety service employee who is transferred or promoted to an administration position requiring the performance of duties that consist primarily of management or supervision of public safety service employees shall continue to earn public safety service credit in this system during the period in which the employee remains employed in the same department.(8) An employee of the Department of Corrections shall continue to earn public safety service credit in this system if:(8)(a) the employee’s position is no longer covered under this system for new employees hired on or after July 1, 2015; and(8)(b) the employee:(8)(b)(i) remains employed by the Department of Corrections;(8)(b)(ii) meets the eligibility requirements of this system;(8)(b)(iii) was hired into a position covered by this system before July 1, 2015; and(8)(b)(iv) has not had a break in service on or after July 1, 2015.(9) An employee of the Department of Health and Human Services who is transferred from the Department of Corrections’ clinical services bureau to provide a clinical or health care service to an inmate as defined in Section 64-13-1 shall continue to earn public safety service credit in this system if:(9)(a) the employee’s position is no longer covered under this system for new employees hired on or after July 1, 2015; and(9)(b) the employee:(9)(b)(i) remains employed by the Department of Corrections or the Department of Health and Human Services;(9)(b)(ii) meets the eligibility requirements of this system;(9)(b)(iii) was hired into a position covered by this system before July 1, 2015; and(9)(b)(iv) has not had a break in service on or after July 1, 2015.