1. A member has a bona fide retirement when the member terminates all employment covered under the chapter or formerly covered under the chapter pursuant to section 97B.42, files a completed application for benefits form with the system, survives into the month for which benefits are first payable, and meets the following applicable requirement:

 a. For a member whose first month of entitlement is prior to July 1, 1998, the member does not return to covered employment until the member has qualified for no fewer than four calendar months of retirement benefits.
 b. For a member whose first month of entitlement is July 1998 or later, but before July 2000, the member does not return to any employment with a covered employer until the member has qualified for no fewer than four calendar months of retirement benefits.
 c. (1) For a member whose first month of entitlement is July 2000 or later, the member does not return to any employment with a covered employer until the member has qualified for at least one calendar month of retirement benefits, and the member does not return to covered employment until the member has qualified for no fewer than four calendar months of retirement benefits.

 (2) For purposes of determining a bona fide retirement under this paragraph “c”, the following provisions apply:

 (a) Effective July 1, 2000, any employment with a covered employer does not include employment as an elective official or member of the general assembly if the member is not covered under this chapter for that employment.
 (b) For a member whose first month of entitlement is July 2004 or later, but before July 2014, covered employment does not include employment as a licensed health care professional by a public hospital. For the purposes of this subparagraph, “public hospital” means a hospital licensed pursuant to chapter 135B and governed pursuant to chapter 145A, 347, 347A, or 392.
 (c) Effective May 25, 2008, any employment with a covered employer does not include noncovered employment as a member of the national guard called to state active duty as defined in section 29A.1.
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Terms Used In Iowa Code 97B.52A

  • Bona fide retirement: means a retirement by a vested member which meets the requirements of section 97B. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • Contributions: means the payments to the fund required herein, by the employer and by the members, to provide the benefits of the retirement system. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • Employer: means the state of Iowa, the counties, municipalities, agencies, public school districts, all political subdivisions, and all of their departments and instrumentalities, including area agencies on aging, other than those employing persons as specified in subsection 8, paragraph "b" subparagraph (7), and joint planning commissions created under chapter 28E or 28I. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
  • First month of entitlement: means the first month for which a member is qualified to receive retirement benefits under this chapter. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Member: means an employee or a former employee who maintains the employee's or former employee's accumulated contributions in the retirement system. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • month: means a calendar month, and the word "year" and the abbreviation "A. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Retired member: means a member who has applied for the member's retirement allowance and has survived into at least the first day of the member's first month of entitlement. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • Retirement: means that period of time beginning when a member who has filed an approved application for a retirement allowance has survived into at least the first day of the member's first month of entitlement and ending when the member dies. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • Retirement system: means the retirement plan as contained in this chapter or as duly amended. See Iowa Code 97B.1A
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • System: means the Iowa public employees' retirement system. See Iowa Code 97B.1
 2. A member may commence receiving retirement benefits under this chapter upon satisfying eligibility requirements. However, a retired member who commences receiving a retirement allowance but fails to meet the applicable requirements of subsection 1 does not have a bona fide retirement and any retirement allowance received by such a member must be returned to the system together with interest earned on the retirement allowance calculated at a rate determined by the system. Until the member has repaid the retirement allowance and interest, the system may withhold any future retirement allowance for which the member may qualify.
 3. A member whose first month of entitlement is before July 1998 and who terminates covered employment but maintains an employment relationship with an employer that made contributions to the retirement system on the member’s behalf does not have a bona fide retirement until all employment, including employment which is not covered by this chapter, with such employer is terminated for at least thirty days. In order to receive retirement benefits, the member must file a completed application for benefits form with the system before returning to any employment with the same employer.
 4. The requirements of this section shall apply to a lump sum payment as provided by section 97B.48, subsection 1, and the payment of contributions as provided in section 97B.48A, subsection 4.
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