1. Under such rules and regulations as the board of trustees shall adopt, each member who was a firefighter on and prior to the date of the establishment of the retirement system shall file a detailed statement of all service as a firefighter rendered by him or her prior to that date for which the firefighter claims credit.

2. The board of trustees shall fix and determine by proper rules and regulations how much service in any year is equivalent to one year of service, but in no case shall more than one year of service be creditable for all service in one calendar year, nor shall the board of trustees allow credit as service for any period of more than one month‘s duration during which the member was absent without pay.

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3. Subject to the above restrictions and to such other rules and regulations as the board of trustees may adopt, the board of trustees shall verify the service claims as soon as practicable after the filing of the statement of service.

4. Upon verification of the statements of service the board of trustees shall issue prior service certificates, certifying to each member the length of prior service with which the member is credited on the basis of his or her statement of service. So long as the holder of the certificate continues to be a member, a prior service certificate shall be final and conclusive for retirement purposes as to such service, except that any member may, within one year from the date of issuance or modification of the certificate, request the board of trustees to modify or correct the member’s prior service certificate, and upon such request or of its own motion the board may correct the certificate. When any firefighter ceases to be a member his or her prior service certificate shall become void. Should he or she again become a member, he or she shall enter the retirement system as a member not entitled to prior service credit except as provided in section 87.215.

5. Creditable service at retirement on which the retirement allowance of a member shall be based shall consist of creditable membership service rendered by him or her, and also if the member has a prior service certificate which is in full force and effect, the amount of the service certified on the member’s prior service certificate. Service rendered by a firefighter after the operative date and prior to becoming a member shall be included as creditable membership service provided the service was rendered since he or she last became a firefighter.

6. The retirement system, with the approval of the board of trustees, may enter into cooperative agreements to transfer creditable service between the retirement system and any other retirement plan established by the state of Missouri or any political subdivision or instrumentality of the state when a member who has been employed in a position covered by one plan is employed in a position covered by another plan. The transfer of creditable service shall be in accordance with the provisions of section 105.691 and the policies and procedures established by the board of trustees.