After all benefits currently or potentially payable under any provision of this chapter have terminated, if the aggregate benefits paid to a member and the member’s surviving spouse and minor children, including any distribution of the member’s variable retirement account, are less than the member’s accumulated contributions, the amount by which the accumulated contributions exceed total payments made to date shall be paid in a lump sum as provided in this section.

Amounts payable under this section shall be paid as follows:

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(1) To the beneficiary or entity designated by the member, if any is designated;

(2) If no beneficiary or entity is designated, then to the member’s surviving spouse;

(3) If no beneficiary or entity is designated and there is no surviving spouse, then to all surviving children, irrespective of age, on a share-alike basis; or

(4) If no beneficiary or entity is designated, there is no surviving spouse, and there are no surviving children, then to the member’s estate.

If no claim for payment due upon the death of a deceased member is made within three years from date of death, the payment shall revert to the system. However, a claim may be honored after the expiration of the three-year reversion period if, in the opinion of the executive director, payment of the claim is warranted by exceptional circumstances.

Source: SL 1974, ch 35, § 64; SL 1986, ch 37, § 9; SL 1995, ch 24, § 16; SL 1997, ch 29, § 1; SL 1998, ch 15, § 21; SL 1999, ch 15, § 7; SL 2006, ch 21, § 1; SL 2010, ch 20, § 12; SL 2014, ch 20, § 30; SL 2015, ch 27, § 1; SL 2016, ch 32, § 46; SL 2017, ch 27, § 19; SDCL § 3-12-110; SL 2019, ch 22, § 1.