(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, membership of this retirement system shall be composed of the following groups of employees in any participating city or cities:
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Terms Used In Washington Code 41.44.110

  • Board: means the "board of trustees" provided for herein. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • cities: includes town or towns. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Effective date: when used with regard to employees means the date on which any individual or group of employees became members of any retirement system and when used with regard to any city or town shall mean the date on which it became a participant. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Employee: means any appointive officer or employee and shall include elective officials to the extent specified herein. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Member: means any person included in the membership of the retirement system as provided herein. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Miscellaneous personnel: means officers and employees other than those in the uniformed police or fire service: PROVIDED, Those members of the fire department who are ineligible to the benefits of a firefighters' pension system established by or pursuant to any other state law, are also included in the miscellaneous personnel. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Part time employees: means those employees who, although regularly and continuously employed, do not regularly perform their duties the full number of hours required of other regular employees, including but not confined to such employees as police judges, city attorneys, and other officers and employees who are also engaged in outside employment or occupations. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Retirement system: means the statewide city employees retirement system provided for herein. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Service: means service rendered to a city for compensation; and for the purpose of this chapter a member shall be considered as being in service only while he or she is receiving compensation from the city for such service or is on leave granted for service in the armed forces of the United States as contemplated in RCW 41. See Washington Code 41.44.030
  • Uniformed personnel: means any employee who is a police officer in service or who is subject to call to active service or duty as such. See Washington Code 41.44.030
(a) Miscellaneous personnel as defined in this chapter;
(b) Uniformed personnel as defined in this chapter;
(c) Elective officials, who shall have the right to membership in this retirement system upon filing written notice of such election with the board of trustees;
(d) Employees of the retirement system itself shall be entitled to membership and any costs in connection with such membership shall be a part of the cost of administration;
(e) Employees of any state association of cities and towns shall be entitled to membership, upon election to participate made by the board of directors pursuant to RCW 41.44.050, and any costs in connection with such membership which would be borne by a city in the case of employees of a city shall be borne by the association.
(2) Any city may, when electing to participate in this retirement system in the manner set forth in RCW 41.44.050, include any one group or combination of the groups mentioned in subsection (1) of this section. For an initial period not to exceed one year from the effective date of any city’s entry into this system, if so provided at the time of its election to participate, only a majority of the employees of any group or combination of groups must be members of the system.
At all times subsequent to the effective date of the city’s entry into this system, or at all times after expiration of such initial period, if such initial period is established at the time of the city’s election to participate, all employees of any group or combination of groups must be included or excluded as members of this system. Groups (c) and (d) shall be considered as being composed of miscellaneous personnel as far as benefits and obligations are concerned except when the contrary is clearly indicated.
(3) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, membership in the retirement system shall be compulsory for all employees in groups (a) and (b), after qualification as provided in subsection (4) of this section.
(4) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, all employees in city service, on the effective date, or on June 9, 1949, or on expiration of the initial period therein provided if they have completed six consecutive months’ service or six months’ service in any calendar year prior to the expiration of such initial period, shall be members of the system, provided that such employees who are not regular full time employees and are earning less than one hundred dollars per month, or are part time employees serving in an official or special capacity may with the acquiescence of the legislative body of the city or town in which they are employed, elect on or before January 1, 1950, to discontinue membership by giving written notice of such election to the board. All other regular employees earning more than one hundred dollars per month shall become members upon the completion of six consecutive months’ service or six months’ service in any calendar year. Any employee otherwise eligible, employed in a permanent position, may elect in writing to become a member of the system at any time during the initial period, or at any time prior to completing such six months’ service. Such individual employees other than regular employees, who are earning less than one hundred dollars per month or who are serving in an official or special capacity may elect to become members with the acquiescence of the legislative body of the city or town in which they are employed upon the completion of six months of consecutive service or six months’ service in any calendar year.
(5) It shall be the duty of the proper persons in each city to immediately report to the board routine changes in the status of personnel and to immediately furnish such other information regarding the employment of members as the board may from time to time require.
(6) Should any member withdraw more than one-quarter of his or her accumulated contributions, or should he or she die or be retired, he or she shall thereupon cease to be a member.
(7) Transfer of any employee from one city to another shall not cause the employee to lose membership in the system providing the city to which he or she transfers participates in the retirement system created herein.

NOTES:

Severability—1971 ex.s. c 271: See note following RCW 41.32.260.
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