A. An officer or employee of this state, subject to legislative appropriation, or an officer or employee of a county, subject to authorization by the board of supervisors, is eligible, on retirement, to receive benefits as follows:

1. 1. An officer or employee who has at least five hundred but less than seven hundred fifty hours of sick leave is entitled to receive payments equal to twenty-five per cent of the officer's or employee's salary at the officer's or employee's current hourly rate for each hour of accumulated sick leave.
2. 2. An officer or employee who has at least seven hundred fifty but less than one thousand hours of sick leave is entitled to receive payments equal to thirty-three per cent of the officer's or employee's salary at the officer's or employee's current hourly rate for each hour of accumulated sick leave.
3. 3. An officer or employee who has at least one thousand hours of sick leave is entitled to receive payments equal to fifty per cent of the officer's or employee's salary at the officer's or employee's current hourly rate for each hour of accumulated sick leave not to exceed one thousand five hundred hours of accumulated sick leave.

B. In order to be eligible to receive payments pursuant to subsection A of this section:

1. 1. An officer or employee must establish a retirement date not later than thirty-one days after termination of employment by qualifying with an authorized retirement system or plan of this state.
2. 2. The retirement date must be effective not later than thirty-one days after termination of employment.
3. 3. An officer or employee shall elect retirement benefits that are defined not later than thirty-one days after termination of employment.

F. Notwithstanding any other law:

1. 1. The cash value of the sick leave credit pursuant to subsection A of this section shall not be used to compute the average salary.
2. 2. The payment authorized by this section for accumulated sick leave is not salary or compensation for the purposes of making retirement contributions or computing any pension benefit.
3. 3. The sick leave must be available for use by the officer or employee at the time of termination of employment. This section does not apply to previously forfeited sick leave.