Subd. 1. Qualifications.

1. (a) A former legislator is entitled, upon written application to the director, to receive a retirement allowance monthly, if the person:

   1. (1) has served at least six full years, without regard to the application of section 3A.10, subdivision 2, or has served during all or part of four regular sessions as a member of the legislature, which service need not be continuous;
   2. (2) has attained the normal retirement age;
   3. (3) has retired as a member of the legislature; and
   4. (4) has made all contributions provided for in section 3A.03, has made payments for past service under subdivision 2, or has made payments in lieu of contributions under Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 3A.031, prior to July 1, 1994.
2. (b) This paragraph applies to members of the legislature who terminate service as a legislator before July 1, 1997. For service rendered before the beginning of the 1979 legislative session, but not to exceed eight years of service, the retirement allowance is an amount equal to five percent per year of service of that member's average monthly salary. For service in excess of eight years rendered before the beginning of the 1979 legislative session, and for service rendered after the beginning of the 1979 legislative session, the retirement allowance is an amount equal to 2-1/2 percent per year of service of that member's average monthly salary.
3. (c) This paragraph applies to members of the legislature who terminate service as a legislator after June 30, 1997. The retirement allowance is an amount equal to the applicable rate or rates under paragraph (b) per year of service of the member's average monthly salary adjusted for that person on an actuarial equivalent basis to reflect the change in the postretirement interest rate actuarial assumption under section 356.215, subdivision 8, from five percent to six percent. The adjustment must be calculated by or, alternatively, the adjustment procedure must be specified by, the actuary retained by the legislative commission on pensions and retirement. The purpose of this adjustment is to ensure that the total amount of benefits that the actuary predicts an individual member will receive over the member's lifetime under this paragraph will be the same as the total amount of benefits the actuary predicts the individual member would receive over the member's lifetime under the law in effect before enactment of this paragraph.
4. (d) The retirement allowance accrues beginning with the first day of the month of receipt of the application, but not before age 60, and for the remainder of the former legislator's life, if the former legislator is not serving as a member of the legislature or as a constitutional officer or commissioner as defined in section 352C.021, subdivisions 2 and 3. The annuity does not begin to accrue prior to retirement as a legislator. No annuity payment may be made retroactive for more than 180 days before the date the annuity application is filed with the director.
5. (e) Any member who has served during all or part of four regular sessions is considered to have served eight years as a member of the legislature.
6. (f) The retirement allowance ceases with the last payment that accrued to the retired legislator during the retired legislator's lifetime, except that the surviving spouse, if any, is entitled to the retirement allowance for the calendar month in which the retired legislator died.

Subd. 1a.

Repealed, 1973 c 653 s 47

Subd. 1b. Reduced retirement allowance.

1. (a) Upon separation from service after the beginning of the 1981 legislative session, a former member of the legislature who has attained the age set by the board of directors of the Minnesota State Retirement System and who is otherwise qualified in accordance with subdivision 1 is entitled upon making written application on forms supplied by the director to a retirement allowance in an amount equal to the retirement allowance specified in subdivision 1 reduced so that the reduced annuity is the actuarial equivalent of the annuity that would be payable if the former member of the legislature deferred receipt of the annuity and the annuity amount were augmented at an annual rate of three percent compounded annually from the date the annuity begins to accrue until age 62.
2. (b) The age set by the board of directors under paragraph (a) cannot be less than the early retirement age under section 352.116, subdivision 1a.
3. (c) If there is an actuarial cost to the plan of resetting the early retirement age under paragraph (a), the retired legislator is required to pay an additional amount to cover the full actuarial value. The additional amount must be paid in a lump sum within 30 days of the certification of the amount by the executive director.
4. (d) The executive director of the Minnesota State Retirement System shall report to the Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement on the utilization of this provision on or before September 1, 2000.

Subd. 2. Payment for past service.

Any member of the legislature who is a member on July 1, 1965 or thereafter, may, notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision 1, clause (1), receive credit for service rendered as a member of the legislature prior to July 1, 1965, and the pension based thereon provided that the member pays to the director for credit to the member's account an amount equal to nine percent of all salary received for all periods of service rendered as a member of the legislature, even if such periods are not continuous and exceed ten years in duration. Such payment may be made at any time after the commencement of any regular session of the legislature in which the member serves.

Subd. 3. Appropriation.

The amounts required for payment of retirement allowances provided by this section are appropriated annually to the director from the participation in the Minnesota postretirement investment fund and shall be paid monthly to the recipients entitled thereto.

Subd. 4. Deferred annuities augmentation.

1. (a) The deferred annuity of any former legislator must be augmented as provided herein. The required reserves applicable to the deferred annuity, determined as of the date the benefit begins to accrue using an appropriate mortality table and an interest assumption of six percent, must be augmented from the first of the month following termination of service, or July 1, 1973, whichever is later, to the first day of the month in which the annuity begins to accrue, at the rate of five percent per annum compounded annually until January 1, 1981, and thereafter at the rate of three percent per annum compounded annually until January 1 of the year in which the former legislator attains age 55. From that date to the effective date of retirement, the rate is five percent compounded annually.
2. (b) The retirement allowance of, or the survivor benefit payable on behalf of, a former member of the legislature who terminated service before July 1, 1997, which is not first payable until after June 30, 1997, must be increased on an actuarial equivalent basis to reflect the change in the postretirement interest rate actuarial assumption under section 356.215, subdivision 8, from five percent to six percent under a calculation procedure and tables adopted by the board of directors of the Minnesota State Retirement System and approved by the actuary retained by the legislative commission on pensions and retirement.

Subd. 5. Optional annuities.

1. (a) The board of directors shall establish an optional retirement annuity in the form of a joint and survivor annuity and an optional retirement annuity in the form of a period certain and life thereafter. Except as provided in paragraph (b), these optional annuity forms must be actuarially equivalent to the normal annuity computed under this section, plus the actuarial value of any surviving spouse benefit otherwise potentially payable at the time of retirement under section 3A.04, subdivision 1. An individual selecting an optional annuity under this subdivision waives any rights to surviving spouse benefits under section 3A.04, subdivision 1.
2. (b) If a retired legislator selects the joint and survivor annuity option, the retired legislator must receive a normal single-life annuity if the designated optional annuity beneficiary dies before the retired legislator and no reduction may be made in the annuity to provide for restoration of the normal single-life annuity in the event of the death of the designated optional annuity beneficiary.
3. (c) The surviving spouse of a legislator who has attained at least age 60 and who dies while a member of the legislature may elect an optional joint and survivor annuity under paragraph (a), in lieu of surviving spouse benefits under section 3A.04, subdivision 1.