1. A. In lieu of terminating employment and accepting a service retirement pension pursuant to Section 2-305 of this title, any member of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System who has not less than twenty (20) years of creditable service and who is eligible to receive a service retirement pension may elect to participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan and defer the receipts of benefits in accordance with the provisions of this section.
2. B. For purposes of this section, creditable service shall include service credit reciprocally recognized pursuant to Section 2-300 et seq. of this title but for eligibility purposes only.
3. C. The duration of participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan for a member shall not exceed five (5) years. Participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan must begin the first day of a month and end on the last day of the month. At the conclusion of a member's participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan, the member shall terminate employment and shall start receiving the member's accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System. Such a member may continue to receive in-service distributions of such member’s accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System if the member is reemployed by a state agency only if such reemployment is in a position not covered under the System.
4. D. When a member begins participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan, the contribution of the member shall cease. The employer contributions shall continue to be paid in accordance with Section 2-304 of this title. Employer contributions for members who elect the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan shall be credited equally to the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System and to the member’s Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan account. The monthly retirement benefits that would have been payable had the member elected to cease employment and receive a service retirement shall be paid into the member’s Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan account.

5. E.

   1. 1. A member who participates in this plan shall be eligible to receive cost of living increases.
   2. 2. A member who participates in this plan shall earn interest at a rate of two percentage points below the rate of return of the investment portfolio of the System, but no less than the actuarial assumed interest rate as certified by the actuary in the yearly evaluation report of the actuary. The interest shall be credited to the individual account balance of the member on an annual basis.

6. F. A member in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan shall receive, at the option of the member:

   1. 1. A lump sum payment from the account equal to the option account balance of the member, payable to the member;
   2. 2. A lump sum payment from the account equal to the option account balance of the member, payable to the annuity provider which shall be selected by the member as a result of the research and investigation of the member; or
   3. 3. Any other method of payment if approved by the Board.
7. G. If the member dies during the period of participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan, a lump sum payment equal to the account balance of the member shall be paid in accordance with Section 2-306.3 of this title.

8. H. In lieu of participating in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, E and F of this section, a member may elect to participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection as follows:

   1. 1. For purposes of this subsection, the following definitions shall apply:

      1. a. "back drop date" means the date selected by the member which is up to five (5) years before the member elects to participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan, but not before the date at which the member completes twenty (20) years of credited service,
      2. b. "termination date" means the date the member elects to participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection and the date the member terminates employment and starts receiving the member’s accrued monthly retirement benefit from the System. Such termination has at all times included reemployment of a member by a state agency, but only in a position not covered under the System,
      3. c. "earlier attained credited service" means the participating credited service earned by a member as of the back drop date. Earlier attained credited service cannot be reduced to less than twenty (20) years of credited service, and
      4. d. "deferred benefit balance" means all retirement benefits that would have been paid from the back drop date to the termination date, and one half (1/2) of the employer contributions from the back drop date to the termination date, with interest based on how the benefit would have accumulated on a compound annual basis as if the member had participated in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D and E of this section from the back drop date to the termination date;
   2. 2. At the termination date, a member’s monthly pension benefit shall be determined based on the earlier attained credited service and on the final average salary as of the back drop date. The member’s individual deferred option account shall be credited with an amount equal to the deferred benefit balance; the member shall terminate employment and shall start receiving the member’s accrued monthly retirement from the System. The member shall, upon application filed with the Board, be refunded from the fund an amount equal to the accumulated contributions the member made to the fund from the back drop date to the termination date, but excluding any interest. Such termination has at all times included reemployment of a member by a state agency, but only in a position not covered under the System. The provisions of subsections B, C, E, F and G of this section shall apply to this subsection; and
   3. 3. A member may participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to this subsection even if the member has elected to participate in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, E and F of this section. Such a member may select a back drop date which is up to five (5) years prior to the termination date, but not before the date at which the member completes twenty (20) years of credited service. Such a member’s participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan may not exceed five (5) years when combined with such a member’s prior period of participation in the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Deferred Option Plan. The provisions of subsections B, C, E, F and G of this section shall apply to this subsection.

Laws 1990, SB 823, c. 247, § 2, eff. October 1, 1990; Amended by Laws 1990, HB 2204, c. 334, § 3, emerg. eff. July 1, 1990; Amended by Laws 1993, HB 1616, c. 157, § 2, emerg. eff. July 1, 1993; Amended by Laws 2003, SB 668, c. 343, § 2, emerg. eff. July 1, 2003; Amended by Laws 2003, HB 1647, c. 406, § 6, emerg. eff. July 1, 2003 (repealed by Laws 2004, HB 2725, c. 5, § 34, emerg. eff. March 1, 2004); Amended by Laws 2003, SB 281, c. 456, § 2, emerg. eff. June 6, 2003 (repealed by Laws 2004, HB 2725, c. 5, § 35, emerg. eff. March 1, 2004) (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2004, HB 2725, c. 5, § 33, emerg. eff. March 1, 2004 (superseded document available).