1. As used in this section, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context, the following terms mean:

(1) “Accumulated contributions”, the sum of all amounts deducted from the compensation of an individual and credited to the person‘s individual account in the applicable plan, together with interest allowed thereon by the plan;

(2) “Creditable service”, the service of an individual, whether rendered while a member of a plan or not, which is recognized by a plan in determining the individual’s eligibility for and the amount of the individual’s benefits under the plan;

(3) “Plan” or “retirement plan”, any retirement system established by the state of Missouri or any political subdivision or instrumentality of the state for the purpose of providing plan benefits for elected or appointed public officials or employees of the state of Missouri or any political subdivision or instrumentality of the state;

(4) “Receiving plan”, a plan which pursuant to this section is receiving funds from another plan or an individual to provide creditable service for that individual;

(5) “Transferring plan”, a plan which pursuant to this section is transferring funds to another plan for the purpose of providing creditable service for an individual;

(6) “Vested”, having the right to receive the payment of a benefit from the plan, whether at present or at a future time. For the purpose of determining eligibility for transferring service credit, all plans shall be deemed to have five-year vesting.

2. Any retirement plan as defined in this section may enter into cooperative agreements to transfer creditable service from one retirement plan to another when a member who has been employed in a position covered by one plan is employed in a position covered by another plan. If any two plans already have in place on August 28, 1992, a cooperative agreement for transferring service between those plans, the existing agreement may remain in force upon agreement of both plans.

3. Any individual who has not yet retired and has earned creditable service under the provisions of a retirement plan which has entered into a cooperative agreement as specified in subsection 2 of this section, and who is vested in any plan may elect in writing to transfer the individual’s creditable service from one plan to another plan upon employment and vesting in a position covered by the receiving plan. Within sixty days of such election the plan from which the individual is transferring shall transfer on the individual’s behalf to the receiving plan an amount equal to the employee’s pension benefit obligation at the time of transfer using the same assumption used in performing the last regular actuarial valuation of the transferring plan; except that in no event shall the transferred amount be less than the employee’s accumulated contributions on deposit with the transferring plan.

4. The receiving plan shall determine, using accepted actuarial methods, the value of transferred service in the receiving plan. The amount of creditable service which shall be recognized in the receiving plan shall be determined by the actuarial value of the funds transferred, but in no event shall such creditable service exceed the actual number of years of creditable service from the transferring plan. If the actuarial value of the funds transferred to the receiving plan is less than that required to fund the liability created by the actual number of years of creditable service in the transferring plan, the employee may purchase additional creditable service in the receiving plan up to the actual number of years of creditable service in the transferring plan by paying the amount required by the receiving plan.

5. Any individual having earned creditable service under the provisions of any of the retirement plans identified in this section who is not vested in such plans and who becomes employed and vested in a position covered by another retirement plan identified in this section shall be permitted to purchase creditable service in the plan in which the individual is vested up to the actual number of years of creditable service the individual has in the other plans. The cost shall be determined using accepted actuarial methods by the receiving plan.

6. Payment in full of an amount due by an individual electing to transfer or purchase creditable service pursuant to this section shall be made over a period not to exceed two years, measured from the date of election, or prior to the effective date of retirement benefit payments to that individual by the receiving plan, whichever is earlier, and with interest compounded annually at the actuarially assumed interest rate of the plan receiving the payments. If payment in full is not made within this prescribed time period, any partial payments made by the individual because of the election shall be refunded, and no creditable service shall be allowable in the receiving plan as a result of the partial payments.

7. Any individual employed in nonfederal public employment in Missouri but not covered by a retirement plan who becomes employed and vested in a position covered by a retirement plan identified in this section shall be permitted to purchase creditable service in the plan up to the actual number of years of public service in an uncovered position. The cost and creditable service allowed shall be determined using accepted actuarial methods by the receiving plan.

8. When an individual elects to transfer creditable service from one plan to another plan, the individual thereby forfeits any claim to any benefit based on such service under the provisions of the retirement plan from which the creditable service is transferred.

9. In no event shall any individual receive credit or benefits for the same period of service or employment under more than one retirement plan as a consequence of transfer or purchase pursuant to the provisions of this section. Benefits paid on the basis of creditable service transferred or purchased pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be calculated using the formula applicable to the receiving plan.