(a)  Any member who has had five (5) or more years of total service, may, upon the member’s own application or upon application of the employer, or some person acting in the member’s behalf, while in active service or on leave of absence for illness, apply for ordinary disability retirement; provided, that the member is not entitled to a regular service retirement allowance and; provided, that the member has at least three (3) consecutive years of service as an employee of a participating municipality within the five (5) years needed to be eligible under this section.

Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-19

  • board: means the state retirement board created by chapter 8 of Title 36. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-2
  • Employee: means any regular and permanent employee or officer of any municipality, whose business time at a minimum of twenty (20) hours a week is devoted to the service of the municipality, including elective officials and officials and employees of city and town housing authorities. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-2
  • Member: means any person included in the membership of the retirement system as provided in §?45-21-8. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-2
  • Municipality: means any town or city in the state of Rhode Island, any city or town housing authority, fire, water, sewer district, regional school district, public building authority as established by chapter 14 of Title 37, or any other municipal financed agency to which the retirement board has approved admission in the retirement system. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-2
  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
  • Service: means service as an employee of a municipality of the state of Rhode Island as defined in subdivision (7). See Rhode Island General Laws 45-21-2

(b)  A statement from a physician shall accompany the application stating that the member is physically or mentally incapacitated for the performance of duty and that the member ought to be retired.

(c)  A medical examination of the member shall be made by three (3) physicians engaged by the retirement board for this purpose, and should the medical examination show that the member is physically or mentally incapacitated for the performance of duty and ought to be retired, the physicians shall so report and certify to the retirement board and the retirement board may retire the member for ordinary disability.

(d)  The retirement board shall establish uniform eligibility requirement standards and criteria for ordinary disability which apply to all members who make application for retirement for ordinary disability.

History of Section.
P.L. 1951, ch. 2784, § 8; G.L. 1956, § 45-21-19; P.L. 1967, ch. 201, § 1; P.L. 1968, ch. 262, § 1; P.L. 1980, ch. 29, § 1; P.L. 1981, ch. 28, § 2; P.L. 1982, ch. 192, § 3; P.L. 1992, ch. 306, art. 3, § 2.