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State Representative
Rich Stanek

543 State Office Building, 100 Constitution Ave., St. Paul, MN 55155 (651) 296- 5502

For Immediate ReleaseFor more information contact:
July 17, 2000Jon Peterson (651-296-5989)
NEWS RELEASE
NEW LAW ALLOWS POLICE OFFICERS WITH MILITARY SERVICE
TO BOOST PENSIONS

(ST. PAUL) A new law passed by the legislature this year may provide police and peace officers with prior military service an opportunity to boost their pensions, according to State Representative Rich Stanek (R-Maple Grove).

The new law, passed as part of Article 4 of the 2000 Omnibus Pension Bill (House File 2796), permits members of the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA) to purchase service credit in their pension plan for any prior military service. Previously, PERA members could only receive credit if military service interrupted their public service and they immediately returned to public service after their military discharge.

"This new opportunity could allow our police veterans who also served this country in the military to enjoy a more fruitful retirement," Rep. Stanek said. "I hope they will take the opportunity to see if it's worth the investment."

Because purchasers must pay the entire actuarial cost of the future benefits they will receive, the cost of purchasing military service credit can be expensive. The longer the wait before the purchase, the more expensive it becomes. A few more points about purchasing credit:

 only those actively employed with at least three years of service credit in the MSRS general, state patrol plan or the PERA-General or PERA Police & Fire plans are eligible;  the purchase is not permitted if the individual is eligible for a military pension or if the individual has service credit in another plan due to this military service;  the ability to purchase the additional service ends May 16, 2003.

For more information about purchasing prior miliary service credit, see the PERA Military Service Purchaser Calculator on their Web site, www.mnpera.org , or contact PERA at 1-800- 652-9026.

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