An act to amend and reenact subsection 1 of section 54-52-05 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to employee participation in the public employees retirement system; to provide for retroactive application; and to , the official text

Sixty-ninth Legislative Assembly of North Dakota In Regular Session Commencing Tuesday, January 7, 2025
SENATE BILL NO. 2227 (Senators Bekkedahl, Boschee, Roers) (Representatives Fegley, Lefor, Schauer)
AN ACT to amend and reenact subsection 1 of section 54-52-05 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to employee participation in the public employees retirement system; to provide for retroactive application; and to declare an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA: SECTION 1. AMENDMENT. Subsection 1 of section 54-52-05 of the North Dakota Century Code is
amended and reenacted as follows: 1. a. Every eligible participating political subdivision employee, at the time the political subdivision joins the plan mustshall so state in writing if the employee concurs in the plan and all future eligible employees of the participating political subdivision are participating members in the plan and must be enrolled in the plan within the first month of employment. b. Except as otherwise provided by law, every other eligible governmental unit employee of a participating governmental unit is a participating member in the plan and must be enrolled in the plan within the first month of employment. An employee who was not enrolled in the retirement system when eligible to participate must be enrolled immediately upon notice of the employee's eligibility, unless the employee waives in writing the employee's right to participate for the previous time of eligibility, to avoid contributing to the fund for past service. c. An employee who is eligible for normal retirement who accepts a retirement benefit under this chapter and who subsequently becomes employed with a participating employer other than the employer with which the employee was employed with at the time the employee retired under this chapter may, before being re-enrolled in the retirement plan within the first month of employment, elect to permanently waive future participation in the retirement plan and the retiree health program and maintain that employee's retirement status. An employee making this election is not required to make any future employee contributions to the public employees retirement system nor is the employee's employer required to make any further contributions on behalf of that employee. d. An employee eligible for normal retirement who accepts a retirement benefit under this chapter and subsequently becomes employed with the same participating employer the employee was employed with at the time the employee retired under this chapter may not participate in the retirement plan or the retiree health program and may maintain that employee's retirement status if the employee is appointed by an elected state official to an unclassified state position for the duration of the elected official's term until a successor is appointed. SECTION 2. RETROACTIVE APPLICATION. This Act applies retroactively to December 14, 2024. SECTION 3. EMERGENCY. This Act is declared to be an emergency measure.

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____________________________ President of the Senate

____________________________ Speaker of the House

____________________________ Secretary of the Senate

____________________________ Chief Clerk of the House

This certifies that the within bill originated in the Senate of the Sixty-ninth Legislative Assembly of North Dakota and is known on the records of that body as Senate Bill No. 2227 and that two-thirds of the members-elect of the Senate voted in favor of said law.

Vote:

Yeas 46

Nays 0

Absent 1

____________________________ President of the Senate

____________________________ Secretary of the Senate

This certifies that two-thirds of the members-elect of the House of Representatives voted in favor of said law.

Vote:

Yeas 85

Nays 6

Absent 3

____________________________ Speaker of the House

____________________________ Chief Clerk of the House

Received by the Governor at ________M. on _____________________________________, 2025. Approved at ________M. on __________________________________________________, 2025.

____________________________ Governor
Filed in this office this ___________day of _______________________________________, 2025, at ________ o’clock ________M.

____________________________ Secretary of State