CREDITABLE SERVICE

New Orleans City Code ch. 114, art. III, div. 4

in effect

New Orleans City Code § 114-104 Procedures for determination of service.

Sec. 114-104. - Procedures for determination of service. A. The trustees shall determine and verify a member's member contributions and creditable service by examination of his personnel and payroll records or by examination of records maintained by his employer. The trustees may require a member to provide proof of employment, service in the armed forces, base compensation and such other matters as the trustees deem relevant with respect to any credit to be made or purchased hereunder. The decision of the trustees as to such matters shall be final and binding. B. The board of trustees may adopt rules and procedures for the crediting and purchase of service hereunder, not inconsistent with the provisions of this division. C. The trustees shall adopt equivalences to be applied with respect to the purchase of service not inconsistent with the provisions of this division, but in no case shall more than one year of service be credited for all service rendered within a single calendar year; there shall be no duplication of creditable service for any period of service, including military service. D. In no event shall the trustees allow the purchase of creditable service hereunder for any period of more than one year during which an employee is absent continuously without pay, except for leave to perform service in the armed forces. E. If a member who has separated from service and received a refund of his member account is later reemployed, he shall be permitted to purchase creditable service for such prior period of employment, provided he is then an active member. F. Periods of creditable service for eligible part-time employment shall be prorated. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-105 Determination of creditable service.

Sec. 114-105. - Determination of creditable service. Creditable service shall equal the sum of: A. Service while an active member during which member contributions have been made, but excluding any such service with respect to which a refund of such contributions has occurred. B. An additional period, credited at the election of each active member, at the rate of one month for each 21 days of accumulated sick leave or annual leave. C. Other service purchased or credited in accordance with the provisions of this division. D. Service rendered prior to the establishment of the system, as verified by the trustees and purchased by or credited to a member. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-106 Service in the armed forces while an employee.

Sec. 114-106. - Service in the armed forces while an employee. If an active member enters into service with the armed forces and returns to covered employment not later than six months after his discharge from service in the armed forces, or such service constitutes qualified military service, he shall receive membership service for such period, provided that he was honorably discharged and pays member contributions and interest due with respect to such period. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-107 Service in armed forces before employment.

Sec. 114-107. - Service in armed forces before employment. A. An active member shall be entitled to purchase creditable service for active duty service in the armed forces before employment by his employer hereunder, excluding the National Guard or reserve service, provided that he was honorably discharged. B. An active member shall be entitled to purchase additional creditable service for service in the National Guard or Reserve Forces of the United States before employment by his employer hereunder, provided that: 1. He was honorably discharged. 2. Creditable service for full-time active duty service is longer than five consecutive days and shall be based on one day of creditable service for one day of such service. 3. Creditable service for duty which is not full-time active duty shall be determined as one day of service for each drill point, provided that a member's military employer provides written certification of the number of drill points earned and the time during which such points were earned. 4. The term "active duty" shall mean full-time active military service under written military orders, which totals five or more consecutive days of service. 5. One year of creditable service shall be credited for each 252 drill points, which may be nonconsecutive. C. A maximum of four years of creditable service shall be purchasable hereunder. D. An active member shall be credited with at least five years of creditable service before any purchase hereunder. E. A member who purchases creditable service hereunder shall not receive a benefit from any other retirement system of the State of Louisiana or its political subdivisions for such service. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-108 Credit for eligible part-time employment.

Sec. 114-108. - Credit for eligible part-time employment. An active member who is credited with at least five years of creditable service shall be entitled to purchase not more than four years of creditable service for eligible part-time employment with respect to services he rendered before 1989, subject to the following: A. Such employment shall be continuous and shall immediately precede or follow not less than one year of other creditable service. B. Additional service shall not be purchased for any period of contemporaneous full-time and eligible or ineligible part-time employment. C. The number of months of creditable service purchased hereunder shall be calculated as the product of (1) the quotient obtained by dividing the number of hours worked each month during the period of eligible or ineligible part-time employment by the number of hours worked each month during a period of corresponding full-time employment, multiplied by (2) the number of months of eligible or ineligible part-time employment subject to purchase hereunder. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-109 Credit for transient or emergency service.

Sec. 114-109. - Credit for transient or emergency service. An active member who is credited with not less than five years of creditable service may purchase a maximum of 90 days of creditable service for service rendered to the city in a transient or emergency appointment, provided that: A. Such service shall otherwise constitute full-time employment. B. Such service shall be consecutive with and immediately precede other creditable service hereunder. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-110 Credit for dual employment.

Sec. 114-110. - Credit for dual employment. An active member who, under the provisions of R.S. 11:3843, now repealed, was previously denied membership in the system, may purchase creditable service for any period he would otherwise be an eligible employee hereunder. Such purchase shall be made in accordance with the terms and conditions prescribed by the trustees in accordance with section 114-113 hereof. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-111 Credit for elected officials.

Sec. 114-111. - Credit for elected officials. An appointed or elected official with respect to a fixed term who first elects not to become an active member hereunder and thereafter, with respect to a subsequent fixed term, elects active membership hereunder, shall not be entitled to receive credit for service rendered before such election of active membership, unless: A. He shall then have completed three years of active membership in the system; and B. He shall have paid to the system the equivalent of his accumulated employee and employer contributions, with interest thereon. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-112 Administrative error.

Sec. 114-112. - Administrative error. A. If an eligible employee determines that he is not an active member, he shall immediately notify the personnel officer of his employer. B. If an eligible employee is not an active member on account of administrative error by his employer: 1. He may purchase creditable service otherwise permitted hereunder, provided that the personnel officer of his employer shall certify to the trustees his dates of employment, his base and contribution compensation, whether such employment is full-time employment or eligible part-time employment, whether such employment is performed in a permanent, provisional, transient or emergency status, and the reason such employee was not timely enrolled in the system. 2. His employer shall pay to the system an amount equal to employer contributions due with respect to any period of creditable service purchased hereunder, including interest. C. If an eligible employee believes that he is not enrolled in the system on account of his employer's bad faith, willful misconduct or gross negligence, such employee shall provide notice to the trustees, and he shall be entitled to purchase creditable service otherwise permitted hereunder. The trustees shall determine whether interest due with respect to such contributions shall be paid by the employee, the employer or a combination thereof, based upon the relative fault of the employer and employee. In making such determination, the trustees shall consider: 1. The education or sophistication of the employee; 2. The length of time during which the employee was not an active member; 3. Whether the employee knew, or should have known, that he was not an active member; 4. Whether the employee inquired as to why he was not an active member or making member contributions, including a request to join the system; and 5. Such other factors as the trustee may deem relevant. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-113 Procedures for purchase of creditable service.

Sec. 114-113. - Procedures for purchase of creditable service. A. Creditable service shall be purchased by payment of a single-sum, or over such longer period as the trustees deem appropriate, from time to time; provided that a member shall be permitted to purchase creditable service for any period of qualified military service periodically, over a period of not less than five years. B. As a condition of the purchase of creditable service hereunder and except as provided in section 114-112 hereof, a member shall be required to pay to the system actuarial interest accrued on any member contributions required hereunder, at the rate determined by the trustees, except that interest with respect to the purchase of service in the armed forces shall not exceed four percent. C. Contribution compensation for purposes of the purchase of creditable service hereunder shall be the rate of such compensation in effect at the time or immediately preceding the date or dates on which such service was rendered, or, with respect to military service before employment by an employer hereunder, the rate of such compensation in effect at the time such employment commenced. D. The board may, but shall not be required, to accept a rollover from a member in consideration of the purchase of creditable service hereunder, provided that such rollover satisfies all of the following conditions: 1. The proceeds of such rollover shall be attributable to a period of participation in the system, another qualified governmental plan within the meaning of Tax Code Section 401(a), an eligible governmental plan within the meaning of Tax Code Section 457(b) or a tax deferred annuity within the meaning of Tax Code Section 403(b). 2. The amount of any rollover shall not exceed the amount necessary to purchase creditable service hereunder. 3. No portion of the proceeds of the rollover shall consist of after-tax contributions. 4. Any rollover shall be made in the form of a direct transfer from a trustee or custodian of a plan, account or annuity to the system. 5. As a condition of a rollover hereunder, the board may request such documents as it deems necessary; the board may adopt such additional procedures or require such additional certifications as it deems necessary or appropriate. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

New Orleans City Code § 114-114 Transfers of credits and funds.

Sec. 114-114. - Transfers of credits and funds. A. The transfer of credits and funds between the system and the retirement system maintained by the sewerage and water board shall be allowed in accordance with the following reciprocal agreement: 1. A member of either system, not yet retired, who is transferring from employment covered by one system to employment covered by the other system, may transfer his service credits and be given credit in the system to which he transfers for all his creditable service in the previous system, provided he meets the eligibility requirements specified in R.S. 33:4076.1 and R.S. 11:141—11:143, where the latter statute does not conflict with R.S. 11:3822, and provided all of the reserves necessary to fund his prior service and membership credit plus all allowable interest on these reserves are transferred from the sending system to the system to which he is being transferred. 2. The amount to be transferred hereunder shall be calculated as of the date of the transfer based upon the GASB No. 5 value of the member's accumulated benefits, using seven percent annual interest, a five percent annual salary scale, and the remaining actuarial assumptions in use by the sending system for purposes of determining GASB No. 5 liability at the time of transfer. Such amount shall not include a reserve for future cost-of-living benefits. The salary history and benefit structure of the member under the sending system shall be used in this calculation. 3. If a member withdrew his contributions from either system and wishes to receive credit for all past service in either system, he shall repay all contributions withdrawn, plus allowable interest thereon, to the system from which he transferred, after which such past service credits shall be transferred to his current system in accordance with the rules of the system from which he withdrew; thereafter, such service credit and funds shall be transferred in accordance with the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section. 4. No membership service credits, that is service as an employee rendered after the date of the establishment of the system from which the employee is transferring, shall be allowed under this agreement for those periods where there are no employee contributions, unless the transferring employee pays for such uncontributed periods the amount that would have been contributed for such periods plus all allowable interest thereon, after which such service credit and funds can be transferred in accordance with the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) hereof. 5. This agreement shall be effective as of October 17, 1988. This agreement can be modified or amended only with consent of both pension boards together with ratification by the city council (for the city) and sewerage and water board (for the sewerage and water board). Any modification or amendment of this agreement shall not affect in any way the rights of any employee who has previously effected a transfer under this agreement or who has initiated an application for transfer under the provisions of this agreement. 6. If the board or the pension committee of the retirement system of the sewerage and water board (hereinafter "pension committee") seeks to terminate this agreement, the party seeking termination shall follow the following provisions: i. If the board wishes to terminate, it shall: a. Provide the pension committee 30 days written notice before it meets to consider such action; b. After proper notice has been given, the trustees shall meet to discuss and vote on resolution to terminate; c. If such vote is affirmative, the trustees shall provide the pension committee written notice of not less than 30 days that it intends to seek approval from the city council to terminate the agreement; and d. If the city council grants the trustees the authority to terminate this agreement, such termination shall not become effective until after the trustees provide the pension committee with 90 days written notice of termination. ii. If the pension committee wishes to terminate, it shall: a. Provide the trustees 30 days written notice before it meets to consider such action; b. After proper notice has been given, the pension committee shall meet to discuss and vote on resolution to terminate; c. If such vote is affirmative, the pension committee shall provide the trustees a written notice of not less than 30 days, that it intends to seek approval from the sewerage and water board trustees to terminate the agreement; and d. If the sewerage and water board grants the pension committee the authority to terminate this agreement, such termination shall not become effective until after the pension committee provides the trustees with a 90-day written notice of termination. Termination shall not affect in any way the rights of any employee who has previously effected a transfer under this agreement or who has initiated an application for transfer under this agreement. Transfers of credits and funds to the system from the sewerage and water board retirement system shall not be permitted unless a reciprocity agreement is in effect. B. Transfers of credits and funds between the system and state, municipal or parochial retirement systems in the state, other than the sewerage and water board retirement system, shall be permitted in accordance with applicable state law, including R.S. 11:141 et seq. (M.C.S., Ord. No. 26460, § 2, 6-18-15)

Source: City of New Orleans, Code of Ordinances and Home Rule Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/la/new_orleans/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICO_CH114PE_ARTIIIRESY_DIV4CRSEFetched: 10/28/2026