Section 47-2-357. Withdrawal; employer contributions; vesting; date of election

   (a) As used in this Code section, the term:

   (1) "401(k)" means the deferred compensation plan offered by the state for public employees pursuant to Article 3 of Chapter 18 of Title 45 utilizing Section 401(k) of the federal Internal Revenue Code.

   (2) "Plan" means the employee savings plan created by this article.

(b) Each member shall, at the time of becoming a member, be automatically enrolled in the plan; provided, however, that the member shall have a period of 90 days from the date of enrollment to withdraw from the plan. Such withdrawal shall be made in writing to the board of trustees in such form as the board prescribes and any employee account balance shall be returned to the member. Thereafter, participation in the plan shall be voluntary. The member may not withdraw from the plan so long as he or she remains eligible to participate in the 401(k) plan offered by the state. Members shall be entitled to an employer contribution as follows:

   (1) For each pay period, each member shall contribute 1 percent of his or her compensation into his or her 401(k) account and the employer shall contribute an equal amount into his or her 401(k) account;

   (2) After the 1 percent level provided for in paragraph (1) of this subsection has been met, the employer shall contribute an amount equal to 50 percent of such amount as the member chooses to contribute, up to an additional 2 percent of the member's compensation; and

   (3) The member may make such additional contributions as he or she wishes, subject to limitations imposed by federal law.

   (4) The board of trustees shall apportion the costs of administering the plan among the employers and members on the basis of the normal costs of administration against any special services requested by any member.

(c) All contributions by participating members are 100 percent vested and shall be maintained in an account and invested based on the participant's investment allocation choices. All employer contributed amounts credited to a member's account shall be maintained as a matching contribution subaccount and invested based on the participant's investment allocation choices. Any and all amounts credited to a member's matching contribution subaccount, including applicable earnings and investment appreciation or depreciation, shall become vested and nonforfeitable based on the number of employment service years completed and in accordance with the vesting schedule set forth below:
 
Years of Service                                Employer Nonforfeitable       
                                                   Vested Percentage          
------------                                        ---------------           
                 1                                        20                  
                 2                                        40                  
                 3                                        60                  
                 4                                        80                  
                 5                                        100                 

Upon separation from service for greater than 31 days, the portion of such matching contribution subaccount not so vested shall be transferred from the member's account into a temporary plan forfeiture accumulation account for future disposition as determined by the board of trustees. A break in service less than 32 days shall not affect vesting rights.

(d) Members electing to be governed by the provisions of this article pursuant to subsection (b) of Code Section 47-2-351 shall use their date of election as the beginning date for purposes of calculating their vesting service for the employer contribution as provided in subsection (c) of this Code section used to calculate the vesting requirements of subsection (c) of this Code section, except that service as provided under Code Section 47-2-91 shall not constitute creditable service for this purpose.

Code 1981, § 47-2-357, enacted by Ga. L. 2008, p. 1005, § 1/SB 328.