Section 47-3-65. Membership, rights, and benefits in local retirement funds

   Except as otherwise provided by paragraph (5) of subsection (e) of Code Section 47-3-60, teachers in the service of an employer operating a local retirement fund shall not be members of the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. Such teachers shall make no contributions to this retirement system and shall be eligible for pension benefits under this retirement system only under this Code section. If such a teacher retires under his or her local retirement fund and if at the time of his or her retirement he or she would have been eligible for service retirement under this retirement system had he or she been a member, the board of trustees shall pay from this retirement system to the managing board of the local retirement fund a pension equal to the pension for membership service which would have been payable under this retirement system in respect to the part of his or her earnable compensation payable from state funds if such member had been classified as a member of this retirement system immediately prior to the time of his or her retirement; provided, however, upon service retirement of any teacher who is a member of a local retirement fund, the local retirement fund under which such teacher retired shall receive a service retirement pension on account of his or her service thereunder, in accordance with the provisions of this Code section, which shall consist of:

   (1) A pension equal to the annuity which would have been allowable at age of retirement if such teacher had been a member of this retirement system and had made contributions of 5 percent of his or her earnable compensation payable from state funds, but not to exceed an annuity allowable at age 65, computed on the basis of such contributions as would have been made prior to age 65; and

   (2) If he or she has a prior service certificate in full force and effect, an additional pension equal to the annuity which would have been provided at age of retirement, but not to exceed an annuity which would have been provided at age 65 by three times the amount of his or her prior service accumulations as heretofore defined, with regular interest thereon from time to time in effect from the date of establishment until the date of his or her retirement, but not beyond age 65.

It shall be the duty of the employers operating local retirement funds to report to the board of trustees annually or at such other intervals as shall be set by the board of trustees the earnable compensation paid from state funds of each teacher in their employ who is paid from state funds and such other information as may be needed for establishing the prospective benefit of the member.

Ga. L. 1943, p. 640, § 9; Ga. L. 1953, Nov.-Dec. Sess., p. 341, § 1; Ga. L. 1962, p. 723, § 9; Ga. L. 1966, p. 564, § 2; Ga. L. 1977, p. 825, §§ 6, 7; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1892, § 2; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1894, § 4; Ga. L. 1993, p. 86, § 1; Ga. L. 2000, p. 131, § 1; Ga. L. 2010, p. 1207, § 43/SB 436.