An Act
ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 4051 By: May and Munson of the House
and
Rader of the Senate
An Act relating to retirement; amending 62 O.S. 2021,
Section 3103, as amended by Section 1, Chapter 306,
O.S.L. 2022 (62 O.S. Supp. 2023, Section 3103) , which
relates to the Oklahoma Pension Legisl ation Actuarial
Analysis Act; modifying definiti on; amending 11 O.S.
2021, Section 49-138, which relates to the
Firefighters Pension and Retirement System; providing
for the purchase of military service credit ; and
providing effective dates.
SUBJECT: Retirement
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOP LE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHO MA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 62 O.S. 2021, Section 3103 , as
amended by Section 1, Chapter 306, O.S.L. 2022 (62 O.S. Supp. 2023,
Section 3103), is amended to read as follows:
Section 3103. As used in the Oklahoma Pension Legislation
Actuarial Analysis Act:
1. "Amendment" means any amendment, including a substitute
bill, made to a retirement bill by any committee of the House or
Senate, any conference committee of the House or Senate or by the
House or Senate;
2. "RB number" means th at number preceded by the letters "RB"
assigned to a retirement bill by the respective staffs of the
Oklahoma State Senate and the Oklahoma House o f Representatives when
the respective staff office prepares a retirement bill for a member
of the Legislature;
RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 2
3. "Legislative Actuary" means the firm or entity that enters
into a contract with the Legi slative Service Bureau pursuant to
Section 452.15 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes to provide the
actuarial services and other duties provided for in the Okla homa
Pension Legislation Actuarial Ana lysis Act;
4. "Nonfiscal amendment" means an amendment to a retirement
bill having a fiscal impact, which amendment does not change any
factor of an actuarial investiga tion specified in subsection A of
Section 3109 of this title;
5. "Nonfiscal retirement bill" means a retirement bill:
a. which does not affect the cost or funding factors of a
retirement system,
b. which affects such fa ctors only in a manner which does
not:
(1) grant a benefit increase under the retirem ent
system affected by the bill,
(2) create an actuarial accrued liability for or
increase the actuarial accrued liability of the
retirement system affected by the bill, o r
(3) increase the normal cost of th e retirement system
affected by the bill,
c. which authorizes the purchase by an active member of
the retirement system, at the actuarial cost for the
purchase as computed pursuant to the statute in effect
on the effective date of the measure allowing such
purchase, of years of service for purposes of re aching
a normal retirement date in the applicable retirement
system, but which cannot be used in order to compute
the number of years of s ervice for purposes of
computing the retirement benefit for the membe r,
d. which provides for the computation of a ser vice-
connected disability retirement b enefit for members of
the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retir ement System
pursuant to Section 2 -305 of Title 47 of the Oklahoma
Statutes if the members were unable to complet e twenty
(20) years of service as a result of the disability, RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 3
e. which requires members hip in the defined benefit plan
authorized by Section 90 1 et seq. of Title 74 of the
Oklahoma Statutes for persons whose first electe d or
appointed service occurs on or after November 1, 2018,
if such persons had any p rior service in the Oklahoma
Public Employees Retirement System prior to November
1, 2015,
f. which provides for a one -time increase in retirement
benefits if the increase in retirement benefits is not
a permanent increase in the gross annual retirement
benefit payable to a member or beneficia ry, occurs
only once pursuant to a single statutory auth orization
and does not exceed:
(1) the lesser of two percent (2%) of the gros s
annual retirement benefit of the m ember or One
Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) and req uires that
the benefit may only be pro vided if the funded
ratio of the affected retirement sys tem would not
be less than sixty percent (60%) but not greater
than eighty percent (80%) after the benefit
increase is paid,
(2) the lesser of two percent (2%) of the gross
annual retirement benefit o f the member or One
Thousand Two Hundred Dollars ($1,200 .00) and
requires that the benefit may only be provided if
the funded ratio of the affected retirement
system would be greater than eighty percent (80%)
but not greater than one hundred percent (100%)
after the benefit increase is paid,
(3) the lesser of two percent (2%) of the gross
annual retirement benefit of the member or One
Thousand Four Hundred Dollars ($1,400 .00) and
requires that the benefit may only be pr ovided if
the funded ratio of the affe cted retirement
system would be greater than one hundred percent
(100%) after the benefit incr ease is paid, or
(4) the greater of two percent (2%) of the gross
annual retirement benefit of the volunteer
firefighter or One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) for RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 4
persons who retired from the Oklahoma
Firefighters Pension and Retirement System as
volunteer firefighters and who did not retire
from the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and
Retirement System as a paid firefi ghter.
As used in this subparagraph, "funded ratio" m eans the
figure derived by dividing the actuarial value of
assets of the applicable retireme nt system by the
actuarial accrued liabil ity of the applicable
retirement system,
g. which modifies the disabil ity pension standard for
police officers who are memb ers of the Oklahoma Police
Pension and Retirement System as provided by Section
3 of this act 50-115 of Title 11 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
h. which provides a cost -of-living benefit increase
pursuant to the provisions of:
(1) Section 49-143.7 of Title 11 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
(2) Section 50-136.9 of Title 11 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
(3) Section 1104K of Title 20 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
(4) Section 2-305.12 of Title 47 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
(5) Section 17-116.22 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma
Statutes,
(6) Section 930.11 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma
Statutes, or
i. which modifies the computation of the line -of-duty
disability benefit pursuant to the provisions of thi s
act Sections 50-101 and 50-115 of Title 11 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, or
RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 5
j. which allows the purchase of military prior service
credit pursuant to the provisions of th is act.
A nonfiscal retirement bill shall include a ny retirement bill that
has as its sole purpose the appropriation or di stribution or
redistribution of monies in some manner to a retirement system for
purposes of reducing the unfunded liability of such system or the
earmarking of a portion of the revenue from a tax to a retirement
system or increasing the percentage of the revenue earmarked from a
tax to a retirement system;
6. "Reduction-in-cost amendment" means an amendment to a
retirement bill havin g a fiscal impact which reduces the cost of the
bill as such cost is determined by the act uarial investigation for
the bill prepared pursuant to Section 3109 of this title;
7. "Retirement bill" means any bill or joint resolution
introduced or any bill or joint resolution amended by a member of
the Oklahoma Legislature which creates or amends a ny law directly
affecting a retirement system. A retirement bill shall not mean a
bill or resolution that impacts the revenue of any state tax in
which a portion of the revenue generated from such tax is earmarked
for the benefit of a retirement system;
8. "Retirement bill having a fisca l impact" means any
retirement bill creating or estab lishing a retirement system and any
other retirement bill other than a nonfis cal retirement bill; and
9. "Retirement system" means the Teachers' Retirement System of
Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Public Employ ees Retirement System, the
Uniform Retirement System for Justices and Judges, the Oklahoma
Firefighters Pension and Retirement Sy stem, the Oklahoma Police
Pension and Retirement System, the Oklahoma Law Enforcement
Retirement System, or a retirement system established after January
1, 2006.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 11 O.S. 2021, Section 49 -138, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 49-138. A. Any member of a regularly const ituted fire
department of any municipality who is now serving or may hereafter
serve in the Armed Forces of the United States whe ther such service
is voluntary or involuntary , who shall have been a member of such
fire department at the time of entering suc h service, shall be
entitled to have the whole of the time of such service applied under RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 6
the provisions of Section 49 -106 of this title, so far as the same
applies to a service pension; provided further, that the
municipality shall continue its payment int o said pension fund, to
the same force and effect as though the member were in the actual
service of such fire department; provid ed, that any person who is
eligible for such service but who shall have vol unteered for
military or naval service for a period not to exceed five (5) years
shall likewise be entitled to all of the benefits of Sections 49-138
through 49-142 of this title fo r the full period of such service or
enlistment; provided further, that onl y one such period of voluntary
service shall be cons idered hereunder. If such p erson shall
reenlist, unless required to do so by law, such person shall not
thereafter be entitled t o the provisions of this subsection. The
provisions of this subsection sha ll not apply where any such person
dies during the period of said service or enl istment, and shall not
entitle the surviving spouse or children to any benefits, and shall
not apply to any member who shall have served on active duty
(including initial activ e duty) for training purposes only and/or
inactive duty training.
B. Effective February 1, 1997, credited service received
pursuant to this section or credited service for wartime military
service received as otherwise provid ed by law shall be used in
determining the member's retirement benefit but shall n ot be used in
determining years of service for retirement, vesting purposes or
eligibility for participation in the Oklahoma Fire fighters Deferred
Option Plan. For a member of the System hired on or aft er July 1,
2003, if the military service credit autho rized by this section is
used to compute the retirement benefit of the member and the membe r
retires from the System, such milita ry service credit shall not be
used to compute the retirement benefit in a ny other retirement
system created pursuant to the Ok lahoma Statutes and the memb er may
receive credit for such service only in the retirement s ystem from
which the member first reti res.
C. A member who retires or elects to pa rticipate in the
Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan on or after July 1, 19 98,
shall be entitled to prior service cre dit, not to exceed five (5)
years, for those periods of military service on active duty prior to
membership in the Oklahoma Firefigh ters Pension and Retirement
System.
For purposes of this subsection, "military service" means
service in the Armed Forces of the United States by honorably RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 7
discharged persons during the following time periods, a s reflected
on such person's Defense Department Form 214, as follows:
1. During the following periods, including the beginning and
ending dates, and only for the period s served, from:
a. April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918, commonly referred
to as World War I,
b. September 16, 1940, to December 7, 1 941, for members
of the 45th Division,
c. December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946, commonly
referred to as World War II,
d. June 27, 1950, to January 31, 1955, commonly re ferred
to as the Korean Conflict or the K orean War,
e. February 28, 1961, to May 7, 19 75, commonly referred
to as the Vietnam era, except that:
(1) for the period from February 28, 1961, to August
4, 1964, military service shall only include
service in the Republic of Vietnam during that
period, and
(2) for purposes of determining eligibili ty for
education and training benefits, such period
shall end on December 31, 1976 , or
f. August 1, 1990, to December 31, 19 91, commonly
referred to as the Gulf War, the Persian Gulf War, or
Operation Desert Sto rm, but excluding any person who
served on active duty for training only, unless
discharged from such active duty for a service -
connected disability;
2. During a period of war or combat military operation other
than a conflict, war or era listed in paragr aph 1 of this
subsection, beginning on the da te of Congressional authorization,
Congressional resolution, or Executive Order of the President of the
United States, for t he use of the Armed Forces of the United State s
in a war or combat military operation, if such war or combat
military operation last ed for a period of ninety (90) days or more,
for a person who served, and only for the period served, in the area RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 8
of responsibility of the war or combat military operatio n, but
excluding a person who served on a ctive duty for training only,
unless discharged from such active duty for a service-connected
disability, and provided that the burden of proof of military
service during this period shall be with the member, who mu st
present appropriate documentation esta blishing such service.
D. An eligible member pursuant to subsection C of this section
shall include only those persons who s hall have served during the
times or in the areas prescribed in subsection C of this section,
and only if such person provides appropriate documentation in such
time and manner as required by the System to establish such military
service prescribed in th is section, or for service pursuant to
division (1) of subparagraph e of paragraph 1 of subsection C of
this section, those per sons who were awarded service medals, as
authorized by the United States Department of Defense as reflected
in the veteran's Defense Department Form 214, related to the Vietnam
Conflict for service prior to Augus t 5, 1964. The provisions of
subsection C of this section shall include military retir ees, whose
retirement was based only on active service, that have been rated as
having twenty percent (20%) or greater servi ce-connected disability
by the Veterans Administration or the Armed Forces of the Unite d
States. The provisions of subsection C of this section shall not
apply to any person who shall have served on active duty for
training purposes only unless discharg ed from active duty for a
service-connected disability.
E. A member of the System who served in the Armed Forces of the
United States, or any component thereof, who was honorably
discharged from full -time active military service prior to becoming
a member of the System and whose full -time active duty military
service does not otherwise mee t the qualifications for prior service
credit pursuant to subsections B through D of this section may
purchase up to five (5 ) years of full-time active duty military
prior service credit at the actuarial cost of servic e credit as
determined by the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement
System Board, pursuant to Section 49-117.3 of this title.
The service credit provided b y this subsection shall be
administered pursuant to subsections B through D of this section,
including, but not limited to, only full -time active duty military
service not for training-only purposes, unless discharged from
active duty for a service -connected disability, as reflected on the
member's Defense Department Form 214, shall be considered for prior
service credit, and such prior service credit shall only be used in RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 9
determining the member's retirement benefit but shall not be used in
determining years of service for retirement, vesting purposes , or
eligibility for participation in the Oklahoma Fi refighters Deferred
Option Plan.
F. Notwithstanding any provision here in to the contrary:
1. Contributions, benefits and service credit with respect to
qualified military service shall be provided in accor dance with
Section 414(u) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended,
which is in accordance with the Uniformed Se rvices Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, as amended (USERRA); and
2. Effective January 1, 2007, if any member dies while
performing qualified military service (as defined in Section 414(u)
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended), t he survivors of
the member are entitled to any additiona l benefits (other than
benefits accruals relating to the period of qualified mil itary
service) provided under the System had the member resumed and then
terminated employment on account of death .
F. G. Members or beneficiaries shall make application to the
System for credited service related to wartime military service.
Interest on additional benefits related to wartime military s ervice
owed by the System to a retired member or beneficiary as provide d by
law shall cease accruing one (1) year after the effect ive date the
additional benefits ar e payable by the System or July 1, 2000,
whichever is later, if the member has not applied to the System for
credited service related to such wartime military ser vice.
SECTION 3. Section 1 of this act shall become effective October
1, 2024.
SECTION 4. Section 2 of this act shall become effectiv e
November 1, 2024.
RBH No. 10664
ENR. H. B. NO. 4051 Page 10
Passed the House of Represent atives the 13th day of March, 2024.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
Passed the Senate the 25th day of April, 2024.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _____ ____
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
THOMAS E. CUMMINS CONSULTING ACTUARY, INC.
2512 E. 71
st
Street , Suite D ∙ Tulsa, Oklahoma 74136
(918) 492-9658 ∙ (918) 492- 9659
March 7, 2024
Representative May
Room 300.3
Re: Floor Substitute for House Bill No. 4051 RBH No. 10664
Floor Substitute for House Bill No. 4051 would allow a Oklahoma
Firefighter Pension and Retirement System participant to purchase up
to 5 years of military service.
The bill also amends OPLAAA defining the change above as a non
fiscal bill.
Floor Substitute for House Bill No. 4051 is a non fiscal bill as
defined by OPLAAA.
I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the
Qualification Standards of the American Academy of Actuaries to
render the actuarial opinion herein.
Thomas E. Cummins
Thomas E. Cummins, MAAA