Can I obtain retirement credit for periods of employment that are not covered by my present plan?
Yes, but your plan will dictate the types of employment that may be purchased for additional retirement credit. Generally, previous membership lost, previous state employment, federal employment, and certain types of out-of-state service are purchasable, but it will depend on the provisions of your plan. • How is the cost to purchase service credit determined? Most plans provide for two methods of determining cost. The method is determined by your plan rules. One method is the normal cost method, which consists of the employee contributions based on the salary earned for the employment period being purchased and interest to date of payment. The second method is the full cost method. This method provides that the member pay the full reserves (both employee and employer shares) needed to fund the additional benefit provided by the purchased service. • Why is the full cost method so expensive? It is expensive because its cost has nothing to do with the salary earned for the period being p
