§ 6-397. Eligible rollover distributions.

(a)

General rule. The distributee of any eligible rollover distribution made under this Act, 1927 Ga. Laws, page 265, as amended, may elect, in the manner and at the time specified by the board of trustees, to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly to an eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee in a direct rollover.

(b)

Definitions.

(1)

Distributee. For purposes of this section, a "distributee" shall include any current or former officer or employee who has a right to a benefit under this act. In addition, a 'distributee' shall include the current or former officer's or employee's surviving spouse, as well as the current or former officer's or employee's current or former spouse who is the alternate payee under a qualified domestic relations order as defined in Code section 414(p). Effective January 1, 2010, a "distributee" shall include a non-spouse beneficiary who is a designated beneficiary within the meaning of Code section 401(a)(9)(E).

(2)

Eligible rollover distribution. For purposes of this section, an "eligible rollover distribution" is any distribution from the fund established under the act of all or any portion of the balance to the credit of the distributee, except that an eligible rollover distribution does not include: any distribution that is one of a series of substantially equal periodic payments (not less frequently than annually) made for the life (or life expectancy) of the distributee or the joint lives (or joint life expectancies) of the distributee and the distributee's designated beneficiary, or for a specified period of ten years or more; any distribution to the extent such distribution is required under section 401(a)(9) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code (the "Code"); and any hardship distribution. All or a portion of a distribution shall not fail to be an eligible rollover distribution merely because the distribution includes after-tax employee contributions that are not includible in gross income, provided, however, that such amounts may only be paid to a plan that constitutes an eligible retirement plan with respect to a distribution or portion of a distribution constituting after-tax contributions, as defined below.

(3)

Eligible retirement plan. For purposes of this section, an 'eligible retirement plan' is an individual retirement account or annuity described in Code sections 408(a) or 408(b); a qualified trust described in Code section 401(a); an annuity plan described in Code section 403(a); an annuity contract described in Code section 403(b); and an eligible deferred compensation plan described in 457(b) that is maintained by a state, a political subdivision of a state, or any agency or instrumentality of a state or political subdivision of a state and that agrees to account separately for amounts transferred into such plan from this fund; and, effective January 1, 2008, a Roth IRA described in Code section 408A. With respect to that portion of an eligible rollover distribution that consists of after-tax contributions that are not includible in gross income, an eligible retirement plan shall include only an individual retirement account or annuity described in Code sections 408(a) or (b) or a qualified defined contribution plan described in Code sections 401(a) or 403(a) that agrees to account separately for the amounts so transferred, including separate accounting for that portion of such distribution that is not includible in gross income. In the case of a distribution to a non-spouse beneficiary, the term eligible retirement plan shall include only an inherited individual retirement account described in Code section 408(a) or an inherited individual retirement annuity described in Code section 408(b).

(c)

Mandatory distributions. Effective January 1, 2006, if with respect to any mandatory distribution in excess of $1,000.00 that is an eligible rollover distribution, a distributee does not make an election pursuant to subsection (a) above and does not elect to receive the distribution directly, the amount of the distribution shall be transferred to an individual retirement plan as described in Code section 408(a) or 408(b) of a designated trustee or issuer, and the distributee shall be notified in writing that the distribution may be transferred to such an individual retirement plan.

(Ord. No. 2004-84, § II(8), 11-16-04; Ord. No. 2004-88, § 8, 12-10-04; Ord. No. 2006-14, § 4, 3-23-06; Ord. No. 2010-68(10-O-1894), § 2, 12-15-10)

Note— Section 11 of Ord. No. 2004-88 provided for an effective date for this section of Jan. 1, 2002.