The Legislature hereby finds and declares that a compelling state interest exists in providing a temporary early retirement incentives program for encouraging the early, voluntary retirement of those public employees who were current, active contributing members of this retirement system on April 1, 1988, in the reduction of the number of such employees and in reduction of governmental costs therefor; that such program constitutes a public purpose; and that the special classifications and differentiations provided in respect of such program are reasonable and equitable ones for the accomplishment of such purpose and program as enacted in Enrolled Committee Substitute for H.B. No. 4672, regular session, 1988, and as clarified and supplemented herein, retroactive to such beginning date, aforesaid. The Legislature further finds that maintaining an actuarially sound retirement fund is a necessity and that the reemployment of persons who retire under this section in any manner, including reemployment on a contract basis, is contrary to the intent of the early retirement program and severely threatens the fiscal integrity of the retirement fund.
(a) For the purposes of this section: (1) "Contract" means any personal service agreement, not involving the sale of commodities, that cannot be performed within sixty days or that exceeds $2,500 in any twelve-month period. The term "contract" does not include any agreement obtained by a retirant through a bidding process and which is for the furnishing of any commodity to a government agency and that term does not include any person who retired under this section who works as a contract employee for the Legislature when such employment commences after December 31, 1999: Provided, That such employment may not exceed one hundred ten days; (2) "governmental entity" means the State of West Virginia; a Constitutional branch or office of the state government, or any subdivision thereof; a county, city or town in the state; a county board of education; a separate corporation or instrumentality established pursuant to a state statute; any other entity currently permitted to participate in any state public retirement system or the Public Employees Insurance Agency; or any officer or official of any entity listed above who is acting in his or her official capacity; (3) "part-time elected or appointed office" means any elected or appointed office that pays annual compensation of less than $2,500 or requires less than sixty days of service in any twelve-month period; (4) "substitute teacher" means a teacher, public school librarian, registered professional nurse employed by the county board of education or any other person employed for counseling or instructional purposes in a public school in this state who is temporarily fulfilling the duties of an existing real person employed in a specific position who is temporarily absent from that specified position.
(b) Beginning on April 1, 1988, and continuing through December 31, 1988 (or as extended by eligibility qualification requirement, as hereinafter specified), eligible members, being those active, contributing members actually and currently employed on such beginning date, retiring pursuant to this section, and from any state, county or municipal position, covered under the two divisions of this retirement system (the state division and the public employer, nonstate division) including those so employed on said beginning date and leaving the system during the incentive period and who are eligible for taking deferred retirement (but not disability retirees) may elect to participate in this incentive program and may elect any one of the three following incentive options:
(1) Retirement incentive option one: