495—7.2 (97B) Prior service.
	 7.2(1) General.
	  a.   	 A member shall receive prior service credit if the member made contributions under the abolished Iowa Old-Age and Survivors’ Insurance (IOASI) System and has not qualified for IOASI benefits. If qualified, a member will be granted credit for verified service that occurred during and prior to the IOASI period.
	  b.   	 For the purposes of this rule, public school teachers are considered to have been in service on July 4, 1953, if they were under contract at the end of the school year 1952-1953 or if they signed a contract for the 1953-1954 school year on or before July 4, 1953.
	 7.2(2) Prior service credit for vacation or leave of absence.
	  a.   	 Prior service credit shall be given for a period of vacation or leave of absence authorized by the employer not to exceed 12 months. If a period of vacation or leave of absence exceeds 12 months, prior service credit shall be given for the first 12 months only. However, if a period of vacation or leave of absence was granted for 12 months or less, and renewed for 12 months or less, all periods of vacation or leave of absence shall be included as prior service, even though all periods added together exceed 12 months.
	  b.   	 Reentry into public employment by an employee on leave of absence can be achieved by the employee by accepting employment with any public employer, provided there is no interruption between the end of the period of the leave of absence and reentry into public employment.
	  c.   	 The employer must verify the inclusive dates of the period of vacation or leave of absence before prior service credit can be given.
	 7.2(3) Prior service credit for military service.
	  a.   	 Prior service credit shall be given for the entire period of military service during a war or national emergency, provided the employee was employed by the employer immediately prior to entry into military service and the employee returned to work for the same employer within 12 months after release from service.
	  b.   	 The employer must verify the inclusive dates of the period of absence from work. A copy of the enlistment and discharge records must also be provided to IPERS to verify enlistment and discharge dates.
	 7.2(4) Prior service credit for interruption in service. Prior service credit shall be given for periods of temporary or seasonal interruption in service where the temporary suspension of service does not terminate the period of employment of the employee. Verification from the employer is required stating the dates of employment, periods of interruption and that the employment was not terminated during those periods.
	 7.2(5) Prior service credit for part-time employment.
	  a.   	 Effective July 1, 1990, if a member had covered wages reported in any quarter or the custodian of the record certifies service in any quarter, a full quarter of credit will be granted.
	  b.   	 A teacher will receive credit for a full year in which three quarters of coverage are reported or three quarters of service are certified by the custodian of the records if the teacher had a contract for the following school year. IPERS may require the submission of a copy of that contract.
	  c.   	 Prior to July 1, 1990, prior service credit for part-time employment was granted on the basis of actual time worked. A ratio determined either by dividing the actual average time worked per day by the normal full-time day or by some other reasonable method was used to calculate the actual time worked.
	 7.2(6) Prior service credit for a set period of time.
	  a.   	 Effective July 1, 1990, prior service credit will be granted for those quarters in which covered wages were reported or if the custodian of the record certifies service.
	  b.   	 Prior to July 1, 1990, full prior service credit was given for periods of employment which required the employee to be available for as much work as required, even though the employee may not have actually worked full-time. This includes the employment of town clerks, secretaries of school districts, school bus drivers and school lunch employees.
	 7.2(7) Prior service credit for school year. A public school teacher who worked full-time the entire school year shall be given a full year of prior service credit.
	  a.   	 Effective July 1, 1990, an employee working in a position for a school district or other educational institution which operates on a nine-month basis shall receive credit for the third quarter when no covered wages are reported in that quarter in the same manner as provided under subrule 7.1(2).
	  b.   	 Prior to July 1, 1990, school employees may have received less than a full year’s credit if they had reportable wages in fewer than four quarters.
	 7.2(8) Proof of prior service.
	  a.   	 A statement showing the inclusive dates of employment and the position(s) the member held shall be signed by the present custodian of those employment records. IPERS Form 507 or a statement containing similar information may be used for this purpose. This statement does not require notarization.
	  b.   	 If an employment record is not available for any reason, notarized affidavits of two individuals having knowledge of the employment for which prior service credit is sought shall be submitted. IPERS Form 507-A or an affidavit containing similar information may be used.
	  c.   	 Proof of prior service shall:
	 (1) 	 Refer to covered employment in Iowa;
	 (2) 	 Be signed by the proper authority;
	 (3) 	 Refer to the member in question;
	 (4) 	 Show that the position held is one for which prior service credit can be given;
	 (5) 	 Show that corrections, deletions, or additions in dates of service are initialed by the signer of the document;
	 (6) 	 Take into consideration information on the reverse side of the form; and
	 (7) 	 Contain certification showing the highest gross wage earned in any 12-consecutive-month period before July 4, 1953, and refer to a period ending before that date. IOASI records may be used for verification of wages if necessary, and this information is noted on the application for monthly retirement allowance.
	  d.   	 Effective July 1, 1990, prior service will be credited by quarters. Service of less than a full quarter shall be rounded up to a full quarter. (Prior to July 1, 1990, the amount of prior service credit due on each proof of service was computed in years, months and days.)
	  e.   	 If the custodian of the records cannot verify service before July 4, 1953, or if the member disputes the amount of time proven, IPERS may use any records available to supplement the member’s proof.
	 7.2(9) Prior service credit for service before January 1, 1946. An active, vested or retired member who was employed prior to January 1, 1946, by an employer may file written verification of the member’s dates of employment with IPERS and receive credit for years of prior service for the period of employment. However, a member who is eligible for or receiving a pension or annuity from a local school district for service prior to January 1, 1946, is not eligible to receive credit for the period of service upon which the pension or annuity is based. The member is responsible to obtain sufficient proof of service prior to January 1, 1946, as IPERS may require.