POLICE-SERVICE PENSION
CHAPTER 90
S.B. No. 280
AN ACT RELATING TO THE POLICE PENSION AND RETIREMENT
SYSTEMS; AMENDING 11 O.S.1961, § 541k, AS AMENDED BY
SECTION 1, CHAPTER 212, O.S.L.1965; PROVIDING FOR SERV-
ICE PENSIONS; PROVIDING ELIGIBILITY AND AMOUNT; PRO-
VIDING FOR PAYMENT TO WIDOWS AND CHILDREN; PRO-
VIDING FOR RETURN OF CONTRIBUTION; PROVIDING IN-
CREASE OR DECREASE IN PENSION BASED ON CHANGES IN
BASE SALARIES; PROVIDING MINIMUM PENSION; PROVIDING
CERTAIN CREDITS FOR TIME EMPLOYED BY SHERIFF'S OF-
FICE; MAKING PROVISIONS OF ACT SEVERABLE; AND DE-
CLARING AN EMERGENCY.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Oklahoma:
SECTION 1. 11 O.S.1961, § 541k, as amended by Section 1, Chapter
212, O.S.L.1965, is amended to read as follows:
§ 541k. Service pension to policemen-Amnount-Eligibility-Pay-
ment to widow, child or children-Return of contributions
Every city or town which has in its regular employ one or more police-
men and which has established a Board of Trustees as by this Act, or
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FIRST SESSION-1967                    Ch. 90
amendments thereto, is hereby authorized and empowered to pay out
of any funds, in its Pension and Retirement System, a service pension
to any policeman eligible as hereinafter provided in such amount as said
city or town shall by ordinance provide, not exceeding in any event the
amount of money in such funds and not exceeding in any event one-half
(1%) of the average annual compensation of any such policeman during
the last five (5) years, except as provided for herein. In order for a
policeman to be eligible for such service pension, his service with the
Police Department for any such city or town must have ceased, he must
have served for a period of twenty (20) years or more in some Police
Department in the State of Oklahoma of a standard equivalent to that
required for eligibility under this Act, or amendments thereto, five (5)
years of which service shall have been consecutive immediately preceding
the end of such period and with the city or town paying said pension, and
he must conform also to such other and additional conditions as to serv-
ice as such city or town shall by ordinances provide, and he must have
complied with any agreement as to contributions by him and other po-
licemen to any funds of such Pension and Retirement System where said
agreement has been made as by this Act or amendments thereto; Pro-
vided, that should said pensioner receive disability benefits as provided
in this and other sections of the statute, the time he is receiving said
disability benefits shall count as time on active service if he should be
recalled by the Chief of Police from said disability retirement. It shall
be necessary before said time shall be counted toward retirement that
the policeman make the same contribution as he would have otherwise
made if on active service for the time he was disabled. The Board of
Trustees may credit, toward a service pension, service in Oklahoma, as a
sheriff or deputy sheriff not to exceed ten (10) years, provided, that such
sheriff or deputy sheriff was working January 1, 1967, on some police
department in a participating city or town. The Board of Trustees shall
require evidence of such eligibility, and their decision shall be final. Any
applicant claiming such credit shall make application by July 1, 1967, to
the Board of Trustees, and shall contribute, each month, not less than
five percent (5%) of his current monthly salary Into the pension fund.
Provided, any policeman meeting with all other requirements of this
Act, who has served twenty (20) years in accordance with this Act, upon
his application shall be retired at one-half (%A) of the annual average
compensation of such policeman during the last five (5) years without
regard to age. Providing further, any policeman eligible for retirement
under this subsection who served twenty (20) years shall be retired at
one-half (1/2) of the annual average compensation of such policeman dur-
ing the last five (5) years, plus two percent (2%) for each additional
year's service in excess of twenty (20) years, not to exceed in any event
three-fourths (%) of the annual average compensation of such policeman
during the last five (5) years. Provided, further, that when a police-
man has served for the necessary number of years and is otherwise eligi-
ble, as in this Act or amendments thereto provided, if he is discharged
without cause by the city or town, he shall be eligible for a pension.
When a policeman reaches the age of seventy (70) years he must retire,
unless, at the request of the Chief of Police of said city or town, the
Board of Trustees or City Council grants him an extension of one (1)
year, which can be further extended for one-year periods, only at the re-
quest of the Chief of Police, and any policeman who shall be retired by
reason of having reached said maximum age, and who is otherwise
eligible, may be entitled to receive compensation as provided In this Act
regardless of the number of years of his service, provided that upon reach-
ing the maximum age he shall have been continuously employed as a
policeman with the city or town paying the retirement compensation
not less than three (3) years Immediately prior to the date of the adop-
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LAWS THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE

tion by such city or town of the Pension and Retirement System pro-
vided for in this Act. A retired policeman shall not participate or receive
any benefits in a municipal police department retirement system other
than the municipality from which he is receiving his pension. In the
event of the death of any policeman who has been awarded a pension or
is eligible therefor as provided by the provisions of this Act, or amend-
ments thereto, his widow, child or children shall be paid such pension,
provided, that the same shall cease as to the widow when she shall re-
marry or as to the child or children becoming eighteen (18) years of age.
In order for a widow to receive such pension as provided in this subsec-
tion or amendments thereto she must have been the wife of the policeman
at the time of his retirement, and at least five (5) continuous years prior
thereto and not have deserted or abandoned said policeman. Any such
city or town is also authorized and empowered to provide in its ordi-
nances relating to its Pension and Retirement System for the return of
any contributions made to its Pension and Retirement System by any po-
liceman, pursuant to any agreement made by this Act or amendments
thereto, provided as to contributions by him and other policemen to the
funds of such Pension and Retirement System where any such policeman
has served in the Police Department of any such city or town for a period
of more than one (1) year and contributed to said fund for said period
of time and served less than twenty (20) years in Police Departments of
cities and towns of this State having a standard equivalent to that re-
quired for eligibility under this Act or amendments thereto. Provided,
that only those persons retiring after June 30, 1961, shall be entitled
to the additional active service time authorized herein upon recall from
disability retirement. Upon the increase or decrease in the base salary
of regular police of a city or town the Board of Trustees of any Police
Pension and Retirement System may adjust the pensions being paid by
one-third (%) to one-half (Y) of such increase or decrease. Such in-
creases or decreases shall be contingent on funds available and shall be
applied uniformly in said city or town. No pension shall be less than
one-third (%) of the base salary of regular police, or be reduced to an
amount less than the pension at which the officer retired. The term
"regular police" shall, for this purpose, be defined as a salaried patrol-
man or first class officer, who has reached his maximum salary as a
patrolman or first class officer in his department.
SECTION 2. Severability
The provisions of this Act are severable and if any part or provision
hereof shall be held void the decision of the court so holding shall not
affect or impair any of the remaining parts or provisions of this Act
Approved April 19, 1967. Emergency.

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