2053 - Retirement Incentive Policy

1. The purpose of this policy is to provide prospective retirees with funding support for health insurance and other health related expenses at retirement.

B. BENEFITS

1. After the completion of each fiscal year a single deposit for that year will be made into a defined medical benefit trust fund account on the employee’s behalf in an amount determined by the employee’s number of years of service with the District as follows:
   1. 1 to 10 years:  $750
   2. 11 to 20 years:  $1,000
   3. 21 or more years:  $1,250
2. The medical benefit trust funds deposited on behalf of the employee will be held in a District trust account or the District’s trust accumulation account that is subdivided into individual employee accounts, which will be interest bearing at the current invested rates. Interest will be posted to employee sub-accounts periodically as earned.
3. After the completion of ten consecutive years in the school district, and when qualified for full URS retirement, the employee shall have a 100 percent vested entitlement to the medical benefit trust funds, which the District has previously deposited to that employee’s account.
4. Upon the death of the employee and all dependents who are eligible to withdraw funds from the defined medical benefit trust, the remaining funds will be returned to the District, which in turn will, as far as is possible, issue the funds to the estate of the deceased employee as defined by their beneficiary designation.  Dependents or heirs of the employee who receive funds are responsible for all tax consequences from District distributions.
5. For employees hired full-time prior to July 1, 2015 the district will contribute a minimum of $30,000 to the employee defined medical trust. For example, if the total district contribution to an employee’s defined medical trust at retirement is $15,000, the school district will contribute an additional $15,000. If this additional contribution is greater than $1,000 the school district may elect to divide the contribution into three deposits over the course of the three years following the employee's retirement. Employees hired full-time prior to July 1, 2015 must still meet all eligibility requirements listed in this policy.
6. For employees hired full-time prior to July 1, 1990 the following adjustment is made. Up to couple insurance will be provided at the expense of the district for up to three consecutive years; however, the district payments are limited to the amount the insurance company charges for active employees. If retirees wish to participate, the additional premium will be paid by the retirees. This benefit from the employee at the premium of the retirement year. These employees may also choose to have the school district put the value of this benefit towards the purchase of future service credit from Utah Retirement Systems or as a deposit to the retiree’s medical trust account. If the employee elects to receive this benefit into their medical trust account the district may choose to make three equal deposits over three years or one lump sum deposit at retirement.

C. ELIGIBILITY

1. In order to qualify for the retirement benefits under this policy, eligible employees of Piute County School District, must have, by June 30th of the year in which retirement they are under is elected, have accumulated sufficient years of service under the Utah State Retirement System rules to qualify for retirement benefits under the Utah State Retirement System. If retirement benefits from the Utah State Retirement System are subject to a benefit reduction, the same reduction will be applied to this benefit.
2. Eligibility is restricted to all full-time employees (at least 35 hours per week) with ten (10) or more years of service in the district. If an employee terminates employment with the District for any reason before the completion of his or her tenth consecutive year of employment, then any medical benefit trust funds and interest earnings previously deposited to that employee’s account by the District will be forfeited to the District.
3. Employees who are eligible for Retirement under the above criterion and wish to participate in this retirement benefit must make an application to the Superintendent of Piute County School District by May 15th of the year they elect to retire.
4. Special consideration of employees for retirement during the school year may be made at the discretion of Superintendent and the Board of Education of Piute County School District under the following condition:
5. Employees who would have qualified for retirement at the end of the preceding year if they had made an application; and who find it difficult to complete their yearly contract may request retirement at any time during the year. Requests submitted during the year shall be considered on their individual merit.

D. VOLUNTARY RETIREMENT INCENTIVE PROGRAM

Purpose & Intent

The Piute County School Board recognizes that fluctuations in student enrollment and shifting financial climates require strategic mechanisms to manage district staffing levels. The purpose of this Voluntary Retirement Incentive Program (VRIP) is two-fold:

1. To assist qualified, long-term employees transitioning from public service to retirement.
2. To provide a tool for controlling District costs, allowing the District to avoid involuntary Reductions in Force (RIF) by safely reducing staff density through attrition.

Annual Activation Board Discretion

This program is not a permanent entitlement or a guaranteed future benefit. The program shall be activated annually at the sole discretion of the Board.

1. The Board shall consider the activation or non-activation of this program, alongside the nature, scope, and parameters, no later than December 15 of each fiscal year.
2. If the Board does not formally activate the policy for a given fiscal year, no retirement incentives shall be offered or paid.
3. Shall only be instituted to consolidate a position within the district, or where the resulting vacancy is absorbed to achieve a net reduction district Full Time Equivalency (FTE)

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the Voluntary Retirement Incentive Program in an activated year, an employee must meet all of the following requirements at the time of retirement:

1. Must have attained at least fifty-five (55) years of age by June 30 of the retiring school year. (Exception: Employees who are 54 but turn 55 on or before December 31 of the subsequent school year may request an unpaid, extended leave of absence to span the gap, remaining eligible for the incentive based on their final active year’s salary).
2. Must have been employed by the District for at least twenty (20) years of continuous service in the specific workgroup from which they are retiring.
3. Must apply for and be qualified to concurrently receive retirement benefits under the regulations of the Utah Retirement Systems (URS).
4. The employee must be regularly and actively employed (not on an unapproved or extended unpaid leave of absence) for the entirety of the school year in which they apply.

Application Process & Deadlines

1. Eligible employees seeking to participate must submit a formal, signed Intent to Retire application to the Superintendent by March 1.
2. Board approval of an employee’s VRIP application constitutes a formal, mutual agreement of voluntary resignation and the termination of the employee's continuing employment contract.

Schedule of Benefits & Payout Structure

The incentive is offered as an inducement for voluntary separation and shall not be construed as a continuation of regular salary.

1. Eligible retirees shall receive a lump sum separation incentive equal to fifty percent (50%) of the employee’s final annual base salary, exclusive of any extra duty compensation, extended contract days, overtime, stipends, or longevity pay.
2. To comply with tax regulations, the lump-sum payment will be contributed directly by the District on behalf of the retiree into a District-sponsored 401(k) account, a defined medical trust account, or applied directly to URS to purchase allowable service credit, at the direction of the employee.
3. Payment shall be distributed into the retiree's tax-sheltered account as a one time payment. There is no cash out option
4. Once approved by the Board, if the employee passes away prior to the final processing of the payout, the lump sum shall be paid directly into the employee’s designated account or to their legal estate.

District Safeguards & Right to Restrict

1. The District reserves the right to determine whether any retirement benefits will be made available in a given year, to limit the total number of employees granted the benefit, or to reject any application if it fails to yield a net cost savings to the District or fail to meet the position consolidation requirement. If an application cap is instituted by the board, applicants will be approved on a first-come, first-served basis according to the application timestamp.
2. If an employee accepts a benefit under this program, they shall be permanently ineligible to receive any further or future retirement incentives from the District. Any future post-retirement re-employment within the district shall be subject to the strict statutory limitations of the Utah Postretirement Reemployment Restrictions Act.

Adopted Sept. 10, 2002
Amended May 13, 2003
Amended May 9, 2006
Amended May 12, 2015
Amended March 8, 2016
Amended November 8, 2016
Amended April 13, 2021
Amended June 16, 2026

This policy is intended to provide a non-discriminatory policy which complies with the provisions of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Older Workers' Benefit Protection Act. Should any provision under this policy be determined to violate any current or future provision in any statute, federal, state, or local, this policy will be deemed canceled or terminated, without any prospective liabilities on the part of Piute School District, its agents, or administrators’.