SECTION 25.3. Definitions

The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(1) Active Participation--Period of employment during which an ORP participant makes regular ORP contributions through payroll deduction based on the statutory percentage of the employee's salary earned during that period, which along with the matching employer contributions, are sent by the ORP employer to an authorized ORP company. A faculty member who is not employed by a Texas public institution of higher education during the three summer months but who was participating in ORP at the end of the spring semester immediately preceding the summer and who resumes ORP participation with the same or another Texas public institution of higher education in the fall semester immediately following that summer shall be considered an active participant during the three summer months.

(2) Applicable Retirement System--The Teacher Retirement System of Texas for employees of Texas public institutions of higher education and the Employees Retirement System of Texas for employees of the Board.

(3) Board--The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

(4) Break in Service--A period following a participant's termination of all employment with all Texas public institutions of higher education or the Board that is at least one full calendar month in which no ORP contribution is made, excluding the three summer months for faculty members who were participating in ORP at the end of the spring semester immediately preceding the summer and who resume ORP participation with the same or another Texas public institution of higher education in the fall semester immediately following that summer, and excluding periods of leave-without-pay. A transfer between Texas public institutions of higher education with less than a full calendar month in which no ORP contribution is made shall not be considered a break in service.

(5) ERS--Employees Retirement System of Texas.

(6) Full-time--For purposes of determining initial ORP eligibility, the term "full-time" shall mean employment for the standard full-time workload established by the institution ("100 percent effort").

(7) Initial ORP Eligibility Date--The first day of an ORP-eligible employee's 90-day ORP election period. An employee's initial ORP eligibility date shall be the first date that the employee meets all four criteria in §25.4(a) of this title (relating to Eligibility Criteria).

(8) Initial ORP Eligibility Period--The period of time an ORP participant must be employed on a full-time basis ("100 percent effort") beginning with the initial ORP eligibility date, as defined in paragraph (7) of this section, and ending after one full semester or four and one-half months.

(9) Major Department Requirement--One of the factors used to determine whether a position is ORP-eligible in the "Other Key Administrator" category as defined in §25.4(k) of this title (relating to Eligible Positions). A department or budget entity at a public institution of higher education shall meet this requirement if:

(A) the department or budget entity is considered a "major" department by the institution based on the specific organizational size and structure of that institution; and

(B) the department or budget entity has its own budget, policies and programs.

(10) ORP--Optional Retirement Program.

(11) ORP Election Period--The period of time during which ORP-eligible employees have a once-per-lifetime opportunity to elect to participate in ORP in lieu of the applicable retirement system. The ORP election period shall begin on an employee's initial ORP eligibility date, as defined in paragraph (7) of this section, and shall end on the earlier of:

(A) the date the employee makes an ORP election by signing the TRS 28 ORP election form (or its successor) or, for employees of the Board, the ORP election form provided by the Board, and submitting the ORP election form to the ORP employer for certification; or

(B) the 90th calendar day after the employee's initial ORP eligibility date, not including the initial ORP eligibility date and including the 90th calendar day. If the 90th calendar day after the initial ORP eligibility date falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline shall be extended until the first business day after the 90th calendar day.

(12) ORP Employer--All public institutions of higher education in Texas and the Board.

(13) ORP Retiree--An individual who participated in ORP while employed with a Texas public institution of higher education or the Board and who established retiree status by meeting the applicable retiree insurance requirements and enrolling in retiree group insurance provided by ERS, The University of Texas System, or The Texas A&M University System, regardless of whether currently enrolled.

(14) Principal Activity Requirement--One of the factors used to determine whether a position is ORP-eligible based on the percent of effort required by the position to be devoted to ORP-eligible duties. The principal activity requirement shall be met if at least 51 percent of the position's duties are devoted to ORP-eligible duties in one of the ORP-eligible categories defined in §25.4(k) of this title (relating to Eligible Positions), with two exceptions:

(A) During Initial ORP Eligibility Period. During an employee's initial ORP eligibility period (when the position is required to be 100 percent effort to qualify as ORP-eligible), if the ORP-eligible duties associated with an ORP-eligible category are less than 51 percent of the activities for a particular position, the position shall be considered to meet the principal activity requirement if all of the position's other duties are ORP-eligible duties under one of the other ORP-eligible categories defined in §25.4(k) of this title (relating to Eligible Positions), for a total of 100 percent effort devoted to ORP-eligible duties, as would be the case, for example, for a position with required duties that are 50 percent instruction and/or research (faculty position) and 50 percent department chair (faculty administrator position).

(B) After Initial ORP Eligibility Period. For a participant who has completed the initial ORP eligibility period but who has not vested in ORP and who fills a position that is less than 100 percent effort but at least 50 percent effort, then the principal activity requirement shall be considered met if at least 50 percent effort is devoted to applicable ORP-eligible duties in one of the ORP-eligible categories defined in §25.4(k) of this title (relating to Eligible Positions).

(15) TRS--Teacher Retirement System of Texas.

(16) Vesting Requirement--The minimum amount of ORP participation required to attain vested status. An ORP participant shall be considered vested on the first day of the second year of active participation in lieu of the applicable retirement system, as provided in §25.5(a) of this title (relating to Vesting Requirement). A vested participant shall have ownership rights to the employer contributions in his or her ORP accounts, meaning that, upon termination of employment with all ORP employers or reaching age 70-1/2, he or she may access both the employee and employer contributions (and any net earnings) in his or her accounts. A vested participant shall remain in ORP even if subsequently employed in a position that is not ORP-eligible, as provided in §25.5(f) of this title (relating to Employment in a non-ORP-Eligible Position).

Source Note: The provisions of this §25.3 adopted to be effective May 23, 2004, 29 TexReg 5079; amended to be effective November 28, 2005, 30 TexReg 7873; amended to be effective August 30, 2016, 41 TexReg 6484