Sec. 51-50a. Right to retirement salary of judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner retiring prior to July 1, 2022.

(a)(1) The right of any judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner retiring prior to July 1, 2022, to a retirement salary in accordance with the provisions of this section shall vest and be nonforfeitable when the judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner has attained the age of sixty-five years, or has served twenty years as a judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner or has thirty years of state service credit under the provisions of chapter 66, provided not less than ten years of such state service was served as a judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner, and provided such state service shall not be used for retirement credit under chapter 66. Any contributions made under chapter 66 shall be transferred to the Judges, Family Support Magistrates and Compensation Commissioners Retirement Fund.

(2) Any judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner who has been refunded contributions from the State Employees Retirement Fund for any prior period of state service may receive credit for such service upon repayment of such refunded contributions with interest thereon at the rate of five per cent per year from the date of refund to the date of payment. The amount of such payment shall be transferred to the judges, family support magistrates and compensation commissioners retirement system. A judge, family support magistrate or commissioner may elect to retire at any time thereafter.

(3) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, any judge who has served for at least sixteen years as a judge and was nominated by the Governor for a subsequent term but was not reappointed and who has attained sixty-three years of age, shall be eligible to receive a retirement salary effective upon the expiration of his term as a judge. The retirement salary shall be in the amount equal to the fraction of the retirement salary such judge would have received had he served until he was eligible to retire which corresponds to the ratio which the number of years of his completed service bears to the number of years of service which would have been completed at age sixty-five or twenty years, whichever is less.

(b) Each justice or judge or family support magistrate who retired while holding judicial office shall receive annually as retirement salary an amount in accordance with the provisions of section 51-50; and each compensation commissioner who first commenced service as a compensation commissioner prior to January 1, 1981, shall receive, annually, as retirement salary, two-thirds of the salary of a compensation commissioner, and each compensation commissioner who first commenced service as a compensation commissioner on or after January 1, 1981, shall receive, annually, as retirement salary, two-thirds of the salary the compensation commissioner was receiving at the time of his or her retirement; except that, if a judge, family support magistrate or commissioner has served fewer than ten years at the time of his retirement under this section, his retirement salary shall be reduced in the ratio which the number of years of his completed service bears to the number of years of service which would have been completed at age seventy, or ten years, whichever is less.

(1967, P.A. 621, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 639, S. 5; P.A. 74-183, S. 32, 291; P.A. 76-436, S. 63a, 681; P.A. 78-342, S. 2; P.A. 80-337, S. 3, 13; P.A. 82-248, S. 27; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-35, S. 5, 9; P.A. 92-226, S. 12, 28; P.A. 93-379, S. 4, 8; P.A. 98-197, S. 5, 8; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1, S. 140.)

History: 1971 act amended section to apply to compensation commissioners; P.A. 74-183 restated provisions re retirement salary of chief justice of supreme court and judges of all other courts, changing basis from “salary of a judge of the court of which he was a member at the time of his retirement” to “salary of the judicial office held by him at the time of his retirement”, effective December 31, 1974; P.A. 76-436 specified retirement salary as amount in accordance with Sec. 51-50 rather than as amount equaling two-thirds of salary of judicial office held at time of retirement, effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 78-342 restated provision re criteria for retirement; P.A. 80-337 allowed retirement after 20 years' service rather than 25 years' service and distinguished between those who began serving before January 1, 1981, and those who began serving on or after that date; P.A. 82-248 made technical revision, rewording some provisions and dividing section into Subsecs. but made no substantive change; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-35 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision permitting retirement of judge or compensation commissioner who has 30 years of state service credit, provided not less than 10 years of such service was served as judge or compensation commissioner and such service shall not be used for retirement under chapter 66; P.A. 92-226 extended provisions of section to include family support magistrates; P.A. 93-379 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision that any judge, family support magistrate or compensation commissioner who has been refunded retirement contributions may receive credit for such service upon repayment of refunded contributions plus interest, effective June 30, 1993; P.A. 98-197 amended Subsec. (a) by dividing Subsec. into Subdivs. and added Subdiv. (3) re eligibility of judge to receive retirement salary who has served for at least 16 years as a judge, was nominated by Governor for subsequent term but was not reappointed and has attained the age of 63, effective July 1, 1998; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1 amended Subsec. (a)(1) by adding “retiring prior to July 1, 2022,” and substituting “compensation commissioner” for “commissioner”, effective June 15, 2012.

Notation

See Sec. 31-283e re compensation commissioners' rights to elect benefits under this section.

Discussed; history of state referees. 164 C. 360.