AR SB150

Members or retirants forfeit retirement benefits if they plead guilty or are found guilty of a public trust crime while holding public office in Arkansas.

Beneficiaries forfeit benefits if they are convicted of unlawfully killing the member or retirant, or if they are convicted of a public trust crime while holding public office (with an exception for certain retirement system participants).

Retirement systems must refund employee contributions accumulated with interest to forfeiting members, retirants, or their estates, either as a lump-sum payment or in monthly installments.

If a conviction is appealed and reversed, the retirement system may resume benefit payments upon repayment of accumulated contributions with interest; if the conviction is affirmed on appeal, benefits remain forfeited.

The act applies only prospectively to members or retirants who begin making contributions after the law's enactment, not retroactively to existing participants.