OK SB347

Municipal officers or employees convicted of, or pleading guilty/nolo contendere to, felonies for bribery, corruption, forgery, perjury, or other crimes related to their official duties must forfeit retirement benefits

Forfeiture applies to crimes committed while in office even if conviction occurs after leaving employment, and does not apply if the individual receives a deferred sentence (though benefits cannot begin until the deferred sentence is completed)

Employee contributions to the retirement system and benefits already vested before the act's effective date are protected from forfeiture

Forfeiture ceases if the conviction is reversed by the highest applicable appellate court

The prosecuting attorney must notify the retirement system of the forfeiture, which then suspends benefits and provides the officer/employee a hearing to review whether the conviction qualifies for forfeiture; applies to municipal retirement systems, Oklahoma Firefighters Pension, Oklahoma Police Pension, and Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System