Section 40 ILCS 5/9-179.3 - Optional plan of additional benefits and contributions(a) While this plan is in effect, an employee may establish additional optional credit for additional optional benefits by electing in writing at any time to make additional optional contributions. The employee may discontinue making the additional optional contributions at any time by notifying the fund in writing. (b) Additional optional contributions for the additional optional benefits shall be as follows: (1) For service after the option is elected, an additional contribution of 3% of salary shall be contributed to the fund on the same basis and under the same conditions as contributions required under Sections 9-170 and 9-176. (2) For service before the option is elected, an additional contribution of 3% of the salary for the applicable period of service, plus interest at the effective rate from the date of service to the date of payment. All payments for past service must be paid in full before credit is given. No additional optional contributions may be made for any period of service for which credit has been previously forfeited by acceptance of a refund, unless the refund is repaid in full with interest at the effective rate from the date of refund to the date of repayment. (c) Additional optional benefits shall accrue for all periods of eligible service for which additional contributions are paid in full. The additional benefit shall consist of an additional 1% for each year of service for which optional contributions have been paid, based on the highest average annual salary for any 4 consecutive years within the last 10 years of service immediately preceding the date of withdrawal, to be added to the employee retirement annuity benefits as otherwise computed under this Article. The calculation of these additional benefits shall be subject to the same terms and conditions as are used in the calculation of retirement annuity under Section 9-134. The additional benefit shall be included in the calculation of the automatic annual increase in annuity, and in the calculation of widow's annuity, where applicable. However no additional benefits will be granted which produce a total annuity greater than the applicable maximum established for that type of annuity in this Article, and additional benefits shall not apply to any benefit computed under Section 9-128.1. (d) Refunds of additional optional contributions shall be made on the same basis and under the same conditions as provided under Sections 9-164, 9-166 and 9-167. Interest shall be credited at the effective rate on the same basis and under the same conditions as for other contributions. (f) The tax levy, computed under Section 9-169, shall be based on employee contributions including the amount of optional additional employee contributions. (g) Service eligible under this Section may include only service as an employee of the County as defined in Section 9-108, and subject to Sections 9-219 and 9-220. No service granted under Section 9-121.1, 9-121.4 or 9-179.2 shall be eligible for optional service credit. No optional service credit may be established for any military service, or for any service under any other Article of this Code. Optional service credit may be established for any period of disability paid from this fund, if the employee makes additional optional contributions for such periods of disability. (h) This plan of optional benefits and contributions shall not apply to any former county employee receiving an annuity from the fund, who re-enters service as a County employee, unless he renders at least 3 years of additional service after the date of re-entry. (i) The effective date of the optional plan of additional benefits and contributions shall be July 1, 1985, or the date upon which approval is received from the Internal Revenue Service, whichever is later. (j) This plan of additional benefits and contributions shall expire July 1, 2005. No additional contributions may be made after that date, and no additional benefits will accrue after that date.Amended by P.A. 095-0369,§ 5, eff. 8/23/2007. P.A. 90-32, eff. 6-27-97; 90-460, eff. 8-17-97; 92-599, eff. 6-28-02.