State ex rel. Dilley v. West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System, 17967
| Decision Date | 17 November 1988 |
| Docket Number | No. 17967,17967 |
| Court | West Virginia Supreme Court |
| Parties | , 50 Ed. Law Rep. 1276 STATE of W.Va. ex rel. Everett W. DILLEY, etc. v. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM. |
Syllabus by the Court
Elected members of a county board of education are "members of the legislative body of [a] political subdivision" within the meaning of W.Va.Code, 5-10-2(6) [1985] because they are the governing body of "a school corporation" included within the definition of "political subdivision" in W.Va.Code, 5-10-2(4) [1985]; therefore, elected members of county boards of education may join the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System.
John O. Kiser, Love, Wise & Woodroe, Charleston, for Everett W. Dilley.
Charles G. Brown, Atty. Gen., Kenneth E. Knopf, Asst. Atty. Gen., for WVPERS.
The appellants are elected members and former members of county school boards in the State of West Virginia. The appellees are members of the Board of Trustees of the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System who are charged with the administration and management of the Public Employees Retirement System and have responsibility for implementing the provisions of W.Va.Code, 5-10-1 et seq.
The appellants are not members of, and have not been retired by: the State Teachers Retirement System; the Judges Retirement System; the Retirement System of the Department of Public Safety; or any retirement system for either, or both, policemen or firemen. Each of the appellants notified the Public Employees Retirement System of his intention to become a member of the system, and filed a membership enrollment form as prescribed by the Board of Trustees. Each has authorized his board of education to deduct from his compensation his contribution to the retirement fund as provided in W.Va.Code, 5-10-29(b) [1971]. The Public Employees Retirement System and its Board of Trustees has refused to enroll the appellants as members of the retirement system.
Originally, appellants sought a writ of mandamus in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County to compel the appellees to enroll them as members of the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System. The case was submitted to the circuit court upon briefs and the argument of counsel. The circuit court found, as a matter of law, that county boards of education are not "legislative bodies" within the meaning of W.Va.Code, 5-10-2(6) [1985]. Therefore, the Court held, members of county boards of education are not eligible for membership in the West Virginia Public Employees Retirement System. We must now determine whether members of boards of education are members of the legislative body of a political subdivision. We conclude that they are and reverse the circuit court.
This entire case hinges on the meaning of W.Va.Code, 5-10-2(6) [1985] which says in part:
Provided, That members of the state Legislature, the Clerk of the House of Delegates, the Clerk of the state Senate, employees of the state Legislature whose term of employment is otherwise classified as temporary and who are employed to perform services required by the Legislature for its regular sessions or during the interim between regular sessions and who have been or are so employed during regular sessions or during the interim between regular sessions for ten or more years, members of the legislative body of any political subdivision and judges of the state court of claims shall be considered to be employees, anything contained herein to the contrary notwithstanding. In any case of doubt as to who is an employee within the meaning of this article the board of trustees shall decide the question. [emphasis added]
Members of the West Virginia county commissions are permitted by the Public Employees Retirement System to enroll as members, notwithstanding that the definition of employees contained in Code, 5-10-2(6) [1985] does not specifically include members of county commissions. County commissioners qualify as members of the legislative body of a political subdivision. Appellants point out that members of boards of education as well as members of county commissions are elected by the voters of their counties at large and perform legislative functions within a political subdivision.
The term "political subdivision" is defined in W.Va.Code, 5-10-2(4) [1985] as follows:
"Political s...
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