                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

EMPLOYEES; EMPLOYMENT; PERSONNEL RULES (§ 2.2-2203.3)

A. Employees of the Authority shall be employed on such terms and conditions as
established by the Board. The Board shall develop and adopt personnel rules,
policies, and procedures to give its employees grievance rights, ensure that
employment decisions shall be based upon the merit and fitness of applicants,
and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, sexual
orientation, gender identity, or national origin.

B. Any employee of the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority who is a
member of any plan providing health insurance coverage pursuant to Chapter 28
(&#xA7; 2.2-2800 et seq.) shall continue to be a member of such health insurance
plan under the same terms and conditions. Notwithstanding subsection A of &#xA7;
2.2-2818, the costs of providing health insurance coverage to such employees who
elect to continue to be members of the state employees&#8217; health insurance
plan shall be paid by the Authority. Alternatively, an employee may elect to
become a member of any health insurance plan established by the Authority. The
Authority is authorized to (i) establish a health insurance plan for the benefit
of its employees and (ii) enter into agreements with the Department of Human
Resource Management providing for the coverage of its employees under the state
employees&#8217; health insurance plan, provided that such agreements require
the Authority to pay the costs of providing health insurance coverage under such
plan.

C. Any retired employee of the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority shall
be eligible to receive the health insurance credit set forth in &#xA7;
51.1-1400, provided the retired employee meets the eligibility criteria set
forth in that section.

D. The Authority is hereby authorized to establish one or more retirement plans
for the benefit of its employees (the Authority retirement plan). For purposes
of such plans, the provisions of § 51.1-126.4 shall apply, mutatis mutandis.
Any Authority employee who is a member of the Virginia Retirement System or
other retirement plan as authorized by Article 4 (§ 51.1-125 et seq.) of
Chapter 1 of Title 51.1 (the statutory optional retirement plan) at the time the
Authority retirement plan becomes effective shall continue to be a member of the
Virginia Retirement System or the statutory optional retirement plan under the
same terms and conditions, unless such employee elects to become a member of the
Authority retirement plan. For purposes of this subsection, the &#8220;Virginia
Retirement System&#8221; shall include any hybrid retirement program established
under Title 51.1.
			The following rules shall apply:

   1. The Authority shall collect and pay all employee and employer contributions
   to the Virginia Retirement System or the statutory optional retirement plan
   for retirement and group life insurance in accordance with the provisions of
   Chapter 1 (&#xA7; 51.1-124.1 et seq.) of Title 51.1 for any employee who
   elects to remain a member of the Virginia Retirement System or a statutory
   optional retirement plan.

   2. Employees who elect to become members of the Authority retirement plan
   shall be given full credit for their creditable service as defined in &#xA7;
   51.1-124.3 and vesting and benefit accrual under the Authority retirement
   plan. For any such employee, employment with the Authority shall be treated as
   employment with any nonparticipating employer for purposes of the Virginia
   Retirement System or any statutory optional retirement plan.

   3. For employees who elect to become members of the Authority retirement plan,
   the Virginia Retirement System or the statutory optional retirement plan, as
   applicable, shall transfer to the Authority retirement plan assets equal to
   the actuarially determined present value of the accrued basic benefits for
   such employees as of the transfer date. For purposes hereof, &#8220;basic
   benefits&#8221; means the benefits accrued under the Virginia Retirement
   System or under the statutory optional retirement plan based on creditable
   service and average final compensation as defined in &#xA7; 51.1-124.3. The
   actuarial present value shall be determined by using the same actuarial
   factors and assumptions used in determining the funding needs of the Virginia
   Retirement System or the statutory optional retirement plan so that the
   transfer of assets to the Authority retirement plan will have no effect on the
   funded status and financial stability of the Virginia Retirement System or the
   statutory optional retirement plan. The Authority shall reimburse the Virginia
   Retirement System for the cost of actuarial services necessary to determine
   the present value of the accrued basic benefit of employees who transfer to an
   Authority retirement plan.

   4. The Authority may provide that employees of the Authority who are eligible
   to participate in any deferred compensation plan sponsored by the Authority
   shall be enrolled automatically in such plan, unless such employee elects, in
   a manner prescribed by the Board of the Authority, not to participate. The
   amount of the deferral under the automatic enrollment and the group of
   employees to which the automatic enrollment shall apply shall be set by the
   Board, provided, however, that such employees are provided the opportunity to
   increase or decrease the amount of the deferral in accordance with the
   Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

E. The Authority is hereby authorized to establish a plan providing short-term
disability and long-term disability benefits for its employees.

HISTORY: 2012, cc. 779, 817; 2020, c. 1137.