966                                        LAWS OF MARYLAND                                Ch. 459

(4)   "Member" shall mean any employee included in the membership of the
Retirement System as provided in § 51 of this subtitle.

(5)   "Board of trustees" shall mean the board provided for in § 54 of this
subtitle to administer the Retirement System.

(6)  "Medical board" shall mean the board of physicians provided for in § 54 of
this subtitle.

(7)  "Service" shall mean service as an employee paid for by the State.

(8)    "Prior service" shall mean service rendered prior to the date of
establishment of the Retirement System, for which credit is allowable under § 52
of this subtitle.

(9)  "Membership service" shall mean service as an employee rendered while a
member of the Retirement System.

(10)  "Creditable service" shall mean prior service plus membership service for
which credit is allowable as provided in § 52 of this subtitle.

(11)  "Beneficiary" shall mean any person in receipt of a pension, an annuity, a
retirement allowance, or other benefits as provided by this subtitle.

(12)  "Regular interest" for the Annuity Savings Fund shall mean interest at the
rate of four per centum per annum compounded annually for members who
became such on or before June 30, 1955; and for all other members shall mean
interest at a rate per centum per annum compounded annually as may be set from
time to time by the board with a minimum rate of three per centum per annum
and a maximum rate of four per centum per annum. "Regular interest" for the
[Annuity Reserve Fund, the Pension Accumulation Fund and the Pension Reserve
Fund] PURPOSES OF THE ACTUARIAL VALUATIONS shall mean interest
at such rate as may be set from time to time by the board of trustees in
accordance with § 55, subsection (2) of this article, as amended from time to time.

(13)   "Accumulated contributions" shall mean the sum of all the amounts
deducted from the compensation of a member and credited to his individual
account in the Annuity Savings Fund, together with regular interest thereon, as
provided in § 56 of this subtitle, and all amounts contributed by the State as
provided in § 57 of this subtitle.

(14)  "Earnable compensation" shall mean the full rate of compensation that
would be payable to an employee if he worked the full normal working time for his
position, including any additional compensation based upon period of service, but
shall not include maintenance.

(15)   "Average final compensation" shall mean the average annual earnable
compensation of an employee during the three years of service as an employee,
during which his earnable compensation was highest or if he had less than three
years of service, then his average earnable compensation for his total service.
Effective July 1, 1971, the provisions of this subsection shall be applicable to
members who retired after July 1, 1970, as well as to those members who retire on
or after July 1, 1971. Effective July 1, 1972, the provisions of this subsection shall
be applicable to those members who retired on or prior to July 1, 1970.

In the determination of average final compensation, any extraordinary salary
increase in the last year prior to retirement shall be excluded, and the board of
trustees by a rule of general application shall determine what constitutes an
extraordinary salary increase.