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CONNECTICUT STATE EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM
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WHEN YOU MAY RETIRE AND RECEIVE BENEFITS
Normal Retirement
Your normal retirement date will be the first of any month on or after you are age 60 if you have at least 25 years of vesting service, age 62 if you have at least 10 but less than 25 years of vesting service. If you sever your state service on or after July 1, 1997, your normal retirement date will be the first of any month on or after you are age 62 if you have at least 5 years of actual state service.
Age 70 Retirement
You may retire on the first of any month on or following your 70th birthday, if you have at least five years of vesting service. If you leave state service with less than five years of vesting service at age 70 or older, no retirement benefits are payable.
Early Retirement
If you have at least 10 years of vesting service, you can receive retirement benefits if you retire on the first of any month on or following your 55th birthday.
Hazardous Duty Retirement
You may retire with a benefit on the first of any month after you have completed 20 years of credited service while a hazardous duty member.
The time you are away from your hazardous duty job because of an approved eligible leave of absence, military service or qualifying nonstate employment may count toward your years of credited service as a hazardous duty member provided:
For detectives, chief inspectors or inspectors in the Division of Criminal Justice or chief detectives in any other division, certain prior service as a sworn member of a municipal police department, if purchased, can count toward the twenty year minimum requirement for hazardous duty benefits, under certain circumstances.
Disability Retirement
If you become permanently disabled and have 10 years of vesting service, you may be eligible for disability retirement benefits. If your disability is job related, you may receive benefits regardless of your years of service. Note: Prior military service cannot be used for eligibility or calculation purposes for a disability retirement.
Vested Rights Retirement
Your state employment may end before you are eligible for immediate retirement benefits. You will have earned a permanent vested right to a retirement benefit if you have at least 5 years of actual state service or 10 years of vesting service at the time you leave. Refer to the section entitled "Vested Rights Retirement" for information on the age at which you may begin to receive your benefit.
YOUR BENEFIT IS BASED ON A FORMULA
Eligibility Requirements
If you retire on or after August 1, 1997, you are eligible for normal retirement benefits on the first of any month on which or after you attain:
OR
OR
You may retire with Age 70 retirement benefits on the first of any month on or following your 70th birthday with at least 5 years of vesting service.
The Benefit Formula
For retirement income calculation purposes, your credited service is used in the formula.
Your basic annual retirement benefit equals:
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Keep in mind your credited service includes fractions of a year, based on completed months of service. The above chart provides you with your annual benefit. To determine what your basic monthly benefit will be, divide your annual retirement by 12.
If you retire in the first six months of the year, your benefit will not be less than the benefit you would have received had you retired on the previous December 31st.
An Example
Suppose you retire March 1, 2002 at age 63. Let's assume your average salary equals $44,500 and you have 10 years of credited service, composed of 8 years of actual state service and 2 years of credited prior military service.
Here's how your basic annual benefit is figured:
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Please note: in this example, the breakpoint for 2002 is $34,300.
Therefore, your average salary ($44,500) in excess of the year's breakpoint ($34,300) equals $10,200.
Your basic monthly retirement income will be $535.71 (6,428.50 � 12 months).
YOU MAY RETIRE WITH A BENEFIT IF YOU HAVE 10 YEARS OF VESTING SERVICE AND ARE AT LEAST AGE 55
How Your Benefit is Figured
Your basic early retirement benefit is first figured with the same formula used for a normal retirement benefit. Your average salary and years of credited service, as of your early retirement date, are used in the calculations.
Your basic normal benefit amount is then reduced by one-quarter of one percent (.0025) for each month you retire prior to your attaining age 60 if you have at least 25 years vesting service, or age 62 if you have at least 10 but less than 25 years vesting service.
These reductions are required because your benefits are expected to be paid over a longer time period.
An Example
Suppose you retire effective March 1, 2002 on your 60th birthday with at least 10 but less than 25 years of vesting service. Let's assume your basic monthly benefit at normal retirement would be $530.00. This basic benefit would then be reduced by one quarter of one percent for each month you receive a benefit before your 62nd birthday, as follows:
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Your basic early retirement benefit at age 60 would be $498.20 per month.
YOU MAY RETIRE WITH A BENEFIT AT ANY AGE IF YOU HAVE 20 YEARS OF HAZARDOUS DUTY SERVICE
Definition Of Hazardous Duty
You are considered a hazardous duty member if you are an employee working:
How Your Benefit Is Figured
If you qualify for a hazardous duty retirement, your basic annual benefit will be calculated as follows:
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To determine what your basic monthly income would be, divide your basic annual retirement income by 12.
Remember, you must have at least 20 years of credited service as a hazardous duty member to receive this retirement benefit.
An Example
Let's suppose you are retiring with 23 years of credited service in a hazardous duty position. Assume your average salary equals $48,000.
Here's how your basic annual benefit is figured:
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Your basic monthly retirement benefit would be $2,240 ($26,880 � 12).
Special Rules
Hazardous duty members are required to make the appropriate contributions in order to receive hazardous duty retirement credit for qualifying military leave without pay and personal medical and family leave granted pursuant to Section 5-248a or the terms of a collective bargaining agreement as well as paid state employment in a designated hazardous duty classification. Hazardous duty members who terminate their employment, withdraw their hazardous duty contributions and are later reemployed in a designated hazardous duty position must restore their refunded contributions and interest in order to receive hazardous duty retirement credit for their prior service provided there has not been a permanent break in service.
Withdrawal Of Hazardous Duty Contributions
If you are not eligible for any retirement benefits when you leave state service, you may withdraw your hazardous duty retirement contributions. This withdrawal will include interest at 5% per year credited from the July 1st following the commencement of contributions to the July 1st coincident with or preceding the date you leave state service. If you do not withdraw your contributions and you do not return to state service within five years, we will assume that you want a refund and a refund application will be sent to you. After you complete the form and return it to us, we will send you your contributions and interest. If we cannot locate you within ten years after your employment ends, your contributions will become part of the retirement fund.
If you leave state service before qualifying for hazardous duty retirement benefits you may, if eligible to do so, receive early, normal, age 70, or vested retirement benefits. Your hazardous duty contributions and awarded interest will be refunded to you following your early, normal, age 70, or vested rights retirement. Upon written request, terminated vested members may receive a refund of their contributions and interest before their retirement benefits begin. Hazardous duty members who retire on disability retirement are not entitled to a refund of their hazardous duty contributions.
YOU MAY RECEIVE RETIREMENT BENEFITS IF YOU BECOME PERMANENTLY DISABLED
Definition Of Disability
At first, disabled means you are permanently unable to perform the duties of your job. After you have received disability benefits for 24 months, you are considered disabled only if you are totally unable to work at any suitable and comparable job. Your disability may be service-connected or non service-connected.
The determination of eligibility for state disability retirement benefits is made by the Retirement Medical Examining Board. The Board will base its decision on the pertinent medical evidence you provide. It is important that you submit the treating physician's narrative reports as well as diagnostic test and hospital summaries and any other relevant information of ongoing care for the condition on which your application is based. The Board will conduct a hearing in connection with your disability retirement application at which oral testimony may be given. After you have received benefits for 24 months the Board will conduct another review.
For individualized information you may contact your agency Personnel or Payroll Officer, or the Retirement Services Division Counseling Services Unit.
How Your Benefit Is Figured
To be eligible for a non service-connected disability retirement you must have at least ten years vesting service. There is no minimum service requirement for a service-connected disability retirement. Please remember that prior military service cannot be used for eligibility or calculation purposes for a disability retirement.
If you qualify for a disability retirement, the following formula is used to compute your basic annual benefit:
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To determine what your basic monthly benefit will be, divide by 12.
An Example
Assume you become disabled in 2005 at age 50. You have 10 years of credited service and your average salary is $45,000.
Here's how your basic annual benefit will be figured:
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Your basic disability retirement benefit would be $1,289.58 each month ($15,475.00 � 12).
Maximum Benefits
During your disability retirement you may receive these other forms of income:
The total amount you may receive from the first three sources, combined with your Tier II benefit, cannot be more than 80% of your average salary or 80% of your salary at the time of disability, if higher.
If your total benefits exceed the 80% maximum, your Tier II benefit will be reduced. The reduction will be the amount needed to bring the benefit total down to the 80% maximum.
Suppose you also earn income from a job. In this case, your total income (from Tier II, Workers' Compensation, Disability Compensation, Social Security Disability, and the job combined) cannot exceed 100% of your average salary or 100% of your salary at the time of disability, if higher. If your income exceeds this 100% maximum, your Tier II benefit will be reduced. The reduction will be the amount needed to bring the total down to the 100% maximum.
The Retirement Commission may approve your job as being rehabilitative; that is, being helpful to your recovery. If so, your Tier II benefit will not be reduced based on your salary from that job.
If both the 80% and 100% maximum amounts apply, the formula paying the smaller benefit will be used.
Guarantee Of Minimum Disability Retirement Benefit
Of note, you should be aware that your combined income including disability retirement benefits, any Social Security payments, certain Workers' Compensation payments limited to temporary total and temporary partial payments, and Disability Compensation benefits under Section 5-142 of the Connecticut General Statutes cannot be less than sixty percent of your rate of salary at the time your disability occurred.
Remember, however, that you will always receive the 60% minimum guaranteed amount if it is higher than the amount provided by the basic formulas or the maximum benefits described above.
If You Recover
All disability retirement benefits will end if you recover from your condition before your normal retirement date. You will receive credit for the period of time you were receiving Tier II disability benefits. The total number of years including the time you worked and the period you were receiving the disability benefits is subject to a maximum of 30 years. However, if your service at time of disability is greater than 30, you will receive credit for your total years of service before your disability.
Special Note
In the event that the Retirement Medical Examining Board determines that you are not permanently disabled from performing your job duties, the agency where you were last actively employed will be required to return you to employment, if you so choose. This assumes there are no other employment related reasons for your separation.
YOU BECOME VESTED AFTER 5 YEARS OF ACTUAL STATE SERVICE OR 10 YEARS OF VESTING SERVICE
If You Leave Before Retirement
Your state employment may end before you are eligible for immediate retirement benefits. You will have earned a permanent vested right to a retirement benefit if you have at least 5 years of actual state service or 10 years of vesting service at the time you leave.
How Your Benefit Is Figured
If you leave with at least 5 but less than 10 years of actual state service, and you have not accrued 10 years of vesting service, you may:
If you leave with at least 10 years of vesting service, you may:
OR
Your benefits will depend on:
You should contact your last employing agency's Personnel Office to request the preparation of an application for vested rights retirement benefits at time of termination or shortly thereafter even though the effective date of your benefits may be years in the future. Your application, accompanied by a confirmation of active health insurance form and a copy of your birth certificate, should be directed to the Retirement Services Division. You should also advise the Retirement Services Division, in writing, of any address changes that follow your severance from state service.