Beneficiaries are individuals designated by an ERSRI member to receive survivor and/or death benefits after his or her death. It is important for members to keep their account updated, including beneficiary information. To designate or update your beneficiary, use the link below.

Whether you are active, deferred or retired, having your correct address, phone number and email address is very important to us so we can keep in contact with you. Use the link below to learn more about updating your address with ERSRI.

If you leave your job and terminate employment with a participating employer but are vested in the system (currently 5 years of contributing service), you may begin collecting your pension benefit when you meet your retirement eligibility criteria — as long as you do not withdraw your contributions.

In some cases, your eligibility date may be adjusted if you leave employment prior to reaching your full retirement date. However, your benefit will be the same as it was the day you terminated employment. There are options to receive your benefit prior to reaching your full eligibility date but those options require a reduction of your benefit (see the discussion of Transition Rules in the sections above).

It is important to know that once you leave active employment, ERSRI will not automatically begin sending your pension benefit when you reach you full retirement eligibility date. It is your responsibility to notify ERSRI when you become eligible and to fill out a retirement application approximately three to six months before your eligible retirement date.

If you are not vested in the system (less than 5 years of contributing service) you can take a refund of your pension contributions without interest. You can roll this money over into a qualified retirement account or take the refund as cash. You should be aware that if you take a refund of your contributions as cash you will be subject to mandatory tax withholding and may incur additional tax penalties for early withdrawal. Always consult a tax professional when considering this option.

State employees, teachers, and municipal employees who were not eligible to retire as of June 30, 2012 have the option of retiring under a transition rule if they meet all the applicable criteria. If you are considering retiring under one of the transition rules, we strongly encourage you to contact ERSRI and speak to a Retirement Counselor to verify your eligibility for early retirement before terminating your employment.

• Transition Rule 1: If you have 20 or more years of service and are within 5 years of eligibility from your full benefit retirement date, or 5 years from your full retirement age, you may retire early with a permanent reduction in your benefit amount. Note: For Correctional Officers and BHDDH nurses Transition Rule 1 would only be applicable in cases where they are retiring under state employee retirement eligibility rules.

  Early Retirement Reduction
  Year(s) from full retirement	Percent Reduction	Cumulative Reduction
  1	9%	9%
  2	8%	17%
  3	7%	24%
  4	7%	31%
  5	7%	38%

• Transition Rule 2: If you earned at least 10 years of contributory service as of June 30, 2012, this rule provides you an additional option for an earlier retirement date. This rule does not allow you to retire earlier than the eligibility date determined under the laws in effect on June 30, 2012. An employee who elects this option will receive a Defined Benefit Plan benefit which is calculated using their service credit and highest average compensation as of June 30, 2012. If you elect this option, you will not receive retirement credit for any service and compensation earned after July 1, 2012.

• Transition Rule 3 (Police and Fire MERS only): If you earned at least 10 years of contributory service as of June 30, 2012 AND you were age 45 prior to 7/1/2012 AND you would have been eligible to retire at or prior to age 52 in accordance with the rules in effect prior to 7/1/2012, this rule provides you an additional option for an earlier retirement date without a benefit reduction. If you meet the criteria, you are eligible to retire at age 52.

It is extremely important that all parties comply with the requirements below in order to avoid delays in processing a retirement benefit to a Participant and/or the Alternate Payee. This information is strictly limited to the Defined Benefit portion of your pension.

For information on the division of the Defined Contribution portion of your pension, please contact TIAA at www.tiaa.org or call (800) 842-2252.

Once a member is divorced, a copy of the Final Judgment of Divorce and Property or Marital Settlement Agreement should be sent to ERSRI for placement in the member’s file. The Alternate Payee or a lawyer can request the Participant’s pension information and it will be disclosed once ERSRI receives a release signed by the Participant or a Subpoena, or the information will be provided to the Participant. To obtain this information, please contact our Internal Legal Counsel at (401) 462-7616. Once a QDRO has been drafted, it must be sent to ERSRI for review. Please note that a Participant who is planning to retire will not be able to begin collecting a pension benefit until a QDRO is reviewed and approved by ERSRI.

After the QDRO has been reviewed and approved by ERSRI, confirming correspondence will be sent to the lawyer who originally submitted it. The QDRO must then be entered with the Court.

Once entered, a certified copy of the QDRO, along with a copy of the Final Judgment of Divorce and Property or Marital Settlement Agreement if it was not previously submitted, must be returned to ERSRI for placement in the Participant’s file to be implemented at the time of the Participant’s retirement, death, or other termination of service, or if the Participant is already retired, when the QDRO is received by ERSRI.

In addition, a new beneficiary nomination form must be completed by the Participant. The form must include the name of the former spouse as well as one or more beneficiaries and be consistent with the order. The beneficiary nomination forms are available on the ERSRI Forms page.

ERSRI multiplies your Service Credit Factor by your Final Average Salary to determine your annual pension benefit amount. Depending on your schedule, the maximum percentage of your Final Average Salary (FAS) you are able to receive as a service retirement benefit will be either 75% or 80%.

If you worked after June 30, 2012 for an employer participating in ERSRI and have funds on deposit with TIAA, please remember to update your TIAA beneficiary information as well. To change your beneficiary online, login to your TIAA account. If you need further assistance with your TIAA beneficiary designation, please contact TIAA at (800) 842-2252.