Retirement Payment Options

Single Life Benefit

A single life benefit provides a monthly benefit for your lifetime. There is no continuing income for your spouse or beneficiary, except that if you die before the first 60 monthly payments have been made, your spouse or beneficiary will receive any outstanding payments until a total of 60 payments have been made. With this benefit option your monthly income equals your total monthly benefit less any reduction for early retirement (if applicable). The example below illustrates how to calculate a single life benefit.

For additional information about a single life benefit, please see Article 6.6.

Joint and Survivor Benefit

If you are married when you retire, you may want a benefit option that provides an income to your spouse after you die (this payment option is also available if you are single). The following three joint and survivor benefit options are available. Joint and survivor factors are listed in Table 7.

50% Joint and Survivor Benefit

With this benefit option you receive a monthly benefit for life and, if you die before your spouse or other designated beneficiary, he or she receives 50% of that amount for his or her life. Your monthly income is your total monthly benefit less the appropriate reduction for early retirement (if applicable), less the appropriate reduction for the survivor benefit. The example on page 45 illustrates how to calculate this joint and survivor option.

75% Joint and Survivor Benefit (replaced the 66-2/3% Option effective xx/xx/xxxx)

With this benefit option you receive a monthly benefit for life and, if you die before your spouse or other designated beneficiary, he or she receives 75% of that amount for his or her life. Your monthly income is your total benefit less the appropriate reduction for early retirement (if applicable), less the appropriate reduction for the survivor benefit. The example below illustrates how to calculate this joint and survivor option.

100% Joint and Survivor Benefit

With this benefit option you receive a monthly benefit for life and, if you die before your spouse or other designated beneficiary, he or she receives 100% of that amount for his or her life. Your monthly income is your total monthly benefit less the appropriate reduction for early retirement (if applicable), less the appropriate reduction for the survivor benefit. The example below illustrates how to calculate this joint and survivor option.

Pop-Up Benefit

If you begin receiving one of the joint and survivor benefits and your spouse or other designated beneficiary pre-deceases you, your monthly income is increased to the amount that would have been payable with a single life benefit on your retirement effective date. This increase is effective for the month following your spouse or other designated beneficiary’s death.

Similarly, if you and your spouse divorce after you begin receiving one of the joint and survivor benefits, and your spouse agrees in a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) to relinquish all of his or her rights to your retirement benefits, your benefit is increased to the amount that would have been available under a single life benefit on your retirement effective date. This increase is effective for the month following the effective date in the provision of the QDRO that specifies the relinquishment.

If you receive either of these pop-up benefits, there is no five year guarantee (no survivor benefits to any beneficiary after your death).

For additional information about the pop-up benefit, please see Article 6.5 and Article 6.9.