Oregon PERS

Our team for almost a half century has actively educated and currently advises employee participants in the Oregon Public Employee Retirement System or PERS as they approach retirement.  As a result, these PERS employees confidently make better decisions about their pension options, individual account program investments, and retirement account rollovers. We are always abreast with recent legislation and ways in which it will impact the long term decision you will make in retiring from the state. We take a comprehensive approach in looking at all aspects of your financial picture.  How will your PERS pension affect Social Security, IRA's and any other planning needs you will have?  Contact one of our team members to do a review.

This is the most difficult and biggest decision you will make that will affect the rest of your life.

What differentiates our team from other advisors is our expertise with the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). We know more about PERS than if you called PERS themselves and asked them questions.

Every two years when it is an odd year, the Oregon legislature meets and decides whether to make any changes to the system. As this is happening, our team makes sure that we are reading the House and Senate bills to understand what is coming. From there, we run seminars based on the legislative updates to inform PERS employees what to expect going forward.

We emphasize to PERS employees that what they decide to do with their pension is going to affect them for the rest of their lives. After 60 days of their decision, they cannot make any changes to their election. It can be an intimidating process for them, that is why our team is there to help guide them along and to make sure they make the best choice for themselves. From filling an estimate request to getting the actual paper estimate and going over pros and cons of each option.

We look at all the pieces of the puzzle, not just only the PERS pension. Do they have other retirement accounts/income? (403Bs, IRAs, Social Security, rental income, etc.). We go over a financial plan and explain how it will all fit together. Any other advisor you meet, will not look at the entire picture, we will. No PERS employee should ever make a final decision on their pension option without us!

PERS or The Public Employees Retirement System is the retirement and disability fund for public employees throughout the great state of Oregon. Established in 1946, employees of the state, school districts, and local governments are eligible for coverage.

A health insurance plan for covered retirees was added to the program in 1987. The program is administered by a twelve-member board of trustees, appointed to three-year terms by the Governor subject to confirmation by the Senate, which also administers the Oregon Savings Growth Plan, a voluntary deferred compensation plan established in 1991.

If you qualify for this program, it is likely you are already contributing to it.

For more information on PERS please follow the button below to Oregon's information page on PERS.

This quick reference guide will tell most PERS eligible employees what tier fall into. If your tier is not clear from these guidelines, please follow the link below to Oregon's information page on PERS tiers or use the button at the bottom the page to reach out to us for further help!

Tier 1

-Hired prior to 1/1/1996

Tier 2

-Hired between 1/1/1996 and 8/28/2003

OPSRP (Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan)

-Hired after 8/28/2003

PERS will only allow you to order an estimate if you are within 2 years of age 55 (early retirement) or within 2 years of having 30 years of service.  Having a "paper" estimate is the ONLY way you can purchase back waiting or forfeited time so please push the button below to request an estimate.  Keep in mind, the further out you are requesting, the longer the wait will be to receive it in the mail to you.  

Follow the button below to the PERS estimate request form!

IAP

Or Individual Account Program is an account-based benefit for all Tier 1, Tier 2, and OPSRP state employees who have been working in a qualifying position since 1/1/2004. These accounts grow based on a portion of your salary allocated to the IAP.

Current legislation from 2019 has reduced these benefits so please call us for more information and how it impacts you. (started July 1 2020)

IAP Distribution at retirement

You have options when choosing how to roll over your IAP balance. These include:

-Traditional IRA

-Eligible Employer Plan

-457 deferred compensation plan

Beyond these options, you can also elect to receive your IAP as either a lump-sum payment, in equal installments over a set period of years, or over your expected lifetime. For a better understanding of your distribution options and what would be best for your situation, we encourage you to consult our team. We have included a button below that will help you estimate your IAP payment calculation based on factors you input.

If a retired member receiving IAP payments passes away, the beneficiary is entitled to receive the remaining installments as a lump sum or in installments.

We are now registered to be able to help serve your needs with your 457 plan through the PCRA (personal choice retirment account) self directed funds with Voya via Charles Schwab. Want better performance and personal advice?  Let us know how we can help you and show you the benefits of the self directed options with OSGP.