Under what circumstances would a pension benefit be paid?

     A firefighter’s spouse will receive a pension benefit if the firefighter dies or sustains injuries which result in death while in the performance of his or her duties and as a result of an accident while responding to or returning from an alarm or fire or any emergency, or as the result of an accident involving a fire department vehicle which the firefighter is operating or in which the firefighter is riding, or while at the scene of a fire or any emergency.

     A police officer’s spouse will receive a pension benefit if the officer is killed or sustains injuries that result in death while in the performance of his or her duties and as a result of an assault on his/her person or an accident involving a police department vehicle that the officer is operating or in which the officer is riding.

     A corrections officer’s spouse will receive a pension benefit if the officer is killed or sustains injuries which cause death as a result of an assault while in the performance of his or her duties.

Pension Benefit

What is the amount of the pension?

     Such spouses would receive a pension equal to the amount of regular compensation the member would have received had he/she been receiving the maximum salary for his/her position at the time of his/her death. Such a pension will be adjusted in accordance with any salary increases granted for the position.

     If the spouse dies, then a surviving child or children will be eligible to receive 72% of the pension the spouse had been receiving on the date of remarriage or death as well as $312 in additional pension per child. Children’s eligibility will continue until age 18 or until age 21 if fulltime students in an accredited educational institution and continue for children who are mentally and physically incapacitated from earning.

Return of Accumulated Deductions

Who will receive the member’s accumulated deductions?

     The accumulated deductions and related interest would be paid in one sum to the member’s surviving beneficiary-of-record, or if there is no beneficiary living, then to the person or persons appearing in the judgment of the board to be entitled thereto.

Lump Sum Benefit

     If a firefighter, public prosecutor, police officer or corrections officer is killed in the line of duty and as a result of incident, accident or violence or sustains injuries that are the direct and proximate cause of death, his/her family members are entitled to a one-time award of $100,000.

Which family members would be entitled to this lump sum benefit?

     The surviving spouse of such a firefighter, public prosecutor, police officer or corrections officer, or, if there is no surviving spouse, the child or children, or, if there is no surviving child, the parent or parents would be entitled to this benefit.

Who administers this benefit?

     The State Board of Retirement administers and pays this benefit for all members, regardless of which retirement system a member is enrolled in at the time of death.