Your Annual LRS Benefit is equal to
4.02% of highest annual compensation as a member of the General Assembly
X (multiplied by)
your years and months of creditable service
Retirement Formula Definitions
HIGHEST ANNUAL COMPENSATION is the 12 consecutive months of salary authorized during your final legislative term for the highest position you ever held as a member of the General Assembly.
CREDITABLE SERVICE is the total of all service credit that counts toward retirement. It includes membership service for any period you contribute to LRS, provided you have not withdrawn your contributions. It also includes credit for eligible purchased service.
The law provides that your initial maximum allowance cannot exceed 75 percent of your highest annual compensation as a member of the General Assembly
Calculation Examples
| Step 1 | Example | ||
| Write in your highest annual compensation | $____________ | $20,659 | |
| Step 2 | |||
| Step 1 AFC | $____________ | $143,624.00 | |
| Multiply Step 1 by the accrual rate | x .0402 | ||
| Total | $____________ | $830.49 | |
| Step 3 | |||
| Determine your creditable service | ____________ | 20 years | |
| Step 4 | |||
| Calculate your annual benefit* by multiplying Step 2 by Step 3 | Step 2 Total | $____________ | $830.49 |
| Step 3 Years | x ___________ | 20 years | |
| Preliminary Annual Benefit | $____________ | $16,609.80 | |
| Step 5 | |||
| Calculate your monthly benefit* by dividing Step 4 by 12 | Step 4 Preliminary Annual Benefit | $____________ | $16,609.80 |
| divide by 12 | /12 | ||
| Preliminary Monthly Benefit | $____________ | $1.384.15 |
| Test for Maximum Benefit | |||
| Calculate your maximum annual benefit by multiplying Step 1 by 75% | Highest Annual Compensation | $____________ | $20,659 |
| x.75 | |||
| Maximum Annual Benefit | $____________ | $15,494.25 | |
| Calculate your maximum monthly benefit | /12 | ||
| Maximum Monthly Benefit | $____________ | $1,291.19 | |
| Your monthly benefit amount will be the Maximum Monthly Benefit Amount or the Preliminary Monthly Benefit Amount, whichever is lower. | |||
These amounts are estimates of the payment you will receive each month before taxes or any other deductions. Remember, if you retire early, these numbers will change.
Log in to your ORBIT account to Create a Custom Benefit Estimate.
Your age at retirement is an important factor in determining your monthly benefit.
If you do not meet the requirements for a full-service retirement, you may still retire early, but you will receive a reduced monthly benefit for your lifetime. If you retire prior to age 65 or completion of 24 years of creditable service, you will receive a reduced benefit. The percentage reduction is based on your age at retirement or the difference between your creditable service and 24 years. For example, if you have 19 years of service (five years difference between 19 and 24), and you are 60 years old, your benefit would be reduced to 85 percent of your maximum allowance.
Your age at retirement is an important factor in determining your monthly benefit. If you do not meet the requirements for a full-service retirement, you may still retire early, but you will receive a reduced monthly benefit for your lifetime.
If you are between ages 60 and 65, your early retirement benefit will be reduced to the percentages shown in the table below. If you are between birthdays when payments start, the reduction will be adjusted proportionately.
| If you are this age when payments start, | you receive this percentage of your benefit. |
| 64 | 97% |
| 63 | 94% |
| 62 | 91% |
| 61 | 88% |
| 60 | 85% |
If you are between ages 50 and 59, with at least 20 years of creditable service, your early retirement will be reduced to the percentages shown in the table below.
| AGE | Years of Creditable Service | |||||||||
| 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 20 | |
| 59 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% |
| 58 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 75% | 75% | 75% | 75% | 75% |
| 57 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 70% | 70% | 70% | 70% |
| 56 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 65% | 65% | 65% |
| 55 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 60% | 60% |
| 54 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 55% | 55% |
| 53 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 55% | 52% |
| 52 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 55% | 50% |
| 51 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 55% | 50% |
| 50 | 95% | 90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | 70% | 65% | 60% | 55% | 50% |
The chart above uses whole numbers for years of service and age as a reference. When you retire, your creditable service will be adjusted based on age and service in years and months
Let’s assume the member decides to take early retirement at age 61 with 16 years of service and the highest annual compensation is $20,659. Here is how we calculate the benefit
| Here is how we calculate this benefit |
| (Highest Annual Final Compensation) $20,659 |
| (accrual rate) x 0.402 |
| $830.49 |
| (creditable service) x 16 |
| $13,287.84 |
| Now, apply the early retirement reduction percentage |
| $13,287.84 |
| (percentage at age 61) x 0.88 |
| $11,693.30 |
In this case, the member receives a benefit under the maximum allowance of $11,693.30 a year ($974.44 a month). The member's payment will start at age 61 and continue for the rest of the member's life.
The member elects to retire at age 65 with 20 years of creditable service. The highest annual compensation is $20,659 and the beneficiary is age 60. The member has earned a service retirement benefit of $1,291.19 a month payable for life.
The chart below shows how much a member and beneficiary would each receive under the various payment options. Of course, the actual amounts of the payment options you can choose are based on many factors, such as your age, your beneficiary’s age, and when payments start. Before you retire, you will receive an estimate of the actual amounts payable to you.
| Payment Option | To Member (monthly) | To Beneficiary After Member's Death (monthly for life) |
| Maximum Allowance | $1,291.19 | $0.00 |
| Option 2 | $1,142.70 | $1,142.70 |
| Option 3 | $1,212.42 | $606.21 |
This page was last modified on 04/03/2025