Did you know that you started earning a pension benefit when you were hired into public service in Washington state? If you didn’t know until just now, we understand. A new job can be overwhelming – loads of information is served up to you all at once. You may have overlooked, or not had time…
Category Archives: Member
Paycheck increase allows for more savings
At the end of July, state employees may notice a 3% increase to their paycheck. This increase is thanks to legislation that passed in March 2023 and is intended to help you with the cost of inflation. One of the best things about getting a paycheck increase is that it gives you more flexibility with…
COLA vs benefit indexing
As a retiree, it’s important to know how your pension works. There are certain rules in place that allow your pension to grow over time with the cost of inflation. All Plan 2 and 3 retirees are eligible to receive a COLA every July. But not all plans or members are eligible for the inflation…
Site changes
On Monday, June 10, we updated DRS’ website to highlight our calculators and to make it easier for folks to find what they’re looking for. When you visit www.drs.wa.gov now, you’ll see a new calculator page, new site index that includes alphabetic sorting, changes to our search tool, updated table of contents navigation, and some other behind-the-scenes code changes to…
The basics of retiring with DRS
Take a look at the steps to retire from public service…
DCP Roth and Roth IRA – What’s the difference?
Washington’s Deferred Compensation Program (DCP) offers a Roth option in addition to the traditional pretax option many customers contribute to. Here we’ll take a look at questions you’ve asked about the newer Roth option, especially in comparison to a Roth IRA. While DCP is available only through employers, an IRA, or Individual Retirement Account, is…
Your DCP contribution changes can happen sooner
In May, you might notice that the timing for your Deferred Compensation Program (DCP) contribution changes are happening sooner. SECURE Act 2.0 of 2022, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2023, builds on and expands the SECURE Act of 2019 to improve retirement savings opportunities. Before this option was added, contribution updates took…
PERS 1, TRS 1 one-time benefit increase in July
Certain retirees in Plan 1 of the Public Employees’ Retirement System and Plan 1 of the Teachers’ Retirement System (PERS 1 and TRS 1) will receive a one-time benefit increase in July of this year. This is the result of legislation approved in 2023. Under the law, eligible PERS 1 and TRS 1 retirees will…
Notice to Retirees – Public Records Request
The Department of Retirement Systems has received a public records request from Erin Raasch of American Transparency for the following information about members who received monthly payments in 2023: • Full Name• Retirement Date• Employer Name• Monthly Pension Amount Per Washington’s Public Records Act, these records are not exempt from disclosure, so DRS must share this information with the…
2024 Pension-Related Legislation
During the 2024 session, DRS tracked bills that affected retirement, including pensions and benefits. Here are bills tracked, including summary descriptions from legislative reports: *Bills marked with an asterisk have passed. Subscribe to our policy list below for rule and legislative updates.
