Title 9, Retirement Systems

(A) Interest must be credited to the account of each member once each year as of June thirtieth, on the basis of the balance in the account of each member as of the previous June thirtieth. Upon the death, retirement, or termination of a member, interest must be figured to the en…

Except as provided in Section 9-18-10, and related sections, Article 11, Chapter 17, Title 63 and Section 8-1-115 and subject to the doctrine of constructive trust ex maleficio, and subject to income tax levies imposed pursuant to state or federal law and distributions made pursu…

All agreements or contracts with the members of the System pursuant to any of the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed solely obligations of the System and the full faith and credit of the State and of its departments, institutions and political subdivisions is not, and sha…

A retirement system is hereby created and placed under the administration of the Board to provide retirement allowances and other benefits for members of the General Assembly. The System shall begin operation as of January 1, 1966. It shall have the power and privileges of a corp…

All property owned or acquired by the System for the purposes of this chapter shall be exempt from all taxes imposed by the State or any political subdivision thereof.

Any person who shall knowingly make any false statement, or shall falsify or permit to be falsified any record of the System in any attempt to defraud the System, as a result of such act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine not exceed…

Payments made to beneficiaries pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may include payments to a person or persons, trustees, and estates.

Effective as of January 1, 1996, the annual compensation of a member taken into account for determining all benefits provided under this retirement system is subject to the limitations set forth in Section 401(a)(17) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and any regulations promul…

Effective December 12, 1994, and notwithstanding any provision in this chapter to the contrary, contributions, benefits, and service credit with respect to qualified military service will be provided in accordance with Section 414(u) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(A) This section applies to distributions made on or after January 1, 1993. Notwithstanding any contrary provision or retirement law that would otherwise limit a distributee's election under this chapter, a distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the bo…

(A) Effective as of January 1, 1989, the system shall pay all benefits in accordance with the requirements of Section 401(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code, including the incidental death benefit requirement in Internal Revenue Code Section 401(a)(9)(G), and the applicable Treas…

(A) Effective as of July 1, 1989, member contributions paid to, and retirement benefits paid from, the system may not exceed the annual limits on contributions and benefits, respectively, allowed by Internal Revenue Code Section 415. For purposes of applying these limits, the def…

(1) The general administration and responsibility for the proper operation of the system and for making effective the provisions hereof are hereby vested in the board. (2) The Board shall engage such actuarial and other services as shall be required to transact the business of th…

All records of all active, retired, and inactive members maintained by the Retirement System for Members of the General Assembly are classified as confidential records. These records are exempt from the disclosure requirements of Chapter 4 of Title 30, and shall not be disclosed …

(1) All persons who are members of the General Assembly on the date of establishment of the System shall become members of the System as of such date, except that, within six months from such date, any such person may irrevocably elect not to be a member of the System. All other …

(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Retirement System for Members of the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina (GARS) established pursuant to this chapter is closed to nonmembers and persons who otherwise would have been required or eligible to become me…

(1) The credited service of a member shall include all service as a member of the General Assembly since he last became a member of the System and in respect of which he makes contributions to the System. It shall also include, in the case of a member of the System who (a) became…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any member of the General Assembly who was elected in a special election and served in the General Assembly any portion of a year may establish credit for the entire year provided payment is made to the system on the same basis as membe…

(1) A member of the system may retire upon written application to the board setting forth at what time, not more than ninety days before nor more than six months after the execution and filing of the application, the member desires to be retired, if at the time specified for reti…

(1) Upon the application of a member in service or of the State, any member in service on or after July 1, 1977, who has five or more years of credited service or any contributing member who is disabled as a result of an injury arising out of and in the course of the performance …

Once each year during the first five years following the retirement of a member on a disability retirement allowance and once in every three-year period thereafter the board may, and upon his application shall, require any disability beneficiary who has not yet attained the age o…

Should the system report and certify to the board that such disability beneficiary is engaged in or is able to engage in a gainful occupation paying more than the difference between his retirement allowance and his earnable compensation and should the board concur in such report,…

The South Carolina Retirement System may contract with the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation to evaluate the medical evidence submitted with the disability application relative to the job being performed and make recommendations to the system. The system may approve a disab…

(A) Until the first payment on account of a retirement allowance becomes normally due, any member or beneficiary may elect, by filing with the system, to convert the retirement allowance otherwise payable on his account after retirement into a retirement allowance of equivalent a…

All retirement allowances are payable in monthly installments. Upon the death of a retired member, the retirement allowance for the month the retired member died, if not previously paid, must be paid to the member's designated beneficiary, if the beneficiary is living at the time…

Should a member cease to be a member of the System, for reasons other than death, he shall be paid as promptly as feasible after his request, but in no event later than six months after such cessation, the sum of his contributions and the accumulated regular interest thereon. Sho…

As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context: (1) "Board" means the Board of Directors of the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority, acting pursuant to the provisions of this chapter through its Division of Retirement Systems. …

(A) A retirement system is established to provide pension benefits for members of the National Guard of South Carolina who became members of the National Guard of South Carolina before July 1, 1993. This retirement system has the powers and privileges of a corporation and must be…

Every member of the National Guard of South Carolina who became a member of the National Guard of South Carolina before July 1, 1993, and meets the requirements set forth in this section shall receive from the National Guard Retirement System, commencing at age sixty, a pension o…

A person who becomes a member of the National Guard after June 30, 1993, if otherwise eligible, may receive a National Guard pension authorized by this chapter. The provisions of this section apply to National Guard pension benefits payable on or after January 1, 2007.

(A) Payment to a retired member of the system pursuant to this chapter is for the life of the retired member and no payment may be made to beneficiaries or to the decedent's estate, except that the retirement allowance for the month the retired member died, if not previously paid…

(A) Nothing contained in this chapter precludes or in any way affects the benefits that an individual may be entitled to from state, federal, or private retirement systems. (B) Benefits paid pursuant to this chapter are exempt from the South Carolina income tax.

(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a person who becomes a member of the National Guard of South Carolina after June 30, 1993, is ineligible to receive the pension authorized by this chapter. (B) Persons with a break in service remain eligible for pension ben…

All property owned or acquired by the system for the purposes of this chapter is exempt from all taxes imposed by the State or any political subdivision of the State.

As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context: (1) "Accumulated additional contributions" means a member's aggregate additional contributions, together with regular interest on the contributions. (2) "Accumulated contributions" means the s…

Should a member cease to render service as a police officer to an employer, except by reason of his death or retirement, he shall be paid the amount of his accumulated contributions within six months after his demand therefor, but not less than ninety days after ceasing to be a p…

(1) Upon the death of any member prior to retirement, a lump-sum amount shall be paid to such person as he shall have nominated by written designation filed with the board, otherwise to his estate. If the member is in service at the time of his death, such lump-sum amount shall b…

(A) There is created the Preretirement Death Benefit Program for all employers under the system except counties, municipalities, and other political subdivisions, as well as those state departments, agencies, or institutions which pay directly to the system the total employer con…

(A) The Death Benefit Plan for members of the South Carolina Police Officers Retirement System, hereinafter referred to as the "plan", is established for the purpose of providing for the payment of the benefits provided by Section 9-11-120. (B) A separate fund, to be known as the…

(1) The person nominated by a member pursuant to Section 9-11-110 to receive a lump sum amount if the member dies before retirement may, if the member: (a) has five or more years of earned service or eight or more years of such service for a Class Three member; (b) dies in servic…

Effective July 1, 1962, there is created the Accidental Death Benefit Program, effective as of that date to all employers under the system except counties, municipalities, and other political subdivisions, as well as those state departments, agencies, or institutions which pay di…

Payments made to beneficiaries pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may include payments to a person or persons, trustees, and estates.

(A) No later than the date the first payment of a retirement allowance is due, a member shall elect a form of monthly payment from the following options: Option A. The maximum retirement allowance payable under law for the life of the member. Upon the member's death, the member's…

(A) This section applies to distributions made on or after January 1, 1993. Notwithstanding any contrary provision or retirement law that would otherwise limit a distributee's election under this chapter, a distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the bo…

All retirement allowances are payable in monthly installments. Upon the death of a retired member, the retirement allowance for the month the retired member died, if not previously paid, must be paid to the member's designated beneficiary, if the beneficiary is living at the time…

(1) Effective July 1, 1966, there is hereby established a Supplemental Allowance Program to be administered by the Board as part of the System and to provide supplemental allowances for eligible members as hereinafter provided. (2) The State shall participate in the Supplemental …