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Judicial Retirement Plan

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​JRP consists of two tiers of benefits.  Members who were elected or appointed prior to January 1, 2014 participate in the Legacy Defined Benefit Plan, while members elected or appointed on or after January 1, 2014 participate in a Hybrid Cash Balance Defined Benefit Plan.​​

​​Legacy Defined Benefit 
Members elected or appointed prior to January 1, 2014

​​​All Justices of the Supreme Court, Judges of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family and District Judges, who were first elected or appointed to the judiciary prior to January 1, 2014, are eligible for membership in the  Legacy Defined Benefit (DB) Plan. 

As of July 1, 2021,​​ there were 179 members and 368 retirees or beneficiaries of the Judicial DB Plan.  Of the 368 retirees and beneficiaries; 356 were receiving pension benefits -- the remaining 12 retirees have deferred receiving pension benefits.

SUMMARY PLAN DESCRIPTION

​All Justices of the Supreme Court, Judges of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family and District Judges, who were first elected or appointed to the judiciary prior to January 1, 2014, are eligible for membership.  

Membership is not automatic and is attained by executing an Election to Participate.  The election has to been made thirty (30) days after taking office and was effective to establish membership in the Plan as of the date of taking office.  The election made when first taking office, either to participate or not to participate in the Plan, is binding as to all future terms, whether or not consecutive. If the election is not to participate in the Plan, the judge automatically became a member of the Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS).  Membership continues only so long as the member holds an office qualifying him/her for membership.  

However, a member who ceases to make personal contributions to the Plan may elect to terminate his or her membership in the Plan and become a participant in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System.  This termination of membership does not constitute a retirement; therefore, benefits will not be payable by the Plan until such time as the judicial office is vacated by the member.​​​​

​Contribution Rate.  Members are required to make personal contributions to the Plan throughout the period of their membership, except that such member will not be required to contribute to the Plan once the member is vested in a service retirement allowance equal to one hundred percent (100%) of final compensation.  The 100% maximum allowance is reached when the member’s years of service multiplied by the member’s service credit rate equals or exceeds 100%.  In this event, the member will continue to accrue service credit.  Members electing to participate in the Plan prior to September 1, 2008, contribute five percent of their official salary, and members electing to participate in the Plan on or after September 1, 2008, contribute six percent of their official salary.  

Income Tax Treatment.  Members contributions for service after August 1, 1982, will continue to be deducted from salary payments, but, for federal and state income tax purposes, the amounts of the contributions will be deemed to have been paid by the state and will not be considered to be current income; they will, however, count as income for purposes other than taxation.  If a member leaves office without being vested and contributions are withdrawn, such of the contributions as were deemed to have been paid by the state must be reported for federal income tax purposes.  When a member retires and starts to draw benefits, contributions deemed to have been paid by the state cannot be offset, for federal income tax purposes, against benefits received by the member. 

​Refunds.  The only circumstance in which contributions will be refunded to a member is if membership ceases (other than by death) and the member has not reached vested status.  In that instance, a refund will be made when applied for.  One of the refund options is that the accumulated contribution account is payable directly to the member – in that event, applicable federal taxes are withheld by the Plan.  A tax-free rollover of the accumulated contribution account to another qualified retirement plan is the other refund option.  No interest will be paid upon a refund except that when a refund taken before a designated age (now 59-1/2) would be subject to a special federal excise tax, and the member chooses to defer taking the refund, it will accrue simple interest at 6.00% per annum until the refund is taken or until the date as of which the excise tax no longer applies, whichever is sooner.  One of the conditions of regaining judicial service credit for the years of prior service is repayment to the Plan of the amount of the refunded contribution account with interest. 

​Refund in the Event of Death.  Contributions of a deceased active member or a retiree shall be refunded in the event the contributions have not been recouped by the payment of benefits to the member, or the member’s qualified survivors.  A member may designate a beneficiary (other than the member’s spouse or children under the age of 21) who shall receive the accumulated contributions made by the judge.  Absent a designation by the judge, the accumulated contributions shall be paid to the judge’s estate.  Any payment of benefits payable to the judge, prior to the death, and/or any payment of benefits payable to the judge’s qualified survivor, shall be used to offset the contributions.  A Designation of Beneficiary form is available at the Plan’s office.​​​​​​​​

To be eligible for benefits, a member must be vested in the Plan.  

  • ​Eight (8) years of state government service credit is necessary to meet the vesting requirement.   ​This is not a requirement for the payment of benefits to the surviving spouse of a member who dies in office. 

  • If a member leaves office and has current service credit in, or is receiving benefits from, another state-supported retirement system of the Commonwealth, such credit may be combined with the earned credit in the Plan for the purpose of meeting the vesting requirements of the Plan and of the other system.

  • ​If a member leaves office without being vested in the Plan, and subsequently earns credit for nonjudicial service in one of the other retirement systems of the Commonwealth, service credit in the Plan may be combined with service credit in the other system, for vesting purposes.  Vesting will not be achieved unless the member’s contributions were left in the Plan, or, if the contributions were withdrawn, the member has repaid them with interest.​



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Judicial Service.  Service credit is allowable only for service in the capacity of a Justice of the Supreme Court, Judge of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family or District Judge.  Service as a special judge does not count.  The month in which a period of service began, and the month in which it ends, each will be counted as a full month of service without regard to the number of days served.

Nonjudicial Service.  A member of the ​Plan who has achieved vested status is eligible to purchase or transfer the following nonjudicial service:

  • A maximum of ten years of qualified service credit earned in a retirement system administered by the Kentucky Public Pensions Authority (KPPA).

  • A maximum of ten years of qualified service credit earned in the Kentucky Legislators Retirement Plan (LRP).

  • A maximum of four years of City Police Judge, if performed prior to January 1978.

  • A maximum of four years of Active Military Service.

  • One month of service for each six months of service in the Reserves or the National Guard. 

  • A maximum of four years each for service as a Domestic Relations, Master or District Court Trial Commissioner.

  • United States Government Service.

  • A maximum of five years of Service Not Otherwise Purchasable (if the member was a participant in the Plan on June 21, 2001).

Nonjudicial service purchased or transferred will be credited to the member’s account at the member’s prevailing service credit rate, upon satisfaction of the member’s liability by a qualified payment.  

The member’s cost to transfer or purchase can be paid by lump sum, an installment contract or by a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer or rollover of funds permitted by 26 U.S.C. sec. 401(a)(31), 402(c) and 408 (d)(3).  (The installment contract is not available for the purchase of City Police Judge credit.)   

If the member chooses to pay the cost by installments through payroll deduction, the cost of the credit shall be computed in the same manner as for a lump-sum payment, which shall be the principal.  Interest, at the annual actuarial rate in effect at the time each payment is made, shall be added to each monthly payment at the rate of one-twelfth of the annual interest rate applied to the declining principal amount.  The annual actuarial interest rate of the Plan is 6.50% at this time.  If a member leaves office before completing the installment contract, the member may satisfy the contract by a lump-sum payment of the remaining principal amount.  An installment contract shall be for a period of not less than one year, or more than five years.  

In compliance with Internal Revenue Code Section 415(c) limitations, the member’s contribution after January 1, 2008 is limited (on an annual basis) to the lesser of $58​,000.00 or 100% of compensation.  The IRC limitation does not apply to a repayment of refunds; pre-tax contributions, rollovers and transfers from a qualified plan; or a transfer of nonjudicial service by a judge who first became a member of the Plan before July 1, 1999.  ​​​​

MEMBER BENEFITS​

​Formula.  The normal retirement benefit is calculated as follows:  final compensation, which is the average monthly compensation for the position held by the member for the 60 months immediately preceding retirement, times the member's service credit rate, times the years of service credited to the member's account.  “Retirement” means the voluntary resignation or a failure of re-election of a judge.  The service credit rate, is 2.75%, except for members who first entered the Plan between July 1, 1978 and June 30, 1980, the percentage is 4.15%, and for members who first entered the Plan prior to June 30, 1978, the percentage is 5.00%.​

Normal (unreduced) Retirement Benefits.  The benefit is payable in the full computed amount only if the retiree is at his/her normal retirement age (or over) at the commencement of retirement benefit payments, or the retiree has 27 years of total state governmental service credit.  The normal retirement age is 65, except that it shall be reduced by one year, but no more than five years total, for each five years of service credit in the Plan, and each year of service credit the member has earned beyond that needed to receive a retirement benefit of 100% of final compensation.

Early (reduced) Retirement Benefit.  A retiree at an age below normal retirement age, or with less than 27 years of state governmental service credit may choose to be paid reduced benefits commencing at retirement, or at any age before reaching normal retirement age.  In that event, the benefit will be reduced five percent per year for the lesser of the number of years between (a) the retiree’s normal retirement age and the retiree’s actual age at the time benefits commence, or (b) 27 years of service and the retiree’s years of total governmental service.   

Internal Revenue Code Section 415(b) Benefit Limitations.  The annual benefit amount payable to a retiree under normal retirement age is subject to maximum IRC benefit limits.  An Excess Benefit Plan, pursuant to 26 U.S.C. sec. 415(m), will provide for the payment of a benefit equal to the difference between the retirement allowance otherwise payable prior to any reduction or limitation required by 26 U.S.C. sec. 415 and the actual retirement allowance payable as limited by 26 U.S.C. sec. 415.  Under no circumstances will a retiring judge receive more benefits than he or she is entitled to under the benefit formula.

​Alternative Benefit Payment Options.  Before the commencement of benefit payments, the member (or retiree) may elect to take an optional retirement allowance that shall be actuarially equivalent to the amount of retirement allowance otherwise payable to the member/retiree and potential survivor.  The options shall include survivorship 100%, or survivorship 66-2/3%.

Benefits Payable While Continuing in Service.  The 1986 Federal Tax Reform Act imposed an excise tax on vested benefits of a public retirement plan not drawn by a member who had reached a specified age (then age 70-1/2) but continued in service.  Legislation was passed in 1988 to allow the Plan to commence payment of benefits to a member who would be subject to such excise tax.  The 1988 Federal Tax Reform Act repealed this requirement; however, if federal law again makes such a requirement, benefits under the Plan to a member will commence as of the date the member reaches the specified age, calculated as if the member had retired on the commencement date.  Such member will have the option of continuing to be a participating member of the Plan while remaining in service, in which case additional benefits will accrue, counting the years of service after the commencement of drawing the initial benefits.  The combined monthly total of the initial and additional benefits cannot exceed the final compensation on which the additional benefits are calculated.

Return to Membership After Period of Drawing Benefits.  If a member retires and draws benefits, and thereafter again becomes a member (by again occupying a qualified office), the current benefits will continue, and the member will accrue additional benefits on the same basis as described in the preceding paragraph for a member drawing benefits while still in service.

SURVIVOR'S BENEFITS

Designation of Beneficiary.  Upon the death of a member or retiree the surviving spouse, or if none, the qualified child (or children) of the member or retiree is entitled to survivor’s benefits.  However, a member/retiree may designate that a qualified child (or children) shall receive all or a portion of those benefits to which the spouse otherwise would have been entitled.

Surviving Spouse of Member Who Dies in Office.  No minimum period of service by the member, or minimum age, is required to make eligible for benefits the surviving spouse of a member who dies in office.  If the member was under age 65 at death, the surviving spouse will be entitled to a monthly benefit, payable for life, equal to one-half the benefit the member would have been entitled to had the member continued to serve until reaching age 65.  If the member was 65 or older at death, the surviving spouse’s benefit will be one-half the benefit the member would have been entitled to receive had the member retired on the day of death, on the basis of the number of years of service credit the member had achieved.  The final compensation to be used in either formula is the average monthly compensation of the member’s office for the 60 months immediately preceding death.

Surviving Spouse of Retiree Who Dies After Leaving Office.  A surviving spouse of a retiree who dies after leaving office is entitled to benefits only if married to the former member at the time the member left office.  If the retiree is drawing benefits at the time of death, the surviving spouse shall be entitled to the amount prescribed in the “Benefit Payment Option” selected by the retiree at the time benefits commenced.  The benefit payment options are (1) one-half of the retiree’s normal retirement benefit, (2) survivorship 100% benefit or (3) survivorship 66-2/3% benefit.  If the retiree had deferred drawing benefits, the surviving spouse is entitled to a monthly benefit equal to one-half of the retiree’s normal retirement benefit.

Benefits for Children.  If a member or retiree dies leaving no surviving spouse eligible for benefits, or leaves such a spouse who later dies, a benefit equal to the spouse’s benefit will be payable to the child (or children, collectively) of the member or retiree.  The benefits will be payable until the child’s 21st birthday, unless the child is disabled.  Benefits to a disabled child will continue for his/her life.​

DISABILITY BENEFITS

A member who began participating in the Judicial Retirement Plan prior to January 1, 2014, who retires for disability as provided by this subsection shall be entitled to receive commencing immediately a disability retirement allowance, payable monthly during his disability, in an amount equal to one-half (1/2) of the monthly service retirement allowance he would have received commencing at his normal retirement date if he had continued in service until that date and had then retired, computed however on the basis of his final compensation at the time of actual retirement.​

MEDICAL INSURANCE​

If the period of service on which a benefit from the Plan is being paid is at least four years, the Plan will pay a percentage of the premium (subject to the maximum funding level as annually set by the Board of Trustees) for hospital and medical insurance coverage for the retiree and qualified dependents of the retiree.  The percentages are dependent upon the judge’s years of service credit, and they are:   ​

  • ​25% - 48 to 119 months
  • 50% - 120 to 179 months
  • 75% - 180 to 239 months
  • 100% - 240 or more months

If the retiree has service in one, or more, of the other state-supported retirement systems or plans of the Commonwealth, all the retiree’s state governmental service credit shall be consolidated for the purpose of determining the percentage of payment.  The percentages are the same as set forth above.  The percentage of the payment, resulting from consolidation, shall not apply to the qualified dependents of the retiree.​

Cost-of-Living Adjustments.  Each July 1, a recipient of a monthly pension benefit from the Plan shall receive a 1.50% cost-of-living adjustment (pro-rated for the first year, if the recipient has been retired for less than one year) if ​​the funding level of the Plan is greater than 100% and subsequent legislation authorizes the use of any surplus actuarial assets to provide for the increase; and the Kentucky General Assembly appropriates sufficient funds to fully pre-fund the increase.

Income Taxes.

  • Federal Income Tax.  Benefits are subject to federal income tax.  However, the percentage of each monthly benefit that may be considered to be attributable to contributions made by the member before August 1, 1982, and to contributions (plus interest) made by the member for the transfer and/or purchase of nonjudicial service credit, as determined on the basis of life expectancies, may be offset against benefits.  Member’s contributions assumed to have been paid by the state (for service after August 1, 1982) cannot be offset.  A benefit recipient may designate that such amount per month as is desired (or no amount) be withheld for Federal income tax purposes.  In the absence of such a designation, the Plan is required to withhold the amount specified in the withholding tables for a married person claiming three exemptions.  The 1099-R statement of retirement income is prepared by the Plan and timely mailed to the retiree.

  • ​Kentuc​​ky Income Tax.  Plan benefits are subject to Kentucky income tax; however,  Kentucky excludes from taxation a certain amount of retirement income.  See Schedule P in the Kentucky Income Tax forms for the exclusion amount and calculation.  That portion of a benefit attributable to service prior to January 1, 1998 is not subject to Kentucky income tax.

Distribution of Benefit Payments. Monthly benefit checks are directly deposited (via wire transfer) to the recipient’s designated financial institution.​

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Social Security. Benefits are not affected by or keyed to Social Security.

Disqualification, Loss, Denial of Benefits.

  • A member who is removed from judicial office for cause is disqualified from receiving retirement benefits.

  • The lack of sufficient service to meet the vesting requirement will result in ineligibility and denial of benefits.

  • A denial of benefits for disability will result if the statutory requirements are not met.  A loss of disability benefits will result if the disability ceases to exist.

Agent for Service of Legal Process.  Bo Cracraft, Executive Director.

Procedures for Presenting Claims and Remedies for Redress of Denied Claims.  Claims for benefits are to be presented to the office of the System.  That office on request will supply the necessary forms.  The Executive Director of the System will determine routine claims.  The Board of Trustees of the System (on reference by the Executive Director) will determine extraordinary or questionable claims.  Action taken by the Executive Director can be appealed to the Board of Trustees by written request.

Sources and Statutory Requirement for Funding. 
The sources of financing retirement benefits are: 

  1. Members’ contributions, 

  2. Legislative appropriations, and 

  3. Proceeds of investments.

Under KRS 21.525, the state is required to contribute annually an amount determined by applying either the entry age normal cost funding method or the unit credit actuarial method to the creditable compensation of the members of the Plan who elected to participate in the Plan before January 1, 2014.  The state shall also contribute an amount equal to one percent of the unfunded past service liabilities, plus interest at the actuarially assumed rate of interest of the Plan.   The most recent actuarial valuation of the Plan, as of July 1, 2019, calculated the amount of state contributions required for the 2020-2022 fiscal biennium to continue to meet funding requirements. ​​​​​​

Cash Balance
Members elected or appointed to the judiciary on or after January 1, 2014

​All Justices of the Supreme Court, Judges of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family and District Judges elected or appointed to a term commencing on or after January 1, 2014, are eligible for membership in the Judicial Retirement Hybrid Cash Balance (HCB) Plan.   

As of July 1, 2021, there were 54 members of the Judicial HCB Plan.

SUMMARY PLAN DESCRIPTION

All Justices of the Supreme Court, Judges of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family and District Judges elected or appointed to a term commencing on or after January 1, 2014, are eligible for membership.

Membership is not automatic and is attained by executing an Election to Participate.  The election must be filed within thirty (30) days after taking office and is effective to establish membership in the Plan as of the date of taking office.  The election made when first taking office, either to participate or not to participate in the Plan, is binding as to all future terms, whether or not consecutive.  If the election is not to participate in the Plan, the judge will automatically become a member of the Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS).  Membership continues only so long as the member holds an office qualifying him/her for membership.

An election establishes membership in the Hybrid Cash Balance Plan, which provides a retirement benefit based upon the member’s accumulated account balance.​

Accumulated Account Balance. A member’s accumulated account balance consists of member contributions, employer pay credits, and interest thereon.  Each member receives an annual statement after the close of the plan year (June 30) which shows total contributions and interest earned.

  • Member’s Contribution Rate.  Members make contributions to the Plan throughout the period of their membership.  The total contribution rate is 6.00% of the member’s official salary, of which 5.00% represents the member’s retirement benefit contribution.  The remaining 1.00% represents a medical insurance contribution and is not a part of the member’s accumulated account balance.
  • Employer Pay Credit.  An employer pay credit of 4.00% of creditable compensation (official salary) is credited for each month the member contributes to the Hybrid Cash Balance Plan.
  • Interest Credits.  Annual interest will be credited on June 30 to the member’s account, provided the member made his/her member contributions to the Plan during the preceding fiscal year.  The interest shall include four percent of the member’s accumulated account balance based on the preceding year-end balance, plus seventy-five percent (75%) of the Plan’s geometric average net 5-year investment return in excess of a four percent rate of return.

Refunds.  A member with less than five years of service is entitled to a refund of the member’s contributions of 5.00% and forfeits the employer credit of 4.00%.   A member with more than five years of service is entitled to a refund of the member’s prior month-end cash balance account which includes the member’s contributions of 5.00%, the employer credit of 4.00%, and applicable interest.  One of the refund options is that the accumulated account is payable directly to the member – in that event, applicable federal taxes are withheld by the Plan.  A tax-free rollover of the accumulated account to another qualified retirement plan is the other refund option.

Repurchase of Refund.  A repurchase of the service credit a member previously had with the Judicial Retirement Plan is available to a former member who subsequently becomes a member of one of the state-supported retirement systems, including the Plan.  The repurchase shall include the amount of the refund, plus interest at six percent (6.00%) per annum. 
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To be eligible for benefits, a member must be vested in the Plan and: 

  • reach age sixty-five (65) with a accumulation of at least five years of active service credit in the Plan and any other state-supported retirement system of the Commonwealth; OR
  • ​reach at least age fifty-​seven (57), with the member’s accumulated active service credit in the Plan and any other state-supported retirement system of the Commonwealth plus his/her age is at least eighty-seven (87).

If a member leaves office without being vested in the Plan, and subsequently earns credit for nonjudicial service in one of the other state-supported retirement systems of the Commonwealth, service credit in the Plan may be subsequently combined with service credit in the other system for vesting purposes.  Vesting will not be achieved unless the member’s accumulated account balance was left in the Plan, or, if the accumulated account balance was withdrawn, the member has repaid the refund with interest while holding membership in the other system. ​

Judicial Service.  Service credit is allowable only for service in the capacity of a Justice of the Supreme Court, Judge of the Court of Appeals, Circuit, Family or District Judge.  Service as a special judge does not count.  The month in which a period of service began, and the month in which it ends, each will be counted as a full month of service without regard to the number of days served.​​​

MEMBER BENEFITS​

​Options at Retirement. A vested member of the Plan may elect one of the following benefit options:

  1. To receive a monthly retirement allowance payable for life by having his or her accumulated account balance annuitized in accordance with the actuarial assumptions and methods adopted by the Board of Trustees and the member’s age at the time of retirement.
  2. ​To receive an optional monthly retirement allowance for life that shall include potential survivor’s benefits to a qualified spouse or dependent child.  The options shall include survivorship 100%, survivorship 66-2/3%, or survivorship 50%.  The annuity shall be calculated in accordance with the actuarial assumptions and methods adopted by the Board of Trustees and the ages of the member and the qualified survivor at the time of retirement.  A dependent child means a child who is less than twenty-one (21) years of age or a disabled child who is eligible for Social Security disability benefits.
  3. To receive a refund. 

​SURVIVOR'S BENEFITS
​Pre-retirement.  If a member dies prior to drawing a retirement allowance, the surviving spouse may elect a refund of the member’s accumulated account balance or accumulated contributions, as applicable.  Or, if the member had at least five years of service at the time of death, the spouse may elect to receive a monthly benefit for life based on the member’s accumulated account balance using the 100% survivorship option as if the member retired immediately prior to his/her date of death.  In lieu of these spousal benefits, the member may elect to have survivor benefits paid to a dependent child by completing forms provided by the Plan.

Post-retirement.  If a member dies after drawing a retirement allowance, then survivor benefits depend on the member’s election for an optional retirement allowance – namely, survivorship 100%, survivorship 66-2/3%, or survivorship 50%.  In lieu of benefits provided to a surviving spouse, the member may elect prior to retirement to have survivor’s benefits paid to a dependent child by completing forms provided by the plan.

A Designation of Beneficiary form is available at the Plan’s office.  Absent a designation by the member or if a beneficiary is not surviving, the applicable refund shall be paid to the member’s estate.

DISABILITY BENEFITS​

A member, prior to retirement, and who has completed five years of judicial service may, under conditions specified in the statute, retire for disability. In such case, the member will be entitled to a disability retirement allowance equal to the higher of twenty percent (20%) of the member’s monthly final rate of pay or the monthly retirement allowance payable for life by having his or her accumulated account balance annuitized in accordance with the actuarial assumptions and methods adopted by the Board of Trustees.  The disability retirement allowance will continue for the duration of the disability.  Periodic physician’s examinations may be required for continued receipt of disability benefits.  If the disability terminates, the member shall be entitled thereafter to the retirement allowance that would have been payable if the member took normal retirement on the date of retirement for disability.

​MEDICAL INSURANCE​

Only a  recipient of a retirement allowance with at least fifteen (15) years of service credit in the Plan and any other state-supported retirement system of the Commonwealth shall be eligible for a monthly insurance benefit.  The health insurance benefit is ten dollars ($10.00) for each year of judicial service earned as a Plan participant.  The minimum service requirement is waived for a member who is disabled in the line of duty.  In that event, the member is assumed to have accumulated 20 years of judicial service as a Plan participant.  The minimum service requirement is also waived if killed in the line of duty.  In that event, the member’s spouse and eligible dependents shall be entitled to a monthly benefit based on the member’s assumed 20 years of judicial service as a Plan participant.  The retiree’s monthly insurance benefit shall be increased July 1 of each year by 1.50%.  The increase shall also apply to the survivor’s benefit in the event of death in the line of duty.​​

REDUCTION OF BENEFITS

Benefits can be amended, suspended or reduced by legislative action of the Kentucky General Assembly.  However, the amount of benefits the member has accrued at the time of amendment, suspension, or reduction shall not be affected.​

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Cost-of-Living Adjustments.  Each July 1, a recipient of a monthly pension benefit from the Plan shall receive a benefit increase of 1.50% cost-of-living adjustment (pro-rated for the first year, if the recipient has been retired for less than one year, if 1) the funding level of the Plan is greater than 100% and subsequent legislation authorizes the use of any surplus actuarial assets to provide for the benefit increase; or 2) the Kentucky General Assembly appropriates sufficient funds to fully prefund the increase.

Income Taxes.  Member’s contributions will be deducted from salary payments, but, for federal and state income tax purposes, the amounts of the contributions will be deemed to have been paid by the state and will not be considered to be current income; they will, however, count as income for purposes other than taxation.  If a member elects to take a refund of contributions, the amount received must be reported for federal income tax purposes unless the member chooses a tax-free rollover of the refund. 

  • ​Federal Income Tax.  Plan benefits are subject to federal income tax.  A benefit recipient may designate that such amount per month as is desired (or no amount) be withheld for Federal income tax purposes.  In the absence of such a designation, the Plan is required to withhold the amount specified in the withholding tables for a married person claiming three exemptions.  The 1099-R statement of retirement income is prepared by the Plan and timely mailed to the retiree. 
  • Kentucky Income Tax.  Plan benefits are subject to Kentucky income tax; however,  Kentucky excludes from taxation a certain amount of retirement income.  See Schedule P in the Kentucky Income Tax forms for the exclusion amount and calculation. 

​Distribution of Benefit Payments.  Monthly benefit checks are directly deposited (via wire transfer) to the recipient’s designated financial institution.​​

​Social Security. Benefits are not affected by or keyed to Social Security.

Disqualification, Loss, Denial of Benefits.

  • A member who is removed from judicial office for cause is disqualified from receiving retirement benefits.

  • The lack of sufficient service to meet the vesting requirement will result in ineligibility and denial of benefits.

  • A denial of benefits for disability will result if the statutory requirements are not met.  A loss of disability benefits will result if the disability ceases to exist.

Agent for Service of Legal Process.  Bo Cracraft, Executive Director.

Procedures for Presenting Claims and Remedies for Redress of Denied Claims.  Claims for benefits are to be presented to the office of the System.  That office on request will supply the necessary forms.  The Executive Director of the System will determine routine claims.  The Board of Trustees of the System (on reference by the Executive Director) will determine extraordinary or questionable claims.  Action taken by the Executive Director can be appealed to the Board of Trustees by written request.

Sources and Statutory Requirement for Funding. 
The sources of financing retirement benefits are: 

  1. Members’ contributions, 

  2. Legislative appropriations, and 

  3. Proceeds of investments.

Under KRS 21.525, the state is required to contribute annually an amount determined by applying either the entry age normal cost funding method or the unit credit actuarial method to the creditable compensation of the members of the Plan who elected to participate in the Plan before January 1, 2014.  The state shall also contribute an amount equal to one percent of the unfunded past service liabilities, plus interest at the actuarially assumed rate of interest of the Plan.   The most recent actuarial valuation of the Plan, as of July 1, 2019, calculated the amount of state contributions required for the 2020-2022 fiscal biennium to continue to meet funding requirements. ​​

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