What the sources say
The handbooks' retirement checklist says to contact Social Security three months before retirement to file if you are 62 or older. The legacy Non-Contributory formula uses the Social Security Integration Level. The sources do not state whether TPS members are covered by Social Security. ACPS Handbook p. 27, Retirement Checklist; ACFR FY2025 p. 164
Check your Social Security statement for your own record.
What we use: Nothing.
The Social Security Integration Level
An old TPS formula used a Social Security figure. Non-Contributory Pension Benefit (NCPS): 0.8% of AFC up to the Social Security Integration Level plus 1.5% of AFC above it, per year of creditable service. The SSIL is the average of the Social Security wage bases over the 35 calendar years before retirement. ACPS Handbook PDF p. 3 (unnumbered); ACFR FY2025 p. 164; SPP §23-401(b); §20-101(nn); §29-303(f)
It applies to members who left before July 1998, and to ACPS service before July 1998 only if it beats 1.2%. The formula
The SSIL itself is the average of all Social Security Wage Bases over the 35 calendar years before you retire. ACFR p. 164 ACPS service after June 30, 1998 earns a flat 1.8% and RCPB service 1.5%, with no Social Security figure in either.
When to contact Social Security
SRA's retirement checklist puts Social Security on two dates. Six months before you retire, prepare a budget that sets your expenses against your TPS pension, Social Security and any other income. Three months before, contact Social Security to file if you're 62 or older. ACPS Handbook p. 27, Retirement Checklist
For the pension side of that budget, start with your plan's formula and the payment option you expect to choose, since every option except the Basic Allowance pays you less each month.
If you apply for disability
A TPS disability application has to include a Notification of Social Security Claim/Award, along with your job description, medical records and an estimate request. ACPS Handbook pp. 15-16, Step 1: Applying for Disability Benefits So keep the claim or award notice Social Security sends you; SRA asks for it.
Facts
- Check with SRASRA's checklist says to contact Social Security three months before retiring if you are 62 or older. The SRPS sources don't say whether TPS service is covered by Social Security; check your own Social Security statement.ACPS Handbook p. 27, Retirement ChecklistCoverage isn't stated in the sources.
- SRA's retirement checklist says to prepare a retirement budget six months before retiring, setting your expenses against your state pension, Social Security and any other income.ACPS Handbook p. 27, Retirement Checklist; RCPB Handbook p. 25, Retirement Checklist
- A disability retirement application must include a Notification of Social Security Claim/Award, along with the job description, medical records and estimate form.ACPS Handbook pp. 15-16, Step 1: Applying for Disability Benefits
- The Social Security Integration Level (SSIL) used in the older pre-1998 formula is the average of all Social Security Wage Bases over the 35 calendar years before your retirement.ACFR p. 164
Questions
When should I contact Social Security?
The SRA retirement checklist says to contact Social Security three months before you retire, if you're 62 or older.
Does a disability application need anything from Social Security?
Yes. SRA's list of filing requirements includes a Notification of Social Security Claim/Award.
Is TPS work covered by Social Security?
The SRA sources don't say. Your Social Security statement shows the earnings Social Security has on record for you.
Source: SRPS Benefits Handbooks: Teachers' Pension System (Alternate Contributory Pension Selection; Reformed Contributory Pension Benefit), Revised April 2021, ACPS Handbook PDF p. 3, pp. 15, 16, 27; RCPB Handbook p. 25; ACFR FY2025 p. 164; SPP §§ 20-101, 23-401, 29-303. Last reviewed .