Employers and local boards play a fundamental role in enrolling new members into our plans. This ensures that new members begin contributing towards their retirement in a timely manner and accrue accurate credited service. Both factors help determine benefit payment amounts that members earn upon retirement.
Individuals in the Elected Officials Defined Contribution Retirement System (EODCRS) or Elected Officials Retirement Plan (EORP) must hold an elected office in Arizona at the state, county or city level, or serve as one of the following:
- Justice of the Arizona Supreme Court
- Judges of the Arizona Court of Appeals
- Judges or commissioners of a county superior court
- Local jurisdiction judges and commissioners
The following information summarizes the steps employers must use to complete the new member enrollment process.
Step 1: Determining member status through employer portal
A hiring employer must log into the PSPRS Employer Portal and enter the member’s name, date of birth and Social Security number into the Employee Lookup tool. This tool helps employers determine the proper benefit tier placement for members, and while most will be new to PSPRS-managed retirement plans others could be inactive members or transfers from other employers. It is important that each hiring employer works with the member to determine any prior relationship with the Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) or EORP.
Step 2: Online member enrollment through employer portal
This step registers members and begins the process to ensure timely retirement contributions are made by the member and employer. To do this, employers must log into the Employer Portal and enter a member’s information into the Demographics Data tool. Employers must enter the personal email contact information for all new members to allow PSPRS to send members information concerning retirement benefit options.
The hiring employer will also need to work with Nationwide Retirement Solutions (NRS) to set up any defined contribution accounts.
Step 3: Submitting plan membership form
Employers must work with members to complete and submit the EORP membership form to PSPRS. The form is necessary to help PSPRS collect member contact information and identify member spouses and beneficiaries. The form must be submitted to [email protected], faxed or mailed according to instructions listed on the form.
Please note that hires who are new to the system (incoming Tier 3 members without previous employment in EORP-covered positions) will receive email instructions to open new Members Only accounts along with information about benefit options.
A former elected official may request through their employer to participate in EODCRS. Approval documentation from the employer and the ASRS granting permission to contribute to the EODCRS needs to be submitted to PSPRS.
Step 4: Beginning member and employer retirement contributions
Employers must be careful to begin making contributions for new plan members in a timely manner. Employers will receive notice from PSPRS at this time through an email that includes the new member rate elections and employer contribution rates to ensure that proper member and employer contributions are paid and reported to PSPRS.
Click to view elected officials contribution rates.
