The State Patrol Retirement Plan provides retirement, survivor, and disability coverage for state troopers, crime bureau agents, gambling enforcement agents, conservation officers, Department of Commerce fraud investigators and members of the Department of Corrections fugitive apprehension unit.
Once you retire, you receive a monthly retirement benefit for life with potential post-retirement increases. Depending on the option selected at retirement, the survivor(s) may be eligible to receive a lifetime survivor benefit upon the employee's death.
To learn more, see the State Patrol Retirement Handbook (pdf).
Employee and employer contribution rates are established by Minnesota law. Contributions are a percentage of pay.
| Employee Contribution | Employer Contribution | Employer Supplemental Increase* |
|---|---|---|
| 15.4% | 23.1% (plus supplemental increase) | 7.0% starting July 1, 2021 |
Eligibility to collect a monthly retirement benefit (or what we call vesting) is based on years of service.
If first hired:
-
before July 1, 2013, you are eligible for a monthly benefit after three or more years of service.
-
after June 30, 2013, you are eligible for a monthly benefit after ten years of service.
Retirement age
You can start collecting full retirement benefits when you are age 55. Most employees can begin collecting a reduced monthly benefit at age 50 or later.
Mandatory retirement is at age 60.
Calculating your retirement benefit is a simple formula defined in Minnesota law. The first piece we consider is the length of service. Then we calculate the high-five average salary. We take these two pieces and apply it to a benefit formula to determine the retirement benefit.
Other factors that determine the monthly benefit are the retirement age and the survivor benefit option selected at retirement.
To learn more about how the retirement benefit is calculated, see:
- Length of service
- High-five average salary
- Benefit multiplier
- Benefit options
- Video - Calculating Your Benefit
Service credit -- or allowable service -- is the credit you earn each month retirement deductions are withheld from your salary. Service credit is important because it is used in a formula to determine your monthly retirement benefit. The more service you have and the higher your salary, the higher your monthly retirement benefit
will be.
A number of factors may impact your service credit including:
Your status at the time of death (before or after you are collecting a monthly retirement/disability benefit), determines how your assets will be paid and to whom (a beneficiary or survivor).
It is important that you understand the difference between a beneficiary and survivor and the benefits they are eligible for upon your death. To learn more, see Beneficiary & Survivor Benefit.
As a member of the State Patrol Plan, you have disability protection. This is an important benefit since it will pay you disability benefits for your lifetime, or until you are no longer disabled. The State Patrol Plan offers two types of disability: Duty disability and regular disability.
To learn more, see Disability Benefit.