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Choosing APB cancels TRS survivor benefits, presenters warned
Summary
TRS staff told inactive members that electing the APB lump sum cancels survivor benefits and beneficiary refunds; members without 20 years of service have no monthly survivor benefit until they reach retirement age.
During the webinar, Sandy Benhart explained how survivor and beneficiary benefits operate under TRS and how electing APB affects those protections.
How survivor benefits work Benhart explained that 1% of member contributions funds survivor coverage and the other 8% funds the member’s pension. For tier 1 members a dependent spouse generally receives 50% of the member’s monthly pension as a survivor benefit; under tier 2 a spouse would receive 67% and other dependent beneficiaries 50% (rules vary by dependency status and marriage duration). Dependent children and disabled adult children have defined eligibility windows for monthly survivor payments; when no dependents qualify at the time of death, TRS pays a one‑time lump sum to the estate or listed alternates.
Effect of APB and gaps in survivor coverage Benhart emphasized a key consequence of electing APB: the lump sum offer incorporates survivor components, and ‘‘if you opt for the APB lump sum, you are giving up your survivor benefits and your beneficiary refund.’’ She also warned that inactive members with fewer than 20 years of service credit will not produce monthly survivor benefits until they reach retirement age; in those cases only a beneficiary refund lump sum is payable if death occurs before eligibility re‑engages.
What members can do TRS instructed members to review and update beneficiary designations in their TRS account and to consider the survivor implications of refunding contributions vs choosing APB: a refund preserves the right to buy back service later, while APB is final.
