Most TRSL members do not participate in Social Security, so TRSL is often their main retirement income. Plan B members (school food service in 20 parishes) also contribute to the old-age portion of Social Security. The sources say nothing current about how Social Security benefits from other work are affected. Member Handbook p. 3, How is my retirement funded?; p. 4; p. 23, Plan B key plan provisions
- Regular Plan: doesn't pay into Social Security.
- Plan B: pays into Social Security as well as TRSL.
No current TRSL publication explains how Social Security treats members who don't pay into it. The only mention is in a 2017 TRSL brochure.
We say only who pays into Social Security. Ask the Social Security Administration about your own benefit.
Refund brochure PDF p. 4From the sources
- Most TRSL members don't pay into Social Security, which often makes TRSL their main retirement income. Plan B members do pay into Social Security.Member Handbook p. 3; p. 23
- Plan B members pay 5.0% of salary to TRSL and also contribute to the old-age portion of Social Security. They become eligible for unreduced Social Security benefits when they reach Social Security's retirement age.Member Handbook p. 23, Plan B key plan provisions
- For a Plan B member who dies while actively employed with at least 20 years, the spouse gets an Option 2-equivalent benefit if they were married at least one year before the death and the spouse is at least 50. That benefit stops if the spouse remarries or becomes eligible for Social Security survivor or retirement benefits. These conditions don't apply when the member had 30 years at 55 or 10 years at 60.Death & Survivor Benefits p. 9, Survivor benefits for eligible spouses
- For Plan B members who die, minor children's benefits are paid by Social Security, not TRSL.Death & Survivor Benefits p. 9; Member Handbook p. 23
- TRSL warns that entering DROP can affect your future Medicare coverage, and points members to medicare.gov.DROP Handbook p. 3
- Retirees can get a letter verifying their first TRSL eligibility date for Social Security purposes through myTRSL (My Self Service), or by mail, email, phone or fax.Guide for Retirees p. 14
- TRSL's retirement planning worksheet counts your and your spouse's annual Social Security income next to your pensions as guaranteed retirement income.Planning for Retirement p. 8, Worksheet: Household income
Questions
Do Louisiana teachers pay into Social Security?
Most TRSL members don't. Plan B members (school food service in 20 parishes) do.
How does Social Security treat my other work?
No current TRSL publication says. Ask the Social Security Administration about your own record.
Source: TRSL Member Handbook: Regular Plan & Plan B, Last revised April 2026, pp. 3, 4, 23. Also: Death & Survivor Benefits p. 9; DROP Handbook p. 3; Guide for Retirees p. 14; Planning for Retirement p. 8; La. R.S. 11:62. Last reviewed .