The terms you'll see in letters from Utah Retirement Systems (URS), in its booklets and on this site, each in a sentence or two, with its source.
Ending every paid relationship with every URS participating employer, including part-time and contract work, before your retirement date.
Post-Retirement Reemployment brochure (Sept. 2026); Tier 1 Retirement Guidebook (Sept. 2026), p. 5More on this →The lifetime monthly benefit a spouse can take if a member with enough service dies before retiring.
Utah Code 49-13-405, 49-22-502; Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 8-9More on this →The yearly increase to your benefit on your retirement anniversary, following the CPI up to 4% (Tier 1) or 2.5% (Tier 2) of your original benefit.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), p. 22; Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 21More on this →The share of your full benefit you keep when you retire before 65 without enough service for a full benefit, such as 85% at 60 in Tier 1. URS's actuarial valuation lists the factors by age.
URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025), App. 2, pp. 97, 117More on this →Your highest three (Tier 1) or five (Tier 2) years of salary, averaged by month.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), p. 15; Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 15More on this →URS's member website, for statements, beneficiaries, estimates and applications.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 5, 16The maximum monthly benefit, paid for your life only, with nothing for a survivor after you die. Our calculator's dollar amounts are Option One.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), p. 18; Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 18More on this →An employer covered by URS, including school districts, charter schools, colleges, the state, counties, cities and local districts.
Tier 1 Retirement Guidebook (Sept. 2026), p. 5A Utah law option, where the employer takes part, to retire at 55 or older and keep working half time for the same employer on 50% of your monthly benefit.
Utah Code 49-11-1302, 49-11-1303More on this →Tier 1's one-time payment of 12 or 24 months of benefit at retirement, for a smaller monthly benefit afterward.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), p. 20More on this →Going back to work for a URS participating employer after you retire. The rules depend on how long after your retirement date you start.
Post-Retirement Reemployment brochure (Sept. 2026); Utah Code 49-11-1204, 49-11-1205More on this →The 1st or 16th of a month you choose, after you've stopped all work for every URS employer.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 16-17; Utah Code 49-13-401(2)More on this →The years and partial years of URS-covered work (or bought service) that count toward eligibility and the formula.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 8-11; Utah Code 49-11-401More on this →URS's extra 3% for Tier 1 members with retirement service on Jan. 1, 1989. Utah law calls it an allowance increase to offset tax liability.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), p. 21; Utah Code 49-11-701More on this →URS's defined benefit pension for public employees first hired before July 1, 2011; members don't contribute.
Tier 1 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 1-2; URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025), App. 2, p. 96More on this →The 401(k)-only choice for Tier 2 members. Your employer puts in 10% of pay, which vests after four years. It has no pension.
Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 3More on this →A 1.5% pension plus a URS 401(k), for employees first hired on or after July 1, 2011.
Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 2More on this →A Utah income tax credit of up to $450 for people born on or before Dec. 31, 1952. It phases out as income rises.
Utah Code 59-10-1019More on this →Having the four years of service you need to receive a monthly pension once you're eligible, even if you leave first.
Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), p. 42; URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025), App. 2, pp. 98, 118More on this →Source: URS Tier 1 Noncontributory and Tier 2 Public Employees Retirement System Highlights, 2026-27, effective July 1, 2026, Tier 1 pp. 1-2, 5, 8-11, 15, 16-17, 18, 20, 21, 22; Tier 2 pp. 2, 3, 8-9, 15, 18, 21. Also: Post-Retirement Reemployment brochure (Sept. 2026); Tier 1 Retirement Guidebook (Sept. 2026); URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025); Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27); Utah Code §§ 49-11-401, 49-11-701, 49-11-1204, 49-11-1205, 49-11-1302, 49-11-1303, 49-13-401, 49-13-405, 49-22-502, 59-10-1019. Last reviewed .