Tier 2 Hybrid
A monthly pension of 1.5% of your final average salary for each year of service, plus a URS 401(k). Our calculator estimates the pension part.
Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 15; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 5, 11; Utah Code 49-22-305(2)Tier 2 DC Plan
The Tier 2 Defined Contribution Plan is a 401(k) only: no pension and no formula. Your employer contributes 10% of your compensation, which vests after four years of eligible employment. What you have at retirement depends on contributions and investment returns.
Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 3; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 4, 11; Utah Code 49-22-401| Hybrid | DC Plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly pension | Yes: 1.5% × years × highest-5 average | No |
| Employer money | 10% of pay, to the pension first; any left goes to your 401(k) | 10% of pay into your 401(k) |
| Your money | 1.3% of pay from July 1, 2026 (the pension cost above 10%) | Only what you choose to save |
| Vesting | 4 years for the pension | 4 years for employer money |
| COLA | Up to 2.5% a year | None |
| Buy service | Yes | No |
Short answer: if you started full-time work with a URS employer on or after July 1, 2011, you choose in your first year between the Tier 2 Hybrid, a 1.5% pension plus a 401(k), and the Tier 2 Defined Contribution Plan, a 401(k) only. Compare the tiers, the formula and what you keep if you leave. See URS's Hybrid example in the calculator.
Choosing
If you initially entered full-time employment on or after July 1, 2011, you chose the Tier 2 Hybrid Retirement System or the Tier 2 Defined Contribution Plan within one year of your employment date. The choice is irrevocable after that year. If you made no choice you're in the Hybrid. Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 1, 6; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), p. 13; Utah Code 49-22-201(2)(b)-(d)
The 2026-27 Highlights and Comparing Tier 2 Plans say you have one year from your employment date to choose Hybrid or DC (switching as often as you like during that year). The Jan. 1, 2025 actuarial valuation says employees 'are required to make an election within their first 30 days after employment', irrevocable one year after employment. Utah Code 49-22-201(2)(c) makes the election irrevocable one year from eligibility. We follow the Highlights (one year).
Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), pp. 1, 6; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), p. 13; URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025), App. 2, p. 116, item 5; Utah Code 49-22-201(2)(c)
The Hybrid's 401(k) part
The Hybrid's employer 401(k) contribution equals 10% minus the Hybrid pension rate; there's none while the pension rate exceeds 10%. Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 2; Utah Code 49-22-303(1)(a)
The certified contribution rate for the Tier 2 Hybrid pension as of July 1, 2026 is 11.30%. Your employer pays 10%; beginning July 1, 2026 you pay the rest, currently 1.30% of pay. Because pension costs exceed 10%, the employer 401(k) contribution in the Hybrid stops until costs fall below 10%. Rates are reviewed yearly. Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 4, 14; URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025), Exhibit 6(B), p. 35; Utah Code 49-22-301(2), 49-22-303(1)(a)
The DC Plan
- In the Tier 2 Defined Contribution Plan your employer contributes 10% of your compensation to a URS 401(k). Employer money vests after four years of eligible employment; anything you add yourself is vested at once. There's no pension, no early-retirement reduction and no COLA: what you have depends on contributions and investment returns.Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 3; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 4, 16, 19
- In the Tier 2 Hybrid, the 401(k) part is described in words only here: the employer's 401(k) contribution is 10% minus the pension contribution rate, so when the pension costs more than 10% (11.30% as of July 1, 2026) the employer 401(k) contribution stops. You may add your own 401(k) or 457(b) savings.Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 2; Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 4, 14
Tier 2 401(k) money: your own deferrals are always vested; employer contributions vest after four years. If you leave before vesting and return to a URS employer within 10 years, the employer contributions are reinstated; otherwise they're forfeited. Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 27-28, 32, 42; Utah Code 49-22-303(2), (6), 49-22-401(3), (7)
The Tier 2 DC Plan has no spouse annuity: vested 401(k) money goes to beneficiaries, and employer contributions vest at death. Tier 2 Highlights (2026-27), p. 27; Utah Code 49-22-503 No service purchases in the Tier 2 DC Plan. Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27), pp. 29-30; Utah Code 49-11-403(9)
We don't project 401(k) balances: they depend on what's put in and how investments do. For the Hybrid pension, use the calculator or see the formula.
Questions
What is the Tier 2 Defined Contribution Plan?
A 401(k)-only plan for URS members hired on or after July 1, 2011. Your employer contributes 10% of your pay, which vests after 4 years. There's no pension.
What happens if I don't choose a Tier 2 plan?
You're in the Tier 2 Hybrid Retirement System.
Can I switch between the Hybrid and DC Plan later?
Only during your first year. After that the choice is permanent, including for later URS jobs.
Source: URS Tier 1 Noncontributory and Tier 2 Public Employees Retirement System Highlights, 2026-27, effective July 1, 2026, Tier 2 pp. 1, 2, 3, 6, 15, 21, 27. Also: Comparing Tier 2 Plans (2026-27); URS Actuarial Valuation (Jan. 1, 2025); Utah Code §§ 49-11-403, 49-22-201, 49-22-301, 49-22-303, 49-22-305, 49-22-308, 49-22-401, 49-22-503. Last reviewed .