The City provides retirement options through CalPERS and ICMA-RC. Options include retirement and deferred compensation (457b) that may vary among bargaining units.
For benefitted employees, retirement benefits are provided by the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), which is a defined benefit plan. Currently, the City has the following retirement contracts:
For additional information on the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act (PEPRA) of 2013, please visit CalPERS PEPRA.
Retirement Plan Highlights
Log in or register for a member account at calpers.ca.gov to access real-time details about your CalPERS account. Member education resources and CalPERS videos are also available on the CalPERS website. The member booklets can be found on the CalPERS website at https://www.calpers.ca.gov/page/home
The City of Riverside has the following retirement contracts:
Local Miscellaneous
1st Tier - 2.7% at 55 contract. Based on bargaining unit, some employees may pay potion of the Employee Share
2nd Tier - 2.7% at 55 contract and pay the Employee Share (8%) as follows:
- SEIU & SEIU Refuse employees hired on or after 6/7/11
- IBEW, IBEW Supv, Executive, Elected Officials, Mgmt & Confidential employees hired on or after 10/19/11
3rd Tier - Eligible employees hired on or after 1/1/13 are covered under the 2% at 62 contract and pay the Employee Share of 50% of the normal cost (% established by CalPERS)
Local Fire (Safety)
1st Tier - Sworn Fire employees hired before 6/10/11 are covered under the 3% at 50 contract
2nd Tier - Sworn Fire employees hired on or after 6/11/11 are covered under the 3% at 55 contract and must pay the Employee Share (9%)
3rd Tier - Sworn Fire employees hired on or after 1/1/13 are covered under the 2.7% at 57 contract and must pay the Employee Share of 50% of the normal cost (% established by CalPERS)
Local Police (Safety)
1st Tier - Sworn Police employees hired before 2/16/12 are covered under the 3% at 50 contract
2nd Tier - Sworn Police employees hired on or after 2/17/12 are covered under the 3% at 50 contract and must pay the Employee Share 9%
3rd Tier - Sworn Police employees hired on or after 1/1/13 are covered under the 2.7% at 57 contract and must pay the Employee Share of 50 % of the normal cost (% established by CalPERS)
Impacts of CalPERS and Social Security
Retirement Booklets
Retirement Forms
- CalPERS Employment After Retirement
- CalPERS Retirement Booklet
- CalPERS Power of Attorney Flyer
- CalPERS Special Power of Attorney Guide
- CalPERS Special Power of Attorney Designation Form
- CalPERS Reciprocal Self-Certification Form
- CalPERS Beneficiary Designation Form
- CalPERS Disability Retirement Guide
- CalPERS Retirement Allowance Request Form
- CalPERS Service Credit Purchase Option
- CalPERS Service Retirement Election Application
The City provides all benefited employees the opportunity to participate in a Section 457b Deferred Compensation plan. Deferred Compensation allows participants to defer a portion of their salary on a pre-tax and/or roth (after-tax) basis, for investment purposes. The plan is administered by ICMA-RC. Employees have a variety of investment options in all risk categories.
- Beneficiary Withdrawal Packet
- 457 Co-Provider Transfer
- 457 ICMA-RC Enrollment Form
- 457 IMCA-RC Enrollment Information Guide
- 457 Pre-Retirement CatchUp Form
- Contribution Change Form
- Emergency Withdrawal Request Form
- Roth Conversion Form
- Special Tax Notice
- Transfer Out of ICMA Form
- ICMA Beneficiary Designation
- Beneficiary Account Setup and Withdrawal Form
- Transfer from ICMA to ICMA Form
- Loan Packet
- Transfer to Purchase Service Credit
- Direct Rollover Transfer to ICMA Form
To view plan information for the City of Riverside ICMA-RC: http://www.icmarc.org/riversideca.html.
Deferred Compensation is not a savings account. Under IRS Section 457b, distributions can only be made at termination, retirement, or unforeseeable emergency.
- The deferred compensation committee must review all unforeseeable emergency claims.
- The City MUST abide by IRS regulation or risk forfeiting the entire Deferred Compensation plan.
IRS Section 457b Plan Highlights
- Enrollment is continuous - participants can enroll, stop and change at any time.
- The minimum contribution is $10.00 per pay period.
- The maximum allowable contribution under the IRS for the current tax year is $19,500 per year ($26,000 per year if employee turns 50 years or older in the calendar year).
- The City may contribute a specific amount for employees in certain bargaining units. If participant has a pre-tax and after-tax account, the City contribution will go towards the pre-tax account.
- The City contribution for Executive, Elected Officials, Management I/II and Confidential employees is $75/month and employee must contribute at least $12.50 per pay period.
- The City contribution for IBEW Supervisory employees is $250/month and the employee must contribute at least $25.00 per pay period.*
- The City contribution for Fire-safety Management employees is $210/month and employee must contribute at least $25.00 per pay period. City contribution is $200/month, if enrolled in LTD.*
- The City contribution for Police-safety Management and Supervisory employees is $215/month and the employee must contribute at least $25.00 per pay period. City contribution is $200/month, if enrolled in LTD.*
*Premiums for Long-Term Disability are paid out of the City's contribution to deferred compensation
- Balances in 457b accounts through previous employers may be transferred to the City. Effective January 1, 2002, plans such as 401(a), 401(k), IRA and 403(b) are compatible with 457s under the IRS code and can be rolled over to a 457 plan.
Deferred Compensation enrollment packets contain complete details of benefits and exclusions. The City of Riverside Human Resources Department and ICMA-RC Member Services are also available to answer questions.
If you need assistance with completing enrollment forms or transfer forms please contact one of ICMA-RC’s Retirement Plan Specialist: Thomas Dawes 883-646-0238 tdawes@icmarc.org or Ryan Carpenter 202-360-2761 rcarpenter@icamrc.org. Membership Service Center can also be contacted at 800-669-7400 for additional questions regarding the 457b plan. The Human Resources Benefits Division is available to answer benefit questions at 951-826-5639.
All part-time, temporary, (non-benefitted employees) are automatically enrolled in a deferred comp provided by PARS in lieu of Social Security.
You can access your account balance and statements on the PARS website at https://myaccount.pars.org.
PARS plan support can also be contacted at 800-540-6369 for this information or any questions regarding your account.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic we have cancelled all retirement planning workshops until further notice. A recording of the HR retirement planning presentation can be found below. A printable version of the presentation can also be found below; so that you are able to take notes and follow along with the slide show. CalPERS, HI-CAP (on Medicare), and ICMA-RC (deferred comp and social security) have also provided presentations. All retirement forms are posted below; Retiree insurance rate sheets can be found by clicking on Retiree/Cobra (list on left side).
CalPERS is currently making one-on-one phone appointments (no walk-ins or in-person) to discuss your retirement and answer any questions. Please contact CalPERS directly at 888-225-7377 for any questions regarding your CalPERS account (including estimate of retirement and submitting your CalPERS online retirement application). Thank you for your patience and understanding.
The HR Benefits team is scheduling one-on-one retirement phone consultations to discuss your City benefits and City retirement details. Please reach out to the benefits team if you have any questions/concerns or if you would like to schedule an appointment via phone at 951-826-5639 or email citybenefits@riversideca.gov.
- HR Retirement Presentation Video
- Retirement Session Part II – HR Presentation Slides
- Retirement Planning Checklist and Contact List
- Retirement Resignation Form
- Payout Rollover Request Form
- SEIU Health Care Supplement (see eligibility requirements indicated on form)
- HICAP 2021 Medicare Essentials
- CalPERS Understanding Your Retirement Benefit Options
- CalPERS Service Credit Purchase
- CalPERS Your Retirement Calculation
- CalPERS Online Service Retirement Application
- ICMA - Managing Deferred Comp After Retirement
- ICMA - Social Security Steps in Public Service
- Life Insurance Portability FAQ
- Life Insurance Portability and Conversion Comparison
- Life Insurance True Portability Application
The CARES Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020 and it includes optional retirement plan provisions employers can implement related to in-service distributions, increase in loan amounts, loan payment suspension and Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs). The City of Riverside has elected to extend these special provisions related to the deferred compensation 457 plan to all City benefited employees; the provisions deadlines vary, please review the documents below:
CARES Act and Deferred Compensation Plan Details