Membership Eligibility

All employees of the City of Cincinnati are eligible for membership in the System with the following exceptions:

• Uniformed police officers and firefighters are members of the State of Ohio Police and Firemen’s Disability and Pension Fund.
• Employees who were members of the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System, the Ohio Teachers Retirement System, or the Ohio Public School Employees Retirement System prior to beginning their employment with the City of Cincinnati.
• Persons becoming employees after June 1, 1961, who are employed in the building crafts; such as, bricklayer, carpenter, electrician, etc.
• Elected officials.
• Persons hired after June 30, 1979 as participants in programs authorized, undertaken, or financed pursuant to the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA).

When Participation Begins

You are enrolled in the plan immediately upon becoming an eligible employee.   You begin earning service on the first day of work and it generally continues until your employment with the City ends. However, you don’t earn service credit when you are on a leave of absence, unless you are on military leave and have met any necessary requirements for that leave.

Vesting in Your Benefit

You are fully vested in the System once you have completed the equivalent of five years service with the City.  You must be vested in the System before you are eligible for a retirement benefit from the System. Once vested, you are entitled to a retirement benefit from the plan upon retirement from City service.  If a vested employee leaves City service prior to age 60 but leaves his or her contributions in the System, that employee is entitled to a retirement benefit upon reaching age 60.

If you leave City service before you become vested, you do not receive a retirement benefit from the System. However, you are entitled to a refund of your contributions to the plan, plus 2% interest for funds held one or more years.

Vested employees can withdraw their contributions to the System upon termination of City service, but would forfeit their eligibility for retirement benefits.   A decision by a vested employee to withdraw their contributions to the System should only be made after careful consideration.

Employee Contributions

The employee contribution rate is 7.0% of annual pay. The employee contribution rate has remained the same since January 1, 1978 when the rate was increased from 6.0% to the current 7.0%.  Changes to the employee contribution rate would require approval of City Council and passage of an ordinance as section 203-73 of the Cincinnati Municipal Code provides for a 7.0% employee contribution level.  A statement is issued each year which shows the amount the employee has contributed during the year as well as the total balance in the employee's account.

Contributions to the System are made before federal and state income taxes are deducted, so employees pay less in current income taxes.  Because the taxes on the retirement contributions are deferred, future retirement benefits will be subject to both state and federal income tax. 

Employer Contributions

For the year 1999 through 2003, the employer contribution rate was 7.0% of payroll.  For the years 2004 and 2005, the employer contribution rate was 11.0% of payroll.  Effective January 1, 2006, the employer contribution rate was increased to 17.0% of payroll.