Preparing for Retirement

In 1981, the ACC Board of Trustees decided that the college would not participate in Social Security. Thus, for retirement purposes, ACC employees must participate in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), the Optional Retirement Program (ORP) or the ACC Money Purchase Plan (ACCMPP).   Participation in the plans is determined as follows:

TRS – Upon initial employment, all ACC full-time (40 hours per week) and part-time (20-39 hours per week) Staffing Table employees are automatically enrolled in TRS. All other employees may become eligible based on establishing a pattern of regular eligible employment of at least 20 hours per week.

ORP – Full-time (100 percent) faculty members and certain administrators may elect to enroll in the ORP in lieu of TRS membership during their first 90 days of eligibility. This option is only available once during a faculty member’s career in Texas higher education. 

ACCMPP – Employees who are not full-time or part-time (see above) are not eligible for the TRS or ORP plans and must participate in the ACCMPP. This includes all adjunct faculty members and hourly employees who do not qualify for TRS membership, except those who are already retired from TRS or ORP, or are a part-time ACC student or work study student. 

“I’m Thinking About Retiring-What Do I Need To Do?”

HR Benefits presented a workshop on April 22, 2019, to discuss the retirement criteria and steps an ACC employee should follow when they wish to retire. The workshop covered retirement rules and requirements for the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), Optional Retirement Program (ORP), Employees Retirement System (ERS) retiree insurance, Social Security, and Medicare. The workshop also explained the key steps an employee should follow beginning 1-2 years prior to their retirement date, though retirement.  View a copy of the presentation slides.  

When you are ready to start planning your retirement or process your retirement, please contact the HR Benefits office at 512-223-7609 or email hrbenefits@austincc.edu.

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