State Public Pensions in District of Columbia

State Public Pensions in District of Columbia: key facts

Plans administered by DCRB

District of Columbia Police Officers and Firefighters' Retirement Plan and District of Columbia Teachers' Retirement Plan.

Other DC employees

DC employees other than police officers, firefighters, and teachers who were first hired on or after October 1, 1987 join the District's 401(a) defined-contribution plan (administered through Voya) after one year of creditable service, with an optional 457(b) deferred compensation plan — not a DC pension. Employees first hired before October 1, 1987 are under the federal Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), whose annuities are paid by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. DC Superior Court and Court of Appeals judges are in a separate defined-benefit fund, the District of Columbia Judicial Retirement and Survivors Annuity Fund, administered by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under D.C. Code 11-1570 — not by DCRB.

401(a) and 457(b) death benefit

For the District's 401(a) and 457(b) accounts, the designated beneficiary is entitled to any assets remaining in the account, and DCHR states the designation keeps those assets out of the costs and delays of probate and away from creditor claims. If all primary beneficiaries have died, the contingent beneficiaries are paid. Beneficiary records live at dcretire.voya.com; contact the DCHR Benefits and Retirement Administration at 202-442-7627 or Voya at 833-427-1802.

Retiree death (DCRB plans)

For a teacher who dies after retiring, the survivor annuity follows the retirement option elected: a Reduced Annuity with Maximum Survivor Annuity pays the survivor 55% of the retiree's unreduced annuity, a Reduced Annuity with Partial Survivor Annuity pays up to 54%, and an Unreduced Annuity pays no survivor benefit. A surviving spouse's benefit continues for life but stops on remarriage before age 60.

Payments after the date of death

All payments received from DCRB after the annuitant's date of death must be returned. If a payment came by check, write the date of death on the check and return it to the address on the envelope; if by direct deposit, inform the financial institution of the death.

How to notify DCRB

Use the DCRB "Report a Death" online form at dcrb.dc.gov, or call the DCRB Member Services Center at 202-343-3272 (toll free 1-866-456-3272). For a police officer or firefighter, the survivor must also contact the Police and Firefighters' Retirement Relief Board (PFRRB) at 202-442-9622 — unless the member was receiving or eligible for a deferred retirement benefit, in which case only DCRB needs to be contacted.

Steps to take when someone dies

1. Identify which plan applied: an active or retired member of the Police Officers and Firefighters' Retirement Plan or the Teachers' Retirement Plan (DCRB), the District's 401(a)/457(b) plans (most other employees hired on or after October 1, 1987), CSRS through OPM (first hired before October 1, 1987), or — for a DC judge — the Treasury-administered Judicial Retirement and Survivors Annuity Fund.
2. For a DCRB plan, report the death through the "Report a Death" online form or by calling the Member Services Center at 202-343-3272 so pension payments stop and survivor processing can begin. For a police officer or firefighter, also contact the PFRRB at 202-442-9622. For a 401(a)/457(b) participant, contact DCHR Benefits and Retirement at 202-442-7627. For a CSRS annuitant, report the death to OPM Retirement Services through its online reporting page or at 1-888-767-6738.
3. Return any payment received from DCRB for a period after the date of death — a teacher's survivor will not receive survivor payments until those payments are returned.
4. Confirm the beneficiary designation on file and ask what surviving-spouse or child survivor benefit is payable under the plan and the option the member elected.
5. File the survivor or death-benefit claim with the documents required, including a certified copy of the plan member's death certificate.

Frequently asked questions