A New Benefit Payment Option is Available for Retiring Members of EG&C
By Dimitri Kyser - July 2, 2026
Effective July 1, 2026, EG&C members will see an important change to their retirement benefit payment options.
Excise, Gaming & Conservation (EG&C) members retiring after June 30, 2026, may choose between the Regular Retirement payment option and the NEW Joint and Survivor payment option. With this new payment option, an EG&C member who is retirement ready may choose a different percentage for their survivor benefit. This payment split will be determined with a joint life expectancy calculation, taking into account the member’s and the survivor’s ages and life expectancies. This option allows members to select a potentially higher payment for their survivor. The percentages are either:
- 100% of the member’s benefit, or
- two-thirds (2/3), or
- one-half (1/2) of the member’s benefit.
Members may select this new option when they are completing their retirement application or Deferred Retirement Payment Election Plan (DROP) application. The member may select any person to be their survivor but if they are not a spouse, then they are subject to IRS rules for non-spousal survivors.
If a member dies prior to retirement, they will not have this option.
The member may fill out a form to request an estimate to understand how the Joint & Survivor payment option breaks down individually. INPRS will generate estimates so members can make a decision that is right for them.
If they do not select Joint & Survivor when they apply for retirement, they will receive the built-in existing Regular Retirement payment option that has a pre-defined survivor benefit. As a reminder, for Regular Retirement the member receives a monthly retirement allowance for life, and upon their death, their survivor receives a statutory built-in survivor benefit of 50%.
There remain four retirement types:
- Regular Retirement,
- Early Retirement,
- Deferred Retirement Election Plan (DROP), and
- Disability.
The new Joint & Survivor payment option may be used for any of these types.
Some qualifications:
- Dying before retirement. If the member dies before retirement, and has elected DROP, their survivor may receive benefits.
- Death of a survivor. If the designated survivor dies before the member retires, the election is automatically canceled. The member may select a new survivor, but they must contact INPRS so that the payment can be recalculated. Once the new survivor selection is made, the member can then re-elect the joint and survivor option.
- Switching retirement payment election. After retirement, a member may switch retirement payment selection.
- If a member retired prior to June 30, 2026, this new payment option does not apply to them.
- If a member is already enrolled in the DROP come June 30, 2026, they cannot make this election unless they opt out of the DROP.
EXAMPLES:
EXAMPLE 1:
Member A retires on August 30, 2026. In early spring, they recall that their HR department had shared some info about a new option for retirement payments, but now, Member A can’t recall what it was all about. As Member A selects a retirement date and starts thinking about filling out the Retirement Application, they get overwhelmed. What if they mess up? And what was that new option, anyway? So, Member A calls INPRS and speaks with a Member Advocate about what the two options mean. They take this information to their spouse to weigh the decision. They speak with their trusted financial advisor to review their retirement expenses and projected income. They fill out the estimate form and INPRS generates estimates for 100%, 2/3’s and 50% options. Finally, they decide to elect the Joint and Survivor 2/3s Payment Option. But after all this research and work, they don’t want to make a wrong move at the final hour. So, Member A schedules a one-on-one in person meeting with an INPRS Member Advocate so that they can fill out their retirement application together, should Member a run up against any questions.
EXAMPLE 2:
Member B retires January 1, 2027, so they apply for Regular Retirement. In August of 2028, their spouse dies, which qualifies as a major life event. Member B elects their only child to be their new survivor, and in so doing, realizes that the Joint & Survivor payment option is now available to them. So, they decide to compare all options and do so by first filling out the INPRS estimate form to crunch numbers with the new joint life expectancy calculation which takes into account the member’s and the survivor’s ages and life expectancies. After reviewing the estimates with their trusted financial advisor, Member B elects to switch payment options from Regular Retirement to Joint and Survivor payment option of two-thirds.