Active Members
Understanding what it means to be an active member
Active MEABF Members
Eligible Employers:
- City of Chicago & Elected Officials
- Law Department and Board of Elections
- Chicago Board of Education
- Retirement Board
- Chicago Housing Authority and Public Building Commission
Alternate Pension Funds (Not members of MEABF):
- Laborers'
- Chicago Teachers'
- Metropolitan Water
- Park District
Membership Record Form
All members of the Fund must complete a Membership Record Form with the Fund. This form must be complete and on file at the Fund to receive any benefit information from the Fund. The Membership Record includes a Designated Beneficiary form that must be notarized in order to be in effect.
Active Member Resources
Receiving Counseling and Applying for Benefits
Active Members may call the Fund office to set up an appointment to receive information about their benefit rights. Appointments are required to ensure that Fund staff is prepared to provide quality customer service to the Active Members. Active Members may also request to have an estimate of their benefits prepared.
Pension Eligibility
The minimum requirements to receive a monthly annuity for a Tier I employee (has paid service prior to 1/1/11) are:
- age 50 with a minimum of 30 years of service
- age 55 with a minimum of 10 years of service
- age 60 with any number of years of service at the time of resignation
- Must have a minimum of 10 years of pension credit
- Minimum age to retire is 62
- Must have a minimum of 10 years of pension credit
- Minimum age to retire is 60
Refund
Participants with the following lengths of service and ages at withdrawal from service are entitled to receive a refund of the amount accumulated to their credit from salary deduction for annuity (excluding deductions in lieu for duty disability benefits received on or after January 1, 1982 and deductions in lieu for ordinary disability benefits received on or after January 1, 2001):
- withdrawal from service under age 55 with any length of service; or
- withdrawal from service between the ages of 55 and 60 with less than 10 years of service.
A Participant receives interest on all contributions (except the 0.5% deduction made for annuity increases after retirement) up until resignation from service. No interest is credited after withdrawal from service. The interest included in the refund, together with the pension
contributions which were previously not included as taxable income on the Participant’s W-2’s is subject to Federal Income Tax.
The Pension Code does not permit partial refunds of contributions and does not allow a Participant to borrow from his pension account.
A Participant who receives a full refund forfeits all rights in the Fund for himself or herself and for any other person who might benefit through the Participant for service rendered prior to date of application for refund.
Active Members Considering Retirement
Members considering retirement should request an estimate of benefits before finalizing their resignation from service. If the Member has any service credit to be established or re-established, or has any service credit with another pension fund that has reciprocity with the Fund (“Reciprocal Fund”), the Member should request an estimate at least six months before resignation.
Applying for Retirement Benefits
Active Members applying for retirement benefits can make an appointment with an application processor who will assist them through the application process. Members may also download an Application for Retirement from the Fund website and submit it to the Fund.
Menu