Contributions

Who Contributes What

Employer contributions.

Each year an actuary determines how much the public schools need to contribute to fund their portion of member benefits. These contributions are not refundable to you or your employer.

Your personal contributions.

As a MIP participant, you also contribute a percentage of your salary to the pension reserve fund. Your contribution rate depends on when you first begin working for a Michigan public school reporting unit.

• If you elected the MIP before January 1, 1990, OR were a Basic Plan participant who enrolled in the MIP by January 1, 1993, you contribute 3.9 percent of your pretax salary.
• If you first worked between January 1, 1990, and June 30, 2008, OR are a returning member who did not work between January 1, 1987, and December 31, 1989, you contribute pretax contributions based on the following chart:
   

  COMPENSATION (school fiscal year earnings)	MIP GRADED CONTRIBUTIONS
  $0 to $5,000	3% of compensation (up to $150 total)
  $5,000.01 to $15,000	$150, plus 3.6% of compensation from $5,000.01 up to and including $15,000 (up to $510 total)
  $15,000.01 and over	$510, plus 4.3% of compensation over $15,000

• If you first worked between July 1, 2008, and June 30, 2010, you contribute pretax contributions based on the following chart:
   

  COMPENSATION (school fiscal year earnings)	MIP PLUS CONTRIBUTIONS
  $0 to $5,000	3% of compensation (up to $150 total)
  $5,000.01 to $15,000	$150, plus 3.6% of compensation from $5,000.01 up to and including $15,000 (up to $510 total)
  $15,000.01 and over	$510, plus 6.4% of compensation over $15,000

   

In addition to your MIP contributions, you might have other personal contributions - from earnings before July 1, 1977, or from purchased service credit - on account.

Retiree health care contributions.

Employees make pretax contributions to a Retiree Health Care Fund, which assists with funding retiree health care. The IRS does not allow refunds from this type of fund. (Employer contributions also help fund retiree health care.)