The Michigan Office of Retirement Services (ORS) administers retirement programs for Michigan's state employees, public school employees, judges, state police, and National Guard members. ORS serves more than 602,000 customers (about 265,000 active, 20,000 deferred, and 317,000 retired), representing 1 of every 13 Michigan adults. ORS customers live in about 1 of every 8 Michigan households.
Within these systems, ORS administers five defined benefit pension plans, seven defined benefit retiree healthcare plans, and three defined contribution plans, managing combined net assets over $113.7 billion. ORS is responsible for the 15th largest public pension system in the U.S. and the 38th largest pension system in the world. In fiscal year 2023, ORS paid out more than $8.2 billion in pension and healthcare benefits.
ORS is a division of Michigan's Department of Technology, Management & Budget.
|
Retirement system members |
Active* |
Deferred |
Retired |
Total |
| Public school employees K–12 public school and intermediate districts, district libraries, public school academies and charter schools, tax-supported community colleges, and seven universities | 203,909 | 15,247 | 237,186 | 456,342 |
| State employees Civil service employees, appointed officials in the executive branch, legislative, and judiciary staff | 48,924 | 1,625 | 70,868 | 121,417 |
| State police All sworn, enlisted officers | 1,957 | 17 | 3,406 | 5,380 |
| Judges All judges, governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, legislative auditor general, and constitutional court administrator | 576 | 646 | 1,222 | |
| National Guard Michigan National Guard (Army or Air) | 9,831 | 3,095 | 4,623 | 17,549 |
| Michigan Legislature State senators and representatives in the Defined Contribution (DC) Plan | 148 | — | 119 | 267 |
| Total | 265,345 | 19,984 | 316,848 | 602,177 |
*Active member counts include participation in the State of Michigan 401(k) and 457 Plans.
ORS has been named winner of the 2025 Excellence Through Collaboration Award by the National Association of State Chief Administrators. The honor is for ORS' human-centered design-focused initiative transforming retirement planning services to create a more accessible experience for public employees and retirees. ORS was recognized along with partners Accenture Song, Voya Financial, and the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget Office of Continuous Improvement.
ORS was named 2024 Plan Sponsor of the Year for Government DC plans with $1 billion or more in assets. Awarded by PLANSPONSOR, the recognition is for retirement plan sponsors that show an exemplary commitment to their participants' financial health and retirement success. ORS was one of three finalists in its category and among 10 Plan Sponsor of the Year winners.
ORS received 2024 Best in Class 401(k) Plan honors from PLANSPONSOR. The recognition is for 401(k) retirement plans and plan sponsors that stand out for their exceptional best practices. ORS was chosen from 1,764 401(k) plans whose sponsors completed the 2023 PLANSPONSOR Defined Contribution Survey.
For the third consecutive year, ORS was honored with a Savings Champion Award for encouraging people to save money during America Saves Week.
Of the 5,300 participating organizations, ORS is one of only 10 to be honored by America Saves in back-to-back years and is one of only five to be selected three years in a row.
For the campaign, — which ran from April 5-11, 2026 — ORS used the theme “Own Your Financial Story: Big Plans. Small Steps.” We shared the message through social media, newsletters, Department of Technology, Management & Budget digital signs, and internal communications. The goal was to help people build a strong foundation, expect the unexpected, plan with purpose, pay down debt, and focus on the future.
ORS earned the 2023 Public Pension Standards Award from the Public Pension Coordinating Councils (PPCC) Standards Program. Cited for funding and administration, ORS has received the award every year since 2004. The PPCC Standards, which reflect public retirement system management and administration expectations, are a benchmark for defined benefit public plans.
ORS was awarded the Government Finance Officers Association Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for our fiscal year 2023 annual comprehensive financial reports. ORS was honored for the 33rd consecutive year.
ORS, with Voya Financial, claimed a 2022 Signature Award from the Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA). Together, ORS and Voya Financial took third place for their “It’s your future, retire well” campaign during National Retirement Security Month in October 2021. The outreach included the redesigned State of Michigan 401(k) and 457 Plans website by Voya, webinars, one-on-one account reviews, emails, social media, and an online scavenger hunt.
PSCA is part of the American Retirement Association.
ORS, with Voya Financial, received the 2025 Leadership Award for our How Do I …? campaign from the National Association of Government Defined Contribution Administrators (NAGDCA). Recognized in the Holistic Financial Wellness category, the campaign provided State of Michigan 401(k) and 457 Plans participants with targeted communications about their retirement plans and retirement healthcare benefits. The effort encouraged engagement and interactions with Plans administrator Voya Financial through webinars, one-on-one appointments, and account reviews as well as with ORS. Conducted from June 2024 to February 2025, How Do I...? provided participants with email messages about their retirement plans. The topics covered included learning about the plan, updating beneficiaries, understanding healthcare in retirement, increasing contribution rates, and getting more information on the Plans. In addition to emails, How Do I...? included webpages on ORS and the Plans' websites, Plans-specific educational webinars, and awareness on ORS social media pages (Facebook, Instagram, and X).
ORS won a 2026 Blue Pencil and Gold Screen Award from the National Association of Government Communicators. ORS earned third place in the Digital — Social Media Campaign (Paid) category for the Scare Proof Your Retirement campaign which ran during National Security Month in October 2025. The Halloween movie-themed campaign shared tips about saving money, making a budget, staying safe online, and planning for retirement. ORS posted these messages on our Facebook and Instagram pages.
ORS and Voya Financial won a 2026 Eddy Award from Pensions & Investments for the How Do I …? campaign. This campaign gave State of Michigan 401(k) and 457 Plans participants targeted information about their retirement plans and healthcare benefits. It encouraged people to connect with Voya by joining webinars, making appointments, and reviewing their accounts, as well as getting help from ORS.
The campaign ran from June 2024 to February 2025. It shared emails covering plan basics, beneficiaries, healthcare, and contributions. The campaign also used webpages, educational webinars, and social media posts.
