Death Benefits - Active
The Plan helps to protect your beneficiaries against financial hardships that can occur after your death.
You are eligible for Death Benefits from the Plan if you are a Full Member and you are contributing to the Plan at the time of your death. To be a Full Member, you must be contributing $1.00 each for Temporary Disability, Permanent Total Disability, and Death Benefits for a total of $3.00 per pay period. For more information, please see the section on Full Membership.
To learn more about Death Benefits for active employees and the claims process, please read on or watch a 
short video.
Death While in Active Service
[Top]The Death Benefit for an active employee consists of the following:
- 14 times your monthly compensation (no maximum); and
- Refund of the employee contributions and interest; and
- Refund of the Additional Annuity contributions and interest, if applicable; and
- Any unpaid Disability Benefits, if applicable.
14x Death Benefit
[Top]The 14x Death Benefit provides a lump sum payment equal to fourteen times your monthly base salary, which is paid to your beneficiary tax free with no limits.
Since you only contribute $1 towards this death benefit "insurance", the IRS treats this as a fringe benefit that must be reported as taxable income to you while you are working. To understand the IRS withholding and reporting requirements for the 14x Death Benefit, please see our bulletin.
Survivor’s Optional Death Benefit Allowance
[Top]In lieu of a refund of the employee contributions and interest, your surviving spouse/domestic partner may be eligible to receive a monthly allowance for life if you were a contributing Full Member and you meet any of the following conditions on the day prior to your death:
- You were eligible to retire; or
- You completed 25 years of Qualifying Service (Plan and LACERS).
Your spouse/domestic partner will be eligible to receive a Survivor’s Optional Death Benefit Allowance if he/she is the only person entitled to a return of your employee contributions and interest, and he/she elects to receive a monthly allowance instead of a refund. If you do not name your spouse or domestic partner to all of your retirement contributions and interest, your spouse or domestic partner will not be able to elect a Survivor’s Optional Death Benefit Allowance when he/she is eligible.
The eligibility for retirement is specific to your tier while you were working and a member of the Plan. To review the eligibility for retirement, please refer to the qualifications for Tier 1 or Tier 2.
Leave of Absences
[Top]Once you become a Full Member of the Plan, $1.00 is deducted from your paycheck for Death Benefits. If the Plan is unable to take this deduction in any payroll period, you will lose coverage for your Death Benefits. However, if you are off work on a paid Disability Leave or Workers’ Compensation Leave, even though you do not make contributions to the Plan, your coverage will continue automatically.
You may continue Death Benefit coverage for up to 13 payroll periods (approximately six months) while on leave without pay if you pay the required premium in advance. (This is not available to employees who transfer to another City department.) The premiums to be paid consist of your Disability and Death Benefits contributions plus the amount that is normally paid by the Department toward these benefits. If you choose to continue your coverage, you must make these payments in advance to the Plan.
To make arrangements for the payments prior to your absence, please contact the Disability Section at (213) 367-1680.
Transfer to City Service
[Top]You will not be eligible for the insured life Death Benefit (14 times monthly compensation), the Survivor’s Optional Death Benefit Allowance, or the Family Death Benefit if you are not an active employee of the Department at the time of your death.
Your beneficiary will only be eligible for the refund of employee contribution and interest, and Additional Annuity and interest, if you contributed to the program.