Executive Director Update: Retirement Deadlines Approaching + Fiscal Session Update

We are nearing the end of our retirement season. May 31 is the deadline for active members to apply to enter T-DROP or apply for a July 1 retirement date. If a member submits their retirement application after May 31, it will delay their effective retirement date until the following month. But for T-DROP, if a member does not meet the deadline, they must wait until next year to enter T-DROP. 

Deciding whether to retire or enter T-DROP is a major life decision that can trigger some strong emotions and even stress. We want to make it easy for you by ensuring that you have all the information and support you need to choose what is best for you and your family. So, if you are thinking about retiring or entering T-DROP, I encourage you to check out our updated Member Retirement Planner. It includes important information about eligibility for retirement and T-DROP and walks you through the application process. You can find the Member Retirement Planner at the top of our Publications page at this link: https://www.artrs.gov/publications

You are also encouraged to talk with one of our retirement counselors on the phone, on a Zoom call, or in person at our office. Our counselors can walk you through your options, provide precise benefit estimates, and help you consider the financial impact of retiring or remaining employed. To chat with a counselor or schedule an appointment, please call us at (501) 682-1517, or email us at info@artrs.gov.

A couple of other points to remember if you are considering retirement or T-DROP:

• ATRS has made it easy and convenient for you to apply for retirement or T-DROP online via your member portal account.  You must be vested and at least age 60, or have 28 years of service credit, to apply online for retirement or T-DROP. Otherwise, you will need to submit a paper application.
• You are responsible for sending us your retirement or T-DROP application on time. Never assume that your school business office will send us the application for you, because that’s not their job. 
• As I mentioned in my email earlier this year, the United States Postal Service has changed how and when they postmark mail, and you can no longer assume that mail will be postmarked on the day you drop it in the mailbox. If you are mailing us a paper application, be sure to take it inside the Post Office and ask their staff to postmark it for you, or better yet, send it via Priority Mail or Certified Mail so that you have proof you mailed it and you can track it to ensure that it reaches us. Items must be postmarked by May 31, 2026.

2026 Legislative Fiscal Session

The Arkansas Legislature has now completed work for the 2026 Fiscal Session. Legislators were in Little Rock in session for a total of three weeks. Fortunately, no bills were introduced that would have affected our retirement benefits or our Board’s independence. The only legislation affecting ATRS was our appropriation bill, which is the bill passed each year that authorizes us to pay your benefits. Our appropriation bill was SB17. It passed both the House and Senate with no negative votes, and the Governor signed it into law on April 22.

Even though we have just finished the Fiscal Session, planning is already underway for the next Regular Legislative Session that begins in January. I am working with our staff to evaluate what needs to be addressed in new legislation. We know of some tweaks that may need to be made to better serve our members. If there is an ATRS issue you would like to see addressed in legislation, please feel free to drop me a note at MarkW@artrs.gov.

Finally, I know the end of the school year is in sight for our actively working members. Thank you for all that you have done this year to support public education and ensure that our state’s children are being well educated and prepared for our future. We at ATRS are so proud to serve the Arkansans who do some of the most important work in our State – educating future generations!

If you have any questions about your retirement options or need information or advice, please contact one of our experienced retirement counselors by calling (501) 682-1517 or emailing info@artrs.gov. For questions or concerns about the System overall, please feel free to contact me directly at the email address or phone numbers below.

Mark White
Executive Director, ATRS
MarkW@artrs.gov
Office: (501) 621-8853
Cell: (501) 541-2057

Executive Director Update: Retirement Season Begins + ATRS Financial Reports

It’s March, which means retirement season is officially underway at ATRS. Much like the beginning of spring training or the first football game of fall, the next few months will be a very busy time for our staff as we work with members who are considering retirement and process their applications.

If you plan to retire effective July 1, the application window is now open and will close May 31. Retirement applications received after May 31 will push your retirement to the following month.

If you intend to enter T-DROP for next school year, your application must be received by ATRS between now and May 31. If a T-DROP application is not received by May 31, you must wait until March 1, 2027, before you can apply again to enter T-DROP.

To help you prepare, we have updated our ‘Member Retirement Planner’. It includes important information about eligibility for retirement and T-DROP and walks you through the application process. You can find the ‘Member Retirement Planner’ at the top of our Publications page at this link: https://www.artrs.gov/publications

We also offer a convenient way to apply online for retirement or T-DROP through your member portal account.  To apply online, you must be vested and at least age 60 or have 28 years of service credit. Through the member portal, you can also create your own benefit projections as well as review your work service credit and salary history. If you don’t have an ATRS member portal account, you can create one at this link: https://www.artrs.gov/registration

Deciding whether to retire or enter T-DROP is a major life decision. I know that it can be an emotional and even stressful decision. We want to make sure you have all the information and support you need to choose what is best for you and your family. If you would like to talk with a retirement counselor who can walk you through your options, provide precise benefit estimates, and help you consider the financial impact of retiring or remaining employed, please call us at (501) 682-1517, or email us at info@artrs.gov.

 

USPS Postmark Change

If you plan to mail a paper copy of your retirement or T-DROP application, please be aware of a recent change by the United States Postal Service. Postmarks will now reflect the date on which mail is first processed at a regional facility, NOT when it is dropped off at a local post office. In other words, your mail may not be postmarked until days after it was dropped off at the post office, creating the potential for missed deadlines.

To ensure a specific date is noted on your retirement application or T-DROP application, you can request a free manual postmark at a retail counter inside the post office, get proof of mailing via Certified Mail, or a Certificate of Mailing. You can find more information on this from AARP here: https://www.aarp.org/government-elections/usps-postmark-changes/

 

ATRS Transparency and Accountability

We recently published the System’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for 2025. It includes detailed financial, investment, and actuarial information about ATRS and how we did in the 2025 fiscal year. This report is one of the ways we ensure that we remain transparent and accountable to you. You can find the report on the Publications page of our website or at this link: https://www.artrs.gov/Publications/ATRS_2025_Annual_Report.pdf

We also recently received our audit for 2025. Every year, Arkansas Legislative Audit does a thorough review of our finances and investments to certify that our numbers are accurate and that we are following legal requirements. I’m proud to share that we once again received a clean audit with no negative findings. You can read through the audit report, which has a lot of detailed information on our finances, at this link: https://www.arklegaudit.gov/downloadReport.php?id=SA1037525

 

Upcoming Legislative Session

Next month, the Arkansas General Assembly will convene for the 2026 Fiscal Session, during which legislators will focus on budget bills and other fiscal matters. Any non-fiscal legislation requires a supermajority vote to be considered. By law, the Fiscal Session must complete its business and adjourn by May 22.

I do not expect any legislation to be filed that would negatively affect ATRS. The only ATRS-related bill I expect will be our standard appropriation bill. Of course, if anything arises that might impact your retirement benefits, I will immediately let you know.

If you have any questions about your retirement options or need information or advice, please contact one of our experienced retirement counselors by calling (501) 682-1517 or emailing info@artrs.gov. For questions or concerns about the System overall, please feel free to contact me directly at the email address or phone numbers below.

 

Mark White
Executive Director, ATRS
MarkW@artrs.gov
Office: (501) 621-8853
Cell: (501) 541-2057