Atlanta Firefighters Pension Fund Retirement Decisions (2026)

Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Atlanta runs separate pension funds for firefighters and police officers; this page reads the Firefighters’ Pension Fund. For members who came under the 1978 amendment, the City Code pays a normal pension of 3% of average earnings per year of service, capped at 80%, from age 55 with 10 years, with a reduction for earlier retirement. A designated beneficiary can receive three-fourths of the pension. Members hired on or after September 1, 2011 have a different formula and a normal age of 57. The pages read describe no lump-sum retirement option for the defined benefit pension; Sec. 6-2 separately provides lump sum distributions from the Retirement Account of the Defined Contribution Retirement Plan.

What this page covers and what it does not

The City of Atlanta runs separate defined benefit plans for firefighters, police officers and general employees. This page covers the Firefighters’ Pension Fund. It reads the plan terms published in the City of Atlanta Code of Ordinances, Part I, Chapter 6: Article IV (Firefighters) and Sec. 6-2 in Article I, which modifies the plans. Both were read on October 8, 2026 as posted on Municode (Supplement 107). The police officers’ plan is a separate fund in a parallel article and was not read; general employees are on Atlanta general employees pension retirement decisions.

The Code says the fund’s terms “shall be as set forth in City Related Laws Sections 6-366 through 6-420, as amended by Related Laws Section 6-2”. This is ordinance text, not a member handbook, and the Code keeps older sections that it says “were repealed by 1978 Ga. Laws, page 4508 but have been retained at the request of the city due to their applicability to certain individuals”. The page follows two groups: members under the 1978 amendment (Sec. 6-367) and members hired on or after September 1, 2011, whose formula, ages and survivor method Sec. 6-2 changes. State tax is on Georgia retirement taxes and does Georgia tax pensions.

Two groups are outside the 2011 changes. The Code says their plan “shall not be impacted”: members “hired by the City and Joined the Firefighters’ Pension Fund prior to January 1, 1984” with continuous service or interim benefits bought on rehire, and “members who retired before November 1, 2011”. Those members should read the underlying sections, which this page does not.

When a pension can start

Under the 1978 amendment a member may retire as a matter of right on age and service: the member “shall have served 10 years in the active service of such city and shall have attained the age of 55 years”. Payment starts on a fixed day: the benefit “shall only commence the day following the last day of paid employment for such city”.

Earlier retirement exists at a price. With 10 years of service the benefit is the normal benefit “less one-half of one percent per month for each month not to exceed 60 months that the officer or employee lacks in being 55 years of age”, with a smaller reduction for months beyond 60. Members already employed before the 1978 amendment may take a separate reduced pension if they “shall have served 25 years and shall have attained the age of 50 years”. A member whose “creditable service before credit for accrued unused sick leave equals at least 30 years” can retire “without any reduction for any age or vesting penalties”.

For members hired on or after September 1, 2011, Sec. 6-2 sets normal retirement for firefighters at a participant “hired on or after September 1, 2011 who is 57 years of age or older”, against “hired prior to September 1, 2011 who is 55 years of age or older” for earlier hires. The age penalty “shall be 6% per year (or 0.5% per month)”, and a member “may not collect her/his pension prior to reaching 47 years of age, unless s/he has attained Thirty Years of Service”.

How the pension is calculated, and the figures that matter

For the 1978 amendment group, the pension is “equal to three (3) percent of such person’s average monthly earnings multiplied by the number of each person’s years, or fraction thereof, of creditable service”, and it “shall not exceed 80 percent of such person’s average monthly earnings”. Average earnings are “the average of the monthly earnings of the highest three consecutive years’ salary or earnings”. Unused sick leave days “shall be added as work days to the creditable service otherwise provided by this act”.

For members hired on or after September 1, 2011, Sec. 6-2 gives the formula as “Benefit Formula = Annual Compensation x {higher of: 70% or (1.0% x Years of Service)}”, with multipliers set in Sec. 6-2(d)(6): “1.0% for Years of Service accrued as of January 1, 2025”, “1.6% for Years of Service from date of hire up to 10 years, less service accrued as of January 1, 2025”, “2.0% for Years of Service from between 10 and 19 years, less service accrued as of January 1, 2025”, and “2.4% for Years of Service from over 20 years, less service accrued as of January 1, 2025”. Pay is averaged over the “highest Compensation received by an Employee over a consecutive 60 month period”.

Atlanta Firefighters’ Pension Fund (City Code, Sec. 6-367 and Sec. 6-2)
Option	What the member receives	What a survivor receives
Normal retirement, 1978 amendment group	3% of average monthly earnings per year of creditable service, capped at 80% of average monthly earnings; age 55 with 10 years of service	Three-fourths of the pension to a qualifying beneficiary, if the required payments were made
Early retirement, 1978 amendment group	The normal benefit less one-half of one percent per month short of age 55, up to 60 months, with a smaller reduction beyond	Same three-fourths rule
Vested deferred pension (left with 5 or more years)	Starts at age 60; 100% at 10 years, 25% at 5 years up to 45% at 9 years	Three-fourths to a beneficiary if the member kept making the payments
Hired on or after September 1, 2011	Higher of 70% or 1.0% per year of service; normal age 57; age penalty 6% per year; no collecting before 47 without 30 years	75% of the pension to a designated beneficiary, with the member’s own pension reduced
Refund of contributions after leaving	Contributions plus interest of 5% (see below)	The pages read state no survivor benefit

A computed example from assumed figures, not Atlanta figures: with assumed average monthly earnings of $6,000 and an assumed 25 years of creditable service, 3 percent times 25 years is a computed 75 percent, under the 80 percent cap, so the normal pension is 75 percent of $6,000, a computed $4,500 a month.

A second computed example: a member retiring 36 months short of age 55 loses one-half of one percent for each month, 0.5 percent times 36, a computed 18 percent. On an assumed $4,500 normal benefit that leaves a computed $3,690 a month. The Code shows no worked example, so whether the reduction is a share of the benefit or of the formula is a point to confirm with the fund.

The beneficiary decision: what it costs and what it pays

In the 1978 amendment group, covering a beneficiary is paid for through the payroll deduction: the Code deducts “the sum of seven percent (7%), in the event such person does not provide for payment of a pension to such person’s beneficiary”, and otherwise “a sum to be actuarially determined pursuant to the most recent actuary study, sufficient to cover the cost of providing a continuing pension benefit to such person’s beneficiary”. For members hired before November 1, 2011, Sec. 6-2 sets the rate at “12% of her/his Compensation to the applicable DB Plan if s/he does not have a designated beneficiary” and “13% of her/his Compensation to the applicable DB Plan if s/he does have a designated beneficiary”. As a computed example, on an assumed $80,000 of yearly compensation, the one-point difference is $800 a year, an example and not a member record.

The survivor pension is “three-fourths of the amount the pensioner was receiving, at the time of his death”. A computed example from an assumed $4,500 monthly pension: three-fourths is a computed $3,375 a month. A spouse must have been “legally married to such officer or employee of such city for a period of one (1) year prior to the death of such pensioner”, and a child must be “less than 18 years of age and unmarried” or “less than 23 years of age and enrolled as a full-time student at an accredited secondary school, college or university, and unmarried”. The spouse’s benefit also requires that the member “has made payment for such benefits prior to retirement”. See single-life vs joint-and-survivor pension for the general trade-off.

For members hired on or after September 1, 2011, the choice moves to retirement: the member “may choose to designate a qualified beneficiary” who “will receive 75% of the DB Plan Participant’s Pension Benefit at the time of said Participant’s death”. The cost is taken from the member’s own check: “A DB Plan Participant who designates a beneficiary will have his/her monthly Pension Benefit reduced”, set “so that the total Pension Benefit cost to the City is not increased by the election of a beneficiary”. The pages read publish no size for that reduction.

What cannot be undone

The Code locks the pension category: “whenever an officer or employee has been granted a certain category of pension benefits, no new application for a different category shall be accepted by the board of trustees”. Sec. 6-2 offered members hired before September 1, 2011 a choice to “continue in the Defined Benefit Plan pursuant to the terms being applied prior to November 1, 2011 as modified by this Section 6-2” or take a hybrid package, and says “A decision of whether to participate in the DB hybrid Option is irreversible”. Silence counted as declining: the employee “will be deemed as choosing not to participate in the DB Hybrid Option”. Which choice a given member made is a record question for the fund.

Beneficiary payments are also hard to recover. If a named person stops qualifying, the member may name another and keep paying, but “contributions theretofore made for the benefit of a beneficiary shall not be refunded except insofar as refunds may be allowed by other provisions of this act, as amended”.

Lump sums: what the documents describe

The pages read describe no lump-sum retirement option, no partial lump sum and no deferred retirement option plan (DROP) for the defined benefit pension of this fund. The Defined Contribution Retirement Plan in Sec. 6-2 is separate: it says an employee may direct “lump sum distributions from her/his Retirement Account” on retirement, among other events. Within the defined benefit pension, lump sums appear as a refund of contributions on leaving (below) and as a refund after death: “the named beneficiary, or the member’s estate in the absence of a named beneficiary, shall receive a refund in an amount equal to the amount such member paid into said pension fund less the total amount received by such member or beneficiaries in retirement benefits”.

Leaving before retirement: a deferred pension or a refund

A member who leaves with enough service can leave the money in. The 1978 amendment lets such a member “elect not to withdraw or have paid to such person the amount which said person would have paid into the pension fund prior to terminating such employment” and start the pension at age 60. Vesting for that group is “Completion of 10 or more years of service” for a “normal monthly pension benefit (100% vested)”, with “Completion of 5 years = 25%” rising to “Completion of 9 years = 45%” and “Completion of less than 5 years = 0%”. Sec. 6-2 states: “Employees shall be fully vested upon the completion of ten Years of Service”. A computed example from an assumed $1,200 monthly formula amount at 9 years: 45 percent is a computed $540 a month.

The refund route: members who leave “shall be entitled to a refund of all monies paid into such fund by said employee; provided, however, that such refunds shall be subject to withholding or deduction for any debts owed or amounts due to such municipality by such ex-employee”. Refunds are otherwise restricted: “the refund of pension contributions paid by an employee shall be prohibited” except on separation other than retirement or death, and for bookkeeping errors. Sec. 6-1 sets interest: refunds “of employee pension contributions shall include interest at the rate of five percent per annum on all employee contributions credited as of December 31, 1985, and each subsequent year”. For a member who is not vested and leaves before 5 years of service, Sec. 6-2 gives “a cash-out value for her/his pension contributions equivalent to the amount s/he contributed into the DB Plan plus 5% per annum for the number of years in which s/he contributed to the DB Plan”. The pages read do not state whether that 5% compounds. The trade-off is on pension refund vs leaving it.

Rollovers and what is withheld

A distributee may “elect, in the manner and at the time specified by the board of trustees, to have any portion of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly to an eligible retirement plan”. Destinations include “an individual retirement account or annuity described in Code sections 408(a) or 408(b)” and “a qualified trust described in Code section 401(a)”. The default for a mandatory distribution in excess of $1,000.00 with no election: “the amount of the distribution shall be transferred to an individual retirement plan”.

A computed example from an assumed $10,000 taxable payout paid to the member: 20 percent withholding is a computed $2,000, leaving a computed $8,000, and other money would be needed to roll over the full $10,000. See 20% withholding on a pension lump sum.

Buying service credit and cost-of-living adjustments

For earlier city service, a member “may be eligible for previous service credit immediately upon filing application” and may pay over “sixty (60) months from the date of filing the application”, with “seven percent (7%) per annum on the unpaid balance”. A separate purchase for former Fulton County firefighters rehired after June 1, 2007 is an “irrevocable” contribution set by the plan actuary, payable as a single lump sum, as a single lump sum transferred from another qualified plan, as level payments or level payroll deductions spread over a period of “up to five years”, or in any combination of those methods; a member who leaves before finishing receives credit “in proportion to the payments actually made”. The pages read give no per-year price.

The 1978 amendment ties adjustments to a price index with a limit: no change “shall be in excess of three percent (3%)” in a year. For the 2011 group Sec. 6-2 says the increase is “limited to 2.0%”.

What the IRS adds on tax

A refund or lump sum from a public pension is a distribution, so the IRS rules apply on top of the Atlanta Firefighters’ Pension Fund’s own. On withholding, the IRS says that a taxable eligible rollover distribution paid to you “is subject to mandatory income tax withholding (generally at a rate of 20%), even if you intend to roll it over later”, and that if you roll it over yourself “you’ll have to add funds from other sources equal to the amount withheld”. The Code’s rollover section covers the same kinds of distributions, so the direct-rollover route above is the one that avoids the withholding. The rollover clock, if the money is paid to you: “you have 60 days from the date you receive it to roll it over to another eligible retirement plan”.

On early distributions the IRS says “the law imposes a 10% additional tax on certain early distributions from certain retirement plans”. Its list of exceptions includes “Distributions made to you after you separated from service with your employer after attainment of age 55” and “Distributions made to a qualified public safety employee from a governmental plan” if the employee separated from service during or after the year they attained age 50 or 25 years of service under the plan, whichever is earlier. Whether an exception fits a particular refund depends on your own plan and facts, so confirm it with a tax preparer before you take one.

Where the sources disagree

Three points differ between sections. A vested pension starts at age 60 in Sec. 6-367 but Sec. 6-2 speaks of Normal Retirement Age, 55 or 57. The 1978 formula is 3 percent per year while Sec. 6-2 gives later hires lower, stepped multipliers. Interest on refunds is worded differently in Sec. 6-1 and Sec. 6-2. Sec. 6-400 says plan terms apply as amended by Sec. 6-2, so the fund should confirm which rule governs a given member.

What this page could not settle

The pages read are City Code text, not a member handbook or benefit estimate form, so the fund’s forms, deadlines and election procedures were not read.
The pages read do not describe a lump-sum retirement option, a partial lump sum or a DROP for the defined benefit pension.
The pages read do not state how much the 2011 survivor election reduces the member’s own pension.
The pages read do not state whether the 5% on a refund or cash-out compounds.
The older sections the Code retains for earlier tiers, disability and line-of-duty benefits, and the hybrid option’s detailed formulas were not worked through.
The police officers’ plan is a separate fund and was not read.
The Municode text is Supplement 107 (updated September 2026); later ordinances may have changed it.

Common mistakes

Assuming the beneficiary choice can be made at the last minute; for the 1978 amendment group the Code ties the survivor pension to payments made before retirement.
Treating the hybrid option as reversible; the Code says the decision is irreversible, and silence counted as declining.
Taking a refund while expecting to keep a pension right; the vested path depends on electing not to withdraw.
Applying one group’s rules to another; members hired on or after September 1, 2011 have a different formula, normal age and survivor method.
Expecting a lump-sum retirement option from the defined benefit pension; none is described in the pages read, though the separate Defined Contribution Retirement Plan allows lump sum distributions from its Retirement Account.
Leaving a service purchase unfinished; a member who leaves before paying in full receives credit only in proportion to the payments made.

Find the right next step for your situation

About how much do you have invested? Pick the range that fits; your next step appears immediately below.

About how much do you have invested? Under $100,000 $100,000 to $250,000 $250,000 to $1 million $1 million or more

Sources

City of Atlanta, Georgia, Code of Ordinances, Part I Charter and Related Laws, Chapter 6 Pensions, Article IV Firefighters, Secs. 6-366 to 6-482 (Municode, Supplement 107): https://library.municode.com/ga/atlanta/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHRELA_CH6PE_ARTIVFI
City of Atlanta, Georgia, Code of Ordinances, Part I Charter and Related Laws, Chapter 6 Pensions, Article I In General, Secs. 6-1 to 6-3 (Municode, Supplement 107): https://library.municode.com/ga/atlanta/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHRELA_CH6PE_ARTIINGE
IRS, Topic no. 413, Rollovers from retirement plans (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc413
IRS, Topic no. 558, Additional tax on early distributions from retirement plans other than IRAs (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc558

Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 8, 2026. General information from each system’s own published materials, not legal, tax or financial advice. Your own member statement and the system’s current rules decide your benefit, and a pension counsellor at the system or a fee-only adviser is the right place to confirm anything consequential.

See the adviser match on this page