Employer Contribution Rates

Overview

Employer contribution rates are recommended annually by the ACERA’s actuary in its actuarial valuation and typically vary from year-to-year. Rates depend on the level of established benefits, rate of return on investments, and the cost of administering benefits.

Members do not benefit from employer contributions until retirement—these contributions are used, along with employee contributions, to fund member retirement benefits. Employer contributions are never refundable—if a member terminates employment and elects to receive a refund of employee retirement contributions, they will not receive employer contributions made on their behalf.

To learn about the rates employees pay, visit our employee contributions page.

Employer Contribution Rates

These are the average rates employers are paying between September 2023 and September 2024 compared with the previous year’s rates.

Membership Type and Tier 2022/2023 Average Rate 2023/2024 Average Rate Difference
County Only      
General Tier 1 24.75% 24.77% 0.02%
General Tier 2 23.20% 23.19% -0.01%
General Tier 4* 23.01% 23.10% 0.09%
Safety Tier 1 43.64% 42.29% -1.35%
Safety Tier 2 23.84% 25.53% 1.69%
Safety Tier 2C 29.18% 30.50% 1.32%
Safety Tier 2D 24.60% 26.37% 1.77%
Safety Tier 4* 21.44% 23.55% 2.11%
County Combined 23.11% 23.57% 0.46%
AHS, Courts, & First 5 Only      
General Tier 1 25.72% 25.80% 0.08%
General Tier 2 24.17% 24.22% 0.05%
General Tier 4* 23.98% 24.13% 0.15%
Housing Only      
General Tier 1 30.93% 30.95% 0.02%
General Tier 2 29.38% 29.37% -0.01%
General Tier 4* 29.19% 29.28% 0.09%
LARPD Only      
General Tier 1 10.97% 10.97% 0.00%
General Tier 3 16.41% 17.15% 0.74%
General Tier 4* 9.23% 9.30% 0.07%
All Categories Combined 23.39% 23.74% 0.35%

*Tier 4 rates are flat rates, not average rates, i.e., all Tier 4 members pay the same employee contribution rates.

 

For more information, refer to ACERA’s annual actuarial valuation