SCRS administers pension and other benefits for substantially all public employees in the state, including teachers, state employees, and employees of political subdivisions that have elected to participate. The South Carolina Retirement System plan provides coverage for nearly 90% of all the system's active members. The Police Officers Retirement System covers virtually all others, including police officers, correctional officers, and firefighters; other plans are for members of the general assembly, judges, solicitors, and members of the National Guard. New hires since 2002 may elect to participate in the Optional Retirement Plan, a defined contribution plan alternative to the SCRS traditional pension plan.
South Carolina Retirement Systems Basics, by Plan
Source: Public Plans Database (as of 2023)
Note: South Carolina Retirement Systems has 3 other plans.
Assets
Assets at Year-End
South Carolina Retirement Systems
2001-2023
| Fiscal Year |
Net Assets (billions) |
| 2001 |
21.1 |
| 2002 |
21.0 |
| 2003 |
22.4 |
| 2004 |
23.8 |
| 2005 |
24.8 |
| 2006 |
25.4 |
| 2007 |
28.0 |
| 2008 |
26.6 |
| 2009 |
20.5 |
| 2010 |
22.7 |
| 2011 |
25.9 |
| 2012 |
25.0 |
| 2013 |
26.5 |
| 2014 |
29.9 |
| 2015 |
29.3 |
| 2016 |
28.1 |
| 2017 |
30.2 |
| 2018 |
31.2 |
| 2019 |
32.3 |
| 2020 |
31.3 |
| 2021 |
39.9 |
| 2022 |
38.4 |
| 2023 |
41.0 |
Membership
Ratio of Actives to Beneficiaries, 2001-2023
| Fiscal Year |
South Carolina Retirement Systems |
US State and Local Pensions |
| 2001 |
2.7 |
2.4 |
| 2002 |
2.4 |
2.3 |
| 2003 |
2.2 |
2.2 |
| 2004 |
2.1 |
2.1 |
| 2005 |
1.9 |
2.1 |
| 2006 |
1.9 |
2.0 |
| 2007 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
| 2008 |
1.9 |
1.9 |
| 2009 |
1.9 |
1.9 |
| 2010 |
1.8 |
1.8 |
| 2011 |
1.6 |
1.7 |
| 2012 |
1.5 |
1.6 |
| 2013 |
1.5 |
1.5 |
| 2014 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
| 2015 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
| 2016 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
| 2017 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
| 2018 |
1.4 |
1.3 |
| 2019 |
1.4 |
1.3 |
| 2020 |
1.4 |
1.3 |
| 2021 |
1.4 |
1.2 |
| 2022 |
1.4 |
1.2 |
| 2023 |
1.4 |
1.2 |
2023 Membership for South Carolina Retirement Systems
| Actives |
Beneficiaries |
Inactive Vested |
Total Membership |
# of Participating Employers |
| 239,874 |
177,354 |
239,252 |
656,480 |
728 |
Cash Flows
Cash Flow vs. Total Assets (Millions)
South Carolina Retirement Systems
2001-2023
| Fiscal Year |
Cash Flow |
Assets |
| 2001 |
-53.8 |
21,062.7 |
| 2002 |
-304.4 |
20,951.6 |
| 2003 |
-436.3 |
22,379.4 |
| 2004 |
-587.0 |
23,782.7 |
| 2005 |
-662.6 |
24,808.4 |
| 2006 |
-728.3 |
25,381.9 |
| 2007 |
-734.4 |
28,048.8 |
| 2008 |
-687.8 |
26,633.0 |
| 2009 |
-710.5 |
20,492.4 |
| 2010 |
-799.5 |
22,691.7 |
| 2011 |
-948.7 |
25,891.8 |
| 2012 |
-1,043.2 |
24,979.1 |
| 2013 |
-1,032.4 |
26,500.4 |
| 2014 |
-1,059.2 |
29,927.7 |
| 2015 |
-1,059.8 |
29,305.7 |
| 2016 |
-1,049.6 |
28,066.7 |
| 2017 |
-1,121.1 |
30,216.9 |
| 2018 |
-1,346.2 |
31,207.1 |
| 2019 |
-699.1 |
32,286.0 |
| 2020 |
-510.6 |
31,253.4 |
| 2021 |
-601.0 |
39,898.1 |
| 2022 |
-466.4 |
38,440.1 |
| 2023 |
-210.9 |
41,003.0 |
2023 Cash Flows for South Carolina Retirement Systems (millions)
| Inflows |
Outflows |
Investment Gains (losses) |
Change in Net Assets |
| 3,831.2 |
4,042.2 |
2,773.9 |
2,563.0 |
Cash Flow as a Percentage of Assets
South Carolina Retirement Systems
2001-2023
| Fiscal Year |
South Carolina Retirement Systems |
National Average |
| 2001 |
-0.3 |
-2.1 |
| 2002 |
-1.5 |
-2.0 |
| 2003 |
-1.9 |
-2.5 |
| 2004 |
-2.5 |
-2.0 |
| 2005 |
-2.7 |
-2.2 |
| 2006 |
-2.9 |
-2.2 |
| 2007 |
-2.6 |
-2.1 |
| 2008 |
-2.6 |
-2.3 |
| 2009 |
-3.5 |
-3.1 |
| 2010 |
-3.5 |
-3.2 |
| 2011 |
-3.7 |
-3.1 |
| 2012 |
-4.2 |
-3.3 |
| 2013 |
-3.9 |
-3.1 |
| 2014 |
-3.5 |
-2.9 |
| 2015 |
-3.6 |
-2.8 |
| 2016 |
-3.7 |
-3.0 |
| 2017 |
-3.7 |
-2.9 |
| 2018 |
-4.3 |
-2.6 |
| 2019 |
-2.2 |
-2.6 |
| 2020 |
-1.6 |
-2.4 |
| 2021 |
-1.5 |
-2.1 |
| 2022 |
-1.2 |
-2.1 |
| 2023 |
-0.5 |
-2.1 |
