Delaware County, Indiana

The Delaware County Sheriff Benefit Plan (Plan) is a single-employer defined benefit pension plan established to provide disability, death and survivor/dependent benefits for a person employed by the Delaware County Sheriff's Department (Employer) as a County Policeman, Sheriff or Deputy Sheriff with full police power (Employee), as such terms are used in Indiana Code. Indiana Code 36-8-10 Sections 14, 15, 16 and 17 grant the authority to the Employer and trustee to establish and amend the benefit terms to the Plan with the approval of the County fiscal body. The Plan was established on July 1, 1969 and is administered by the Committee. The composition of the Committee, according to the Plans legal document, shall be the Sheriff and the Merit Board (the Merit Board, per IC 36-8-10-3, consist of five members, three members appointed by the Sheriff and two members elected by the majority vote of the members of County police force).

At December 31, 2025, Plan membership consisted of the following:

If an eligible member becomes disabled, the benefit payable prior to age sixty-five (65) shall be determined in accordance with the contract issued by the insurance company provided for the member by the Plan. A member receiving an insurance benefit who attains his sixty-fifth (65th) birthday, whereupon the benefit provided under the insurance contract terminates, shall be entitled to a monthly benefit from the Plan for life in the amount of the monthly benefit to which the member would have been entitled under the Retirement Plan had he remained in service until his normal retirement date and continued to earn a salary at the same rate that was in effect as of the date the disability commenced.

Each eligible member shall be insured by a life insurance contract in the face amount of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), with a matching amount of accidental death insurance. The purchase and maintenance of the insurance contract is provided by the Plan.

In the event that an eligible member dies prior to the termination of his employment for whatever reason or after his actual retirement as of an early, normal or late retirement date or for reason of his disability, there shall be payable a two hundred dollar ($200) monthly benefit to such member's surviving spouse to whom he was married on the date of his death or on the date of his retirement, if earlier, for the spouse's remaining lifetime.

In addition to the surviving spouse's death benefit, a monthly benefit shall be payable on behalf of each dependent child under the age of eighteen (18) years of such deceased member in an amount equal to thirty dollars ($30) per month. The dependent child's monthly benefit will cease upon the earlier of the child's eighteenth (18th) birthday or date of death.