S.C. Code Ann. § 9-1-1550
(A) Upon retirement from service on or after July 1, 1964, a Class One member shall receive a service retirement allowance which shall consist of:
(3) if he has a prior service certificate in full force and effect, an additional employer annuity which must be equal to the employee annuity which would have been provided at age sixty-five or at age of retirement, whichever is less, by twice the contributions which he would have made during his entire period of prior service had the system been in operation and had he contributed thereunder during such entire period.
Upon retirement from service after December 31, 2000, a Class One member shall receive a service retirement allowance computed as follows: If the member's service retirement date occurs on or after his sixty-fifth birthday, or after he has completed twenty-eight or more years of creditable service, the allowance must be equal to one and forty-five hundredths percent of his average final compensation multiplied by the number of years of his creditable service.
If the member's service retirement date occurs before his sixty-fifth birthday and before he completes twenty-eight years of creditable service, his service retirement allowance is computed as above, but is reduced by five-twelfths of one percent thereof for each month by which his retirement date precedes the first day of the month, prorated for periods less than a month, coincident with or next following his sixty-fifth birthday.
Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, any Class One member who retires on or after July 1, 1976, shall receive not less than the benefit provided under the formula in effect before July 1, 1976.
(B) Upon retirement from service after December 31, 2000, a Class Two member shall receive a service retirement allowance computed as follows:
(C) Upon retirement from service after June 30, 2012, a Class Three member shall receive a service retirement allowance computed as follows:
HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 61-105; 1952 Code Section 61-105; 1945 (44) 212; 1949 (46) 424; 1955 (49) 38, 153; 1964 (53) 1843; 1965 (54) 622; 1966 (54) 2009; 1969 (56) 259; 1972 (57) 2443; 1975 (59) 154; 1976 Act No. 587 Section 2; 1979 Act No. 16 Section 1; 1984 Act No. 384, Sections 1, 2; 1988 Act No. 475, Section 1, eff July 1, 1988; 1989 Act No. 189, Part II, Section 60B, eff July 1, 1989 (became law without the Governor's signature); 2001 Act No. 1, Part II, Section 2A4, eff January 1, 2001; 2012 Act No. 278, Pt I, Section 11, eff July 1, 2012.
The 1988 amendment in subsection (A)(3) in the first paragraph replaced "shall" with "must", in the second paragraph replaced "1976" with "1988", "such" allowance with "the" allowance, "shall" with "must" and increased the multiplier factor, in subsection (B) inserted "on or after July 1, 1988," after service, and in item (1) of subsection (B) replaced "such" allowance with "the" allowance, "shall" with "must" and increased the multiplier factor.
The 1989 amendment increased the multiplier fraction used in calculating service retirement benefits from one and thirty-five hundredths percent to one and forty-five hundredths percent of average final compensation for class one members and from one and seven-tenths percent to one and eighty-two hundredths percent of average final compensation for class two members.
The 2001 amendment substituted "twenty-eight" for "thirty" and "December 31, 2000" for "July 1, 1989" throughout; deleted former subsection (C); and made language changes.
The 2012 amendment added subsection (C).