The Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) of Mississippi, a governmental defined benefit pension plan qualified under Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, is the retirement system for nearly all non-federal public employees in the state. From the Gulf of Mexico to the Tennessee border, from the Alabama line to the Mississippi River, PERS serves employees of the state, public school districts, municipalities, counties, community colleges, state universities and such other public entities as libraries and water districts.Membership in PERS is a benefit accorded to eligible public employees of member agencies, and is financed by contributions made by the employees and their employers and the earnings on these contributions. PERS was established by the Mississippi Legislature in 1952 to provide benefits to retirees, as well as future benefits to current and former public employees. In addition to regular service retirement benefits available to vested members at age 60 and to members with 25 years of service credit at any age, PERS provides disability and survivor protection.Additional programs administered by PERS for the benefit of its members and the state include the Supplemental Legislative Retirement Plan (SLRP), the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol Retirement System (MHSPRS), the Institutions of Higher Learning Optional Retirement Plan (ORP), Fire and Police Disability and Relief Funds and General Municipal Retirement Systems (MUNI) for employees of 17 cities, the Mississippi Government Employees' Deferred Compensation Plan, and the PERS Retiree Insurance Program.