State Authorities Superannuation Act 1987

Existing contributors: NSW government employees who elected to join SASS before 19 December 1992 and are still contributing. These are long-serving employees who joined before the scheme closed.

Former contributors with preserved benefits: Former employees who left service with deferred entitlements preserved in the Fund.

Dependants and personal representatives: Entitled to death benefits on the death of a contributor.

Employers: State government departments, agencies and authorities whose employees are contributors. Employers must make required contributions and salary sacrifice contributions on behalf of contributors.

The Board (now administered through STC/Aware Super infrastructure): Manages the Fund, accounts, investment returns and benefit payments.

Employee contributions (Part 3): Contributors must pay contributions at the rate they elect, which may be a percentage of salary. Salary sacrifice contributions may also be made.

Employer contributions (Part 4): Employers must make contributions on behalf of contributors to fund the employer-financed benefit component.

Salary sacrifice (Part 3): Salary sacrifice into superannuation is available for contributors. Salary sacrifice reduces taxable income but has specific rules on how contributions are credited to the contributor's account.

Preservation of benefits: Benefits must be preserved in accordance with Commonwealth SIS Act conditions of release until a condition of release is met.

Family law compliance: The Act contains Part 5AA for family law superannuation splitting. When a family law court makes a superannuation splitting order or a payment flag is imposed, the Board must comply with the requirements.

Board's discretions: The Board has discretion in benefit determinations, including determining whether a contributor has permanently incapacitated and is entitled to an invalidity benefit. The Board may also determine attributed salary for part-time contributors.

Investment management: The Board manages Fund investments and credits earnings to contributor accounts. The credited interest rates applied to contributor accounts depend on Fund performance.

Employer contribution levies: Where employer-financed benefits are underfunded, the Act may impose additional levies on employers.

The Act does not contain specific criminal penalty provisions for ordinary breaches. Employer failure to pay required contributions is dealt with through the broader superannuation guarantee and fund management framework. SIS Act compliance is enforced by the ATO.

Benefit triggers: Benefits are payable on retirement, retrenchment, resignation, dismissal, invalidity and death. The exit date determines which benefit calculation applies.

Deferred benefits: Contributors who leave service before retirement may have benefits deferred under sections 42AA, 43 or 43AA. Deferred benefits are preserved in the Fund until conditions of release are met.

Family law: Payment flags and splitting orders operate through Part 5AA procedures with specific notice requirements.

Contribution resumption after re-employment (section 2B): Employees who return to service after a break may apply under section 30 to resume contributions.

Superannuation Administration Act 1996 (NSW): Provides the administrative framework for the Board and the STC Administration Account. Cross-referenced throughout.

Superannuation Act 1916 (NSW): Some contributors may have had entitlements under the older Act before transferring to SASS. Interaction provisions are in section 2C for employees over 55.

Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Cth): Conditions of release for preserved benefits, complying fund status, and investment standards all depend on Commonwealth SIS Act compliance.

Family Law Act 1975 (Cth): Part VIIIB governs superannuation splitting on relationship breakdown. Part 5AA implements those requirements for SASS.

Aware Super Act 1992 (NSW): SASS Fund assets may be linked to the broader Aware Super infrastructure (formerly First State Super). The "Aware Super Fund" is cross-referenced in definitions.

Scheme is closed: No new employees can join SASS. New NSW government employees join the First State Super or Aware Super accumulation schemes. SASS is only relevant to those who joined before December 1992.

Complex benefit formulas: The employer-financed benefit involves actuarially complex calculations involving benefit points, contributed points figures, salary ratios and prospective benefit factors. These formulas require specialist superannuation advice to understand fully.

Salary impact on benefit: The "final salary or final average salary, whichever is higher" rule means that salary increases near retirement can significantly affect the employer-financed benefit. This creates an incentive structure that is important for members to understand.

Leave without pay affects benefit accrual: Periods of leave without pay are excluded from the applicable contribution period, which reduces the accrued benefit points and therefore the employer-financed benefit.

Employer contributions are formula-driven: Unlike accumulation-only schemes where the employer contribution is simply a percentage of salary, the SASS employer contribution is determined by the actuarial funding requirement, which can vary.

Example 1: Retirement benefit calculation: A contributor retires after 30 years of service. The retirement benefit includes both the contributor-financed benefit (the balance in the contributor's account) and the employer-financed benefit (calculated using the section 36 formulas, based on final salary and prospective benefit points). The contributor receives the sum of both components, subject to taxation and preservation rules.

Example 2: Resignation before retirement: A contributor resigns from the NSW public service. They are entitled to a deferred benefit under section 43 which is preserved in the Fund. The benefit is calculated on the exit date and preserved until the contributor meets a SIS Act condition of release (typically reaching preservation age or retirement).

Example 3: Family law split: A superannuation splitting order is made by the Family Court dividing a contributor's SASS benefit. Under Part 5AA, the Board must give effect to the order, either by creating a new account for the non-member spouse or by paying a lump sum to the non-member spouse's superannuation fund in accordance with the order.

Example 4: Return to service after break: A contributor who left NSW public service in 2000 and preserved a deferred benefit returns to public service in 2010. Under section 2B, the contributor may apply under section 30 to resume contributions despite the scheme's closure date. The prior deferred benefit and the new contributions both accumulate in the contributor's account, and the exit benefit will be calculated based on total accrued benefit points and the new exit date.

The SASS scheme sits within a broader NSW government superannuation framework. The Superannuation Administration Act 1996 (NSW) governs the administrative infrastructure supporting the Board. The Aware Super Act 1992 (NSW) (previously the First State Super Act) establishes the accumulation scheme into which post-1992 NSW employees contribute, and the two schemes share some administrative infrastructure.

For practitioners and members, the key insight is that SASS is a hybrid scheme: it has an accumulation element (the contributor's account, funded by employee contributions and earnings) and a defined-benefit element (the employer-financed benefit, which is formula-determined and not directly affected by investment returns in the ordinary sense). The defined-benefit component provides a degree of certainty and protection against poor investment returns, but its value is heavily dependent on the member's salary trajectory and contribution history.

Members with SASS entitlements are a diminishing group, but the remaining contributors tend to be long-serving and close to retirement. The benefit formulas and transition options (salary sacrifice, salary preservation elections, deferred benefits) require specialist advice to navigate effectively. The Act's provisions on benefit definitions, contribution calculations and exit options are the most practically important for members and their advisers.