New Jersey Statutes Title 43. Pensions and Retirement and Unemployment Compensation 43 § 10-18.58a

(a) Should a member resign after having completed 30 years of service for which credit has been established in the pension fund, before reaching age 55, he may elect to receive, in lieu of the payment provided in section 9 of the act to which this act is amendatory and supplementary,  1 or the benefit provided by subsection (b) of this section, a pension in the amount of 1/2 of the salary he is receiving at the time of his retirement; provided, however, that such pension shall be reduced in accordance with a table of actuarial equivalents recommended by the actuary and adopted by the commission reflecting all months that the member lacks of being age 55.

Upon and after the death of any employee or pensioner receiving a retirement pension under this subsection 9(a), the retirement pension being paid to said deceased employee or pensioner shall be paid to the surviving widow, so long as she remains unmarried, surviving widower, so long as he remains unmarried, or minor children up to 18 years of age, as the case may be, subject, however, to any other limitations of the act to which this act is amendatory and supplementary.

(b) Should a member, after having completed 20 years of service for which credit has been established in the pension fund, be separated voluntarily or involuntarily from the service, before reaching age 55, he may elect to receive the payments provided for in section 9 of the act to which this act is amendatory and supplementary, or the benefit provided by subsection (a) of this section, or a deferred pension beginning at age 55, in the amount based on his years of service credited in the fund bear to the total number of years of service that he could have achieved had he continued to age 55 and qualified for the pension of 1/2 of the salary he was receiving at the time he elected the deferred pension.

Upon and after the death of any employee or pensioner receiving a retirement pension under this subsection 9(b), the retirement pension being paid to said deceased employee or pensioner shall be paid to the surviving widow, so long as she remains unmarried, surviving widower, so long as he remains unmarried, or minor children up to 18 years of age, as the case may be, subject, however, to any other limitations of the act to which this act is amendatory and supplementary.