Not in Texas. His is higher due to having been a principal.
Here is my educated guess of what is going on. Let's say his average salary was $80K for the last 5 years when he retired at 55. This would give him a pension of ~$46K a year. Since the retirement system offers health insurance, he and his wife are not eligible for Obamacare subsidies. The TRS insurance premiums are ~$700 per month for a couple. It looks to me like they weren't financially ready to retire, but decided to do so..