Headlines about "Government plans - federal"
Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
Bill Would Allow Dependent Children to Remain in the Federal Employee Health Plan Longer
Excerpt: "A House lawmaker has reintroduced a bill that would raise the age limit for coverage of dependent children under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program by three years. The bill (H.R. 2978), introduced by Rep. Danny K. Davis, D-Ill., would increase the cutoff age for coverage of unmarried dependent children from 22 to 25." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
GAO Testimony: Overview of Approaches to Control Prescription Drug Spending in Federal Programs
June 24, 2009. 16 pages. Testimony given by John E. Dicken, director, health care, before the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal Service, and the District of Columbia, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
House Lawmakers Revive Federal Retirement Reforms That Were Stripped Out of Tobacco Legislation
Excerpt: "H.R. 2990, which would allow veterans receiving disability benefits from the Veterans Affairs Department to receive full retirement benefits from the Defense Department, included a provision that would let employees in the Federal Employee Retirement System count unused sick leave toward their pensions. The House, which approved the bill under a suspension of the rules, plans to roll H.R. 2990 into the fiscal 2010 Defense authorization bill." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Cost of Civil Service Retirement System Retirement Plan Fix Pegged at $40 Million Over 10 Years
Excerpt: "A bill aimed at modifying the way retirement benefits are calculated for certain federal employees who work part-time at the end of their careers would cost the government $39 million from 2010 to 2019, the Congressional Budget Office reported this week. The legislation (S. 469), sponsored by Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, would modify the way retirement annuities are calculated for employees covered under the Civil Service Retirement System. Currently, CSRS employees who retire with part-time service late in their careers could see reduced annuities. According to the CBO report, the bill would provide an average of $2,000 more in retirement benefits per year for about 650 of the expected retirees from the CSRS system in 2010. Additional retirements by 2019 would boost the overall cost of the measure to $39 million, according to CBO." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Obama Backs Extension of Benefits to Same-Sex Partners of Federal Employees
Excerpt: "President Obama on Wednesday directed the Office of Personnel Management to extend long-term care benefits and family and parental leave to the same-sex partners of gay and lesbian federal employees, and ordered agencies to conduct internal reviews to identify other benefits that they could extend as well. . . . Obama stopped short of granting employees' domestic partners access to health care benefits, saying he legally could not do so, but endorsed legislation that would provide such benefits." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Tobacco Bill Includes Thrift Savings Plan Changes
Excerpt: "Congress last week approved legislation designed to further regulate and restrict tobacco products ? but at the same time made changes to federal worker benefit provisions. The bill -- HR 1256, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act -- puts the Food and Drug Administration in charge of regulating tobacco and imposes restrictions on the marketing and production of tobacco products. But it also contained a number of enhancements to the federal government's Thrift Savings Plan, or TSP. . . . Not included in the final bill was a provision in the House-passed version that would have allowed unused sick leave accumulated by employees covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) to be counted toward their retirement payments . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Bill Advances with Thrift Savings Plan Reforms, But Not Sick Leave Fix
Excerpt: "The Senate on Wednesday advanced major legislation that includes several provisions expanding federal employees' options under the Thrift Savings Plan, but does not allow some employees to count unused sick leave toward retirement savings. In a 67-30 vote to end legislative debate, lawmakers moved H.R. 1256 forward, but without an amendment that would have enabled federal workers in the Federal Employees Retirement System to count unused sick leave toward their retirement annuities -- a benefit employees in the older Civil Service Retirement System currently have." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
American Diplomats' Same-Sex Partners to Get Benefits
Excerpt: "The State Department will offer equal benefits and protections to same-sex partners of American diplomats, according to an internal memorandum Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sent last week to an association of gay and lesbian Foreign Service officers. Mrs. Clinton said the policy change addressed an inequity in the treatment of domestic partners and would help the State Department recruit diplomats, since many international employers already offered such benefits." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Lawmakers Unveil Bipartisan Federal Employee Domestic Partner Benefits Bills
Excerpt: "A bipartisan group of legislators has introduced House and Senate bills that would grant the domestic partners of gay and lesbian federal employees the same health and retirement benefits as the spouses of heterosexual workers. . . . [Rep. Ileana] Ros-Lehtinen and Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., who co-chairs the Congressional Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Equality Caucus, introduced the 2009 Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act in the House. Sens. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, unveiled the Senate version." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Wellness Programs May Become Universal for Federal Government Workers
Excerpt: "'As a result of many successful programs at businesses across the country, workers have become more engaged in their own health care, productivity is increasing, absenteeism is dropping, and employers are passing some of their health care savings to their workers,' the White House said in a statement earlier this month. The push for a healthier workforce will extend to civil servants. Obama has directed the Office of Personnel Management to work with other agencies to 'explore the feasibility of developing such a plan for federal employees and their workplaces.' OPM hasn't released any details about options it is considering. But if the federal plan is modeled after private sector and state-level efforts, it would emphasize assessing employees' health, and initiating programs to address shortcomings. Perhaps most important, it would include incentives for employees to participate in fitness and other classes." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
U.S. Postmaster Presses Congress to Act on Retiree Health Benefits Bill
Excerpt: "In a letter to a key House subcommittee chairman, US Postmaster General John Potter again pressed his case for Congressional action on proposed legislation that would reduce the agency's out-of-pocket costs for retiree health benefits, which could save the US Postal Service $2 billion this year. The proposed measure, HR 22, would allow the USPS to pay its share of contributions for retiree health benefits, estimated to be $2 billion this year, out of the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund. Annual payments to prefund health benefit costs for future retirees would still be made by the USPS." (DMNews)
Oversight Committee Votes to Provide Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Benefits
Excerpt: "The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today took an important step toward improving paid parental leave benefits for federal employees who are new parents. The Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2009 (H.R. 626), responds to the needs of tens of thousands of working families in the federal government by providing 4 weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, adoption, or fostering of a child." (U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform)
OPM Director Calls for Regulatory Reforms, Announces Work-Life Pilot Programs
Excerpt: "[The director] said OPM would work with Interior and GSA to create a set of model programs for the 7,000 employees who work at the three agencies' headquarters, which are located within blocks of each other in Washington. His goal, he said, was to turn the three workplaces into a 'utopia' within 12 months. Though he did not detail in his remarks the pilot programs he intends to set up, Berry said in an interview afterward that he expects to begin by improving the quality of a health clinic that serves the agencies. The approach Berry outlined would mirror his approach to work-life balance programs as an assistant secretary at the Interior Department during the Clinton administration. In that position, Berry held a series of town hall meetings to determine employees' needs and based on their suggestions, upgraded the department's cafeteria and health clinic." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board Endorses Roth IRA Option for Enrollees
Excerpt: "The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board on Monday officially endorsed a proposal to give Thrift Savings Plan participants the option to invest in a Roth Individual Retirement Account, but did not green light a move that would allow the TSP to create additional investment funds." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust Stock Loss May Serve as Lesson
Excerpt: "A special pension fund for railroad workers that was given permission during the Bush administration to invest its assets in the stock market lost more than a third of its value during a recent 18-month period, a loss that could influence an ongoing debate about how to keep government-affiliated retirement programs solvent." (The Boston Globe)
Who Backs Government Retirement Plans? Taxpayers.
Excerpt: "Q: When civil servants retire and they have been promised a retirement by the federal or state government, where will the funds come funds come from? Are they separate from Social Security, and were those funds also invested in the stock market? If so, is an additional bailout in order to keep our retirement promises?" (The Christian Science Monitor)
House Approves Legislation That Addresses Federal Employee Retirement Issues
Excerpt: "Do you fall into one of the following categories? Interested in crediting unused sick leave towards the computation of your retirement benefit under the Federal Employees Retirement System. Considering (or already) working part-time under the Civil Service Retirement System. Had a break in federal service, took a refund of your FERS retirement contributions and now want to pay it back to get credit for your prior service. Interested in making after-tax contributions to your Thrift Savings Plan account and getting tax-free growth. If so, the exciting news that arrived from Capitol Hill on Wednesday might have seemed like a cruel April Fool's joke. But it's not. The House of Representatives really did approve legislation (H.R. 1804) that addressed each of these issues." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
House Passes Federal Employee Retirement Reform Bill
Excerpt: "The U.S. House, by a voice vote, has passed the Federal Retirement Reform Act of 2009. According to a news report on govexec.com, the bill includes provisions to enroll new employees automatically in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and allow for Roth deferrals, as well as to give the TSP board the authority to add self-directed investment window options if doing so is in the best interest of participants." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Rep. Darrell Issa Pushes for Federal Employee Retirement System Reform
Excerpt: "One program the California congressman would like to torpedo is the defined-benefit retirement system for federal employees. He shared his thoughts with the Federal Diary. Q: You told the Federal Managers Association that 'we have to come up with a better retirement system' for federal workers. What's wrong with the current system? Currently, the federal government is facing a massive retirement wave due to the baby-boomer generation approaching retirement age, which will cause us to lose our most experienced employees. This is exacerbated by a structural flaw which incentivizes our most qualified employees to take that retirement rather than stay around." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Paid Parental Leave for Federal Employees Advances in House
Excerpt: "The House federal workforce subcommittee on Wednesday passed a bill that would provide federal employees with four weeks of paid leave on the birth or adoption of a child. During the bill's markup, Democratic committee members and one Republican said the 2009 Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act (H.R. 626) would provide an important model to private sector employers. The legislation advances to the full House Oversight and Government Reform Committee." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Legislation Modifying Federal Retirement Rules Advances
Excerpt: "The House and Senate both advanced legislation on Wednesday to make it easier for federal employees to continue serving the government at the end of their careers, either as part-time workers or retirees.The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee adopted an amendment to tobacco legislation (H.R. 1256) that would grant employees under the Civil Service Retirement System who work part time instead of retiring prorated credit that would count toward their annuity payments." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Servants Act of 2009 Legislation Introduced
Excerpt: "On March 10, 2009, Representative Joe Crowley (D-NY) introduced the Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Servants Act of 2009 (HELPS II). The bill, which amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow certain public employees a deduction for distributions from governmental plans for health and long-term care insurance, is an extension of the Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Safety Retirees Act (HELPS) that was signed into law as part of the Pension Protection Act of 1996." (National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems)
Federal Employee Health and Retiree Benefits Again Among Areas Congressional Analysts Have Examined for Potential Cuts
Excerpt: "Here are some possibilities [the Congressional Budget Office] looked at in its latest 'Budget Options' report . . . ." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Rep. Lynch Introduces Legislation to Automatically Enroll New Federal Employees and Members of the Military in Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., has introduced legislation (H.R. 1263) that would automatically enroll new federal employees and members of the military in the Thrift Savings Plan and assign their investments to the government securities fund. 'Currently, 14 percent of the eligible federal civilian and 75 percent of uniformed service members are not participating in TSP,' Lynch, the new chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Federal Workforce Subcommittee, said in a statement. 'Therefore they are less likely than participants to be financially self-sufficient.'" (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Talks Begin on Possible Legislative Enhancements to Federal Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "Thrift Savings Plan officials have started discussions with Congress on proposed legislative improvements to the retirement savings program, including adding a Roth Individual Retirement Account option." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Lawmaker Reintroduces FERS Sick Leave Bill
Excerpt: "A bill introduced in the House on Tuesday would allow workers in the Federal Employees Retirement System to cash out their unused sick leave upon retirement. The benefit also would apply to employees covered under the Foreign Service Pension System and U.S. Postal Service retirement plan. FERS employees currently cannot count unused sick leave toward their retirement annuity. Employees hired before 1984 are covered under the Civil Service Retirement System and do receive such credit for unused sick leave. The new legislation, introduced by Rep. James Moran, D-Va., would provide FERS employees with a benefit equal to that of their CSRS counterparts, allowing them to add any unused sick leave to the number of years they have worked in the government to determine their annuity at retirement." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Bill Would Restore Pension Credits for Returning Federal Workers
Excerpt: "Legislation introduced on Wednesday in the House would give employees who return to civil service from the private sector the ability to recoup their full retirement annuity without losing credit for previous years of federal service. Under the Federal Employees Retirement System, workers who leave the government can cash out their annuity or roll it into a private savings account, a decision that erases their pension credits. If they rejoin the government, they are not allowed to redeposit those funds and restore their pensions. The bill (H.R. 828), introduced by Rep. James Moran, D-Va., would provide former FERS employees who decide to reenter the government workforce after a stint in the private sector the ability to redeposit the full amount plus interest of the annuity they cashed out or rolled over, and to retain their years of service in the calculation of future annuity payments." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Federal Thrift Savings Plan Topples CalPERS As Nation's Largest Plan
Excerpt: "Federal Thrift Savings Plan, Washington, bypassed the California Public Employees' Retirement System, Sacramento, as the nation's largest retirement plan in terms of asset size. The Federal Thrift, a defined contribution plan, had $197.3 billion in assets as of Jan. 31, according to Tom Trabucco, a spokesman for the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, which oversees the plan. CalPERS' assets were valued at $173.9 billion as of Monday, according to CalPERS' website." (Pensions & Investments)
Federal Employees: Pay and Pension Increases Since 1969, Updated January 8, 2009 (PDF)
Excerpt: "Congress has linked increases in federal pay to the ECI so that wages for federal employees will remain competitive with wages paid by firms in the private sector. Congress has linked COLAs for Social Security and federal retirement benefits to the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services in order to protect retirement income from losing purchasing power through the effects of inflation. In general, wage increases reflect both improvements in the productivity of labor and increases in the general level of prices in the economy. Consequently, when measured over long periods of time, wages tend to rise faster than prices. Because COLAs for retirees do not reflect increases in the productivity of people who are still in the work force, COLAs do not make retirees financially better off. COLAs merely protect retirees from becoming financially worse-off as prices rise over time." (Congressional Research Service)
Paid Parental Leave Bill for Federal Employees Reintroduced in congress
Excerpt: "House lawmakers on Thursday reintroduced legislation that would provide paid parental leave benefits to all federal employees. The bill (H.R. 626), sponsored by Reps. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y.; Frank Wolf, R-Va.; Steny Hoyer, D-Md.; Danny K. Davis, D-Ill.; and Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., would provide all federal employees with four weeks of paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child. A similar measure passed the House in the 110th Congress. Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate but did not make it out of committee." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
How Do Federal Employees Rate Their Pay and Benefits?
Excerpt: "The 2008 Federal Human Capital Survey results released last week indicated that while employees are fairly satisfied with pay, health insurance benefits and paid time off, they have more lukewarm opinions of other programs -- such as long-term care insurance, flexible spending accounts, telework and alternative work schedules." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Congressional Lawmakers Renew Battle Against Social Security Provisions Affecting Some Public Sector Retirees
Excerpt: "An old fight resumed on Thursday when two House lawmakers unveiled legislation that would ease the burden of two Social Security laws that significantly reduce benefits for some public sector retirees.The bill (H.R. 235), introduced by Reps. Howard Berman, D-Calif., and Howard (Buck) McKeon, R-Calif., would repeal two provisions in Social Security law -- the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision -- that reduce or eliminate Social Security benefits for federal employees who entered the government before 1984 and are covered by the Civil Service Retirement System. Employees in CSRS do not pay into Social Security and receive a government pension instead. The Government Pension Offset law cuts the Social Security benefits that some employees -- including widows and widowers -- would have received from their spouses, while the Windfall Elimination Provision reduces benefits for public employees who also worked in private sector jobs where they paid into the Social Security system." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Bush's Pension, Tied to the Base Pay of the Most Senior Government Executives Will Be About Half the $400,000 Annual Presidential Salary
Excerpt: "President George W. Bush's 'after-life,' as Laura Bush calls the post-presidency, is shaping up to be pretty comfortable, with a Dallas office, staffers, Secret Service protection, a travel budget, medical coverage and a $196,700 annual pension, all at taxpayers' expense." (The Miami Herald)
[Opinion] Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan: The Government Retirement (Stimulus) Plan
Excerpt: "President-Elect Barack Obama today give his weekly radio address. It was primarily aimed at the economy . . . and again discussed the massive government growth plan that is coming down the pike. Here is the key paragraph: 'That's why we need an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan that not only creates jobs in the short-term but spurs economic growth and competitiveness in the long-term. . . . That is how we will achieve the number one goal of my plan -- which is to create three million new jobs, more than eighty percent of them in the private sector.'Three million new jobs, with 80% of them in the private sector. That means 20% of them - or 600,000 - will not be in the private sector. 600,000 more government employees. . . . The Federal government permits retirement with benefits as early as the age of 50 for certain jobs so long as there is 25 years of service. Generous pensions and benefits are already contributing to the fiscal crises hitting states such as California. If the President-Elect wants to add 600,000 people to the government payroll, it would be wise to enact private-sector retirement thinking." (Fox Business)
Report Says Medicare Is Stronger Insurance Model Than Federal Employees Health Benefits Program
Excerpt: "Medicare's relatively low overhead makes it a better model for a publicly run health insurance option for people without employer-provided coverage than the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, a health care expert said on Wednesday. 'The Medicare program, as it's currently constituted, needs reform,' said Jacob Hacker, co-director of the University of California-Berkeley School of Law's Center on Health, Economic and Family Security. 'But I argue that a new public plan could embody many reforms and in doing so, could set a high standard for private plans.'" (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Congressional Pension Plan Vests at Five Years Service and Includes Automatic Cost of Living Increases
Excerpt: "When Sen. Elizabeth Dole and Rep. Robin Hayes leave office next month, they won't leave empty-handed. The N.C. Republicans, both multimillionaires and among the richest in Congress, will be eligible immediately for congressional pensions. Dole, who served a six-year term, is eligible for about $15,000 a year for life. Hayes, who served five two-year terms, would get about $25,500 a year, according to the National Taxpayers Union, a government watchdog group that's been estimating congressional pensions for years. Unlike some fixed pensions, the amounts will change with the cost of living adjustment." (The Charlotte Observer)
OPM Renegotiates Out-of-Network Health Benefits for Federal Employees
Excerpt: "The Office of Personnel Management announced on Friday that it is working with insurance carriers in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program to reevaluate certain out-of-network benefits for nonemergency surgeries, a move that will extend enrollment until the end of January for federal employees who wish to change their plans. OPM on Friday asked the 269 insurance carriers in FEHBP to propose changes to their out-of-network surgery benefits by Dec. 8, the official close of federal benefits open season. The move was fueled by concerns over a change in coverage in the Blue Cross Blue Shield Standard Option -- the most popular federal employee plan -- that would have substantially increased the fees in 2009 paid by federal employees who have surgeries performed by out-of-network doctors." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Assessing Potential Retirement Plan Reforms for the U.S. Military
Excerpt: "Military compensation is a composite of current pay and allowances, special and incentive pays, health benefits, disability benefits, retirement benefits, and other benefits. . . . [T]his monograph presents an in-depth examination of the mix and structure of the U.S. military's current retirement-benefit system and several policy alternatives." (RAND)
[Guidance Overview] OPM Issues Final Regulations on Emergency Leave-Transfer Program for Federal Employees
Excerpt: "Although these regulations apply only to federal agencies, other employers can establish major disaster or medical emergency leave-sharing programs. The IRS has issued guidance on the tax consequences of major disaster leave-sharing programs . . . ." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Retirement Investment Blows Are Smaller for Lawmakers As Treasury Backs Their Pension Plan
Excerpt: "Along with the rest of America, Representative George Miller has watched the value of his retirement investments plummet in recent weeks.'I've lost 30 percent like everybody else. This hits home with the Miller family, too,' the California Democrat said in a recent interview. But the blow is softer for members of Congress than for most. Although lawmakers have lost value in their thrift savings plans - the government's version of a 401(k) - they are also offered a defined-benefit pension plan backed by the US Treasury and largely insulated from Wall Street fluctuations." (AP via The Boston Globe)
CRS Report for Congress: Retirement Benefits for Members of Congress (PDF)
16 pages; update October 28, 2008. Excerpt: "As of October 1, 2007, 435 retired Members of Congress were receiving federal pensions based fully or in part on their congressional service. Of this number, 286 had retired under CSRS and were receiving an average annual pension of $63,696. A total of 149 Members had retired with service under both CSRS and FERS or with service under FERS only. Their average annual pension was $36,732 in 2007." (Congressional Research Service, U.S. Library of Congress)
Meltdown Retirement Blow Is Softer for Lawmakers
Excerpt: "Along with the rest of America, Rep. George Miller has watched the value of his retirement investments plummet in recent weeks. 'I've lost 30 percent like everybody else. This hits home with the Miller family, too,' the California Democrat said in a recent interview. But the blow is softer for members of Congress than for most. Although lawmakers have lost value in their thrift savings plans -- the government's version of a 401(k) -- they are also offered a defined-benefit pension plan backed by the U.S. Treasury and largely insulated from Wall Street fluctuations. That puts Miller and the other lawmakers into an increasingly privileged category -- workers with guaranteed retirement benefits that aren't subject to the vicissitudes of the financial markets." (AP)
2nd Disability Exam Advised for L.I.R.R. Workers
Excerpt: "The federal Railroad Retirement Board, which approves disability payments for just about every railroad employee who requests them, should first require that workers undergo independent physical exams -- something that infrequently happens now -- to prove that they are actually disabled, federal investigators said in a new report." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Chart of 415, Etc., Limits Updated for News Release IR-2008-118
The chart of maximum limits subject to inflation indexing at Carol V. Calhoun's employee benefits site has now been amended to include the newly announced 2009 limits. Among other things, the chart shows limits under sections 415, 403(b), 401(k), and 457, as well as the Social Security wage base and Social Security and Medicare tax rates, for 1996-2009. (Calhoun Law Group, P.C.)
Congressional Lawmakers Seek Oversight of Railroad Retirees
Excerpt: "Members of the New York Congressional delegation summoned officials of the federal Railroad Retirement Board to a meeting in New York City on Friday, emerging with what the lawmakers said was an agreement that could lead to the re-evaluation of disability payments awarded to hundreds of retired Long Island Rail Road workers." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Thinking About Funding Federal Retirement Plans
Excerpt: "Most U.S. Federal retirement plans are now fully funded, but since plan assets must legally be invested in Federal securities, fund surpluses are used to reduce overall Federal budget deficits. As a result, current taxpayers are not charged with the cost of future Federal retirement obligations. Nevertheless, Federal rules do require the employing Federal agency to budget for current personnel's accruing liability of retirement promises. Therefore policy decisions regarding the number of Federal civilian and military personnel and the design of their retirement benefits may be made with a better understanding of the costs." (Pension Research Council; registration required to download fulltext of paper)
Retirees May Be Abusing Disability Insurance, Long Island Rail Road Says
Excerpt: "On Tuesday the railroad gave the state attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo, and the inspector general of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority evidence raising the possibility that hundreds of its employees were buying private disability insurance policies knowing that the federal railroad board would declare them disabled." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Leaving Employment by the Federal Government Before Retirement? What Happens To Your Benefits?
Excerpt: "What happens to Your Benefits if you leave before you retire? As many of us periodically think of leaving federal service for various reasons (the grass is greener or the boss from Hell are common reasons) this information is important and can help us make the right decision when or if the time comes." (FedSmith Inc.)
Congressional Measure Reforms Alaska and Hawaii Federal Worker Retirement
Excerpt: "A bill approved by the U.S. Senate would reform the way retirement benefits for federal employees based in Hawaii, Alaska, and U.S. territories are determined. An Associated Press report said the measure would do away with non-foreign cost of living allowances and phase in locality pay over a three-year period. According to the report, because the cost of living payments are not taxable, they are not considered to be included in a worker's base pay for retirement purposes, while locality pay is taxed and is factored into the retirement benefit determination." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Administrative Costs of State Defined Benefit and Defined Contribution Systems
Excerpt: "This chapter compares the administrative costs of public sector defined benefit and defined contribution systems offered by the Federal government and many states. Administrative expenses are presented as percentages of both income and assets, and we discuss how administrative expenses might enter into the decision by a public sector employer as to whether to establish a defined contribution plan." (Pension Research Council; registration required to download fulltext of paper)
Partner Benefits for Gay Federal Workers Make Sense
Excerpt: "When U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, pointed out that providing benefits to the partners of gay employees would be a smart way for Uncle Sam to attract and keep talented workers, she explained why she's sure: The strategy is a success in her home state. 'The state of Maine has already worked through (possible stumbling blocks). And has a lot of safeguards built in,' Collins said at the first congressional hearing on legislation to give gay partnered federal workers the same benefits as married heterosexuals. These include health care, retirement benefits, relocation expenses and coverage under the Family and Medical Leave Act." (The Detroit News)
Federal Employee Health Insurance Costs to Jump an Average 8 Percent
Excerpt: "Health insurance premiums for federal employees will jump almost 8 percent, on average, in 2009, a sharp increase over the 2.9 percent increase this year and the 2.3 percent increase in 2007, the Office of Personnel Management announced yesterday." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
OPM Opposes Domestic Partnership Benefits Bill - Says Could Lead to Insurance Fraud
Excerpt: "Howard Weizmann, OPM deputy director, said the agency opposes a bill (S. 2521) offering such benefits to gay and lesbian federal employees' partners because OPM requires state-issued marriage certificates to prove that heterosexual couples are married in case of a question or dispute -- and no comparable documentation exists for many same-sex couples. He said OPM would have to rely on sworn affidavits from couples in long-term committed relationships, and that some might not report the end of a relationship to keep insurance benefits." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
New York Governor Wants Congress to Investigate Long Island Rail Road Disability Plan
Excerpt: "Gov. David A. Paterson Tuesday asked Congress to launch an investigation into possible abuses of a federal disability compensation plan by employees of the Long Island Rail Road. Paterson's call came on the same day that a member of the obscure federal agency that has been recently criticized for rubberstamping LIRR disability claims spoke out against 'an outdated ... system that desperately needs fixing.'" (Newsday)
Another Question is Answered in the Stop, Look & Listen: Railroad Retirement Q&A Column
The quarterly financial report of the National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust report (March 31, 2008)shows investments in JP Morgan and Lehman Brothers. How concerned should railroad employees be in regards to their Tier II benefits? Should a employee who is near retirement (3 years away) postpone retirement? (BenefitsLink.com)
Federal Pensions: Judicial Survivors' Annuities System Costs (PDF)
21 pages. Excerpt: "Pursuant to the Federal Courts Administration Act of 1992 (Pub. L. No. 102-572), GAO is required to review JSAS costs every 3 years and determine whether the judges' contributions fund at least 50 percent of the plan's costs during the 3-year period. If the contributions fund less than 50 percent of these costs, GAO is to determine what adjustments to the contribution rates would be needed to achieve the 50 percent ratio." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
[Guidance Overview] Military Retirement Benefits - Structuring Payments as Deductible Alimony
Excerpt: "To be deductible as alimony by the payer, the payment must satisfy the requirements of IRC section 71. A recent Tax Court decision involving the payment of military retirement benefits under the Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act (USFSPA) to the former spouse of a retired serviceman sheds light on the treatment of alimony payments." (The New York State Society of CPAs)
[Official Guidance] Text of OMB Advance Notice of Proposed Regs on Harmonization of PPA Funding Rules with Federal Cost Accounting Standards for Contractor Reimbursement
Excerpt: "SUMMARY: The Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Cost Accounting Standards Board, invites public comments concerning an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the harmonization of Cost Accounting Standards 412 and 413 with the Pension Protection Act of 2006. DATES: Comments must be in writing and must be received by November 3, 2008." (U.S. Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Office of Management and Budget)
Retiree Question About Leaving the Government's Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "I am a Federal government retiree and 68 years old. I currently have $122,500 in my Thrift Savings Plan. I did not yet roll it into an IRA. What is a good company to roll the TSP into -- Vanguard? T Rowe Price? Fidelity? Which company might have the lowest fees? All three of the companies you mentioned would be solid choices. However, I would probably put in a plug for keeping your money where it is. The government's Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is as close to perfect a plan as you will likely find." (The Boston Globe)
OPM Publishes Final Rules for Federal Employees' Dental, Vision Program
Excerpt: "The final regulations clarify that federal employees cannot be denied enrollment or benefits coverage in the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program due to a pre-existing condition. But a carrier may determine that coverage does not extend to replacements for teeth missing before the effective date of enrollment in the program, OPM stated." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
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