Insights and news on your Federal employee benefits
In this week’s news, one agency decides to give everyone an early retirement offer, someone needs to explain to Congress that your pension has already been paid for, there are 3 things you may not understand about the TSP, and learn how getting credit for non-deduction service could help you to retire sooner and with more money. Let’s get started.
One of the most troubling issues that I see when talking with Federal employees during benefits training sessions is a lack of awareness on how non-deduction service can be used to increase the amount of creditable service that may be used for their pension calculation and eligibility. Feds rarely know about non-deduction service and how to get credit for it. That’s unfortunate because . . .
In this week’s newsletter, the SEC warns us to be wary of new scams that are out to get your TSP savings, some Senators and Representatives are trying to help prevent changes to your benefits, and OPM begins providing information on the 2017 Open Season. There’s also a thought-provoking piece on whether civil servants are ‘unbreakable’, and I’ve included my recent blog post which makes an urgent plea to pick your retirement date today and explains why it’s so important. That should keep you busy and informed this weekend. Let’s get started.
During the benefits training sessions that I conduct, I typically ask Federal employees if they have set the month, day and year that they’re going to retire. Most simply shake their heads no, although there will usually be one or two in the class who are close to retiring and know the date that they will be leaving. They’re always happy to
This week’s news includes a broad array of stories on your pay and benefits including the modernization happening at the Thrift Savings Plan, what you should know about your benefits if you leave Federal service, and legislation that would make it easier to fire Federal employees. I’ve also included a frequently asked question about getting married after retirement and survivor benefits that I answered in a blog post this week. Let’s get started.
“What if I get married after I retire, can I still get a survivor benefit for my new spouse?” This question comes up frequently in benefits training sessions that I conduct. Or, sometimes it’s a variation of that question. Rather than ‘can I give my spouse a benefit?’, it’s ‘do I have to give a survivor benefit to my new spouse?'. The short answer is that you can elect to provide a survivor benefit, but you’re not required to provide one. After answering the question, the real value that I provide is in asking a better question -- should you?
The theme of most of the news stories that I read this week (and wanted to share with you) seems to be about change. Change can be good or bad, but usually it’s uncomfortable. Is this the place where we use the term ‘tipping point’? – the point at which a series of small changes or incidents becomes significant enough to cause a larger, more important change. Only time will tell. Let’s begin.
During my full-day benefits training seminars for Federal employees, I teach a section on Social Security. Late in the day it can be difficult to focus on this exciting topic, so if my student’s interest should wane, I usually ask, "Who would like to take a break from all the rules to hear the story of the most misused Social Security Number of all time?" So, once upon a time . . . .
