Secure Your Future

Relaxed and ready for another year

Sep 17, 2009 3:55 PM

Another year is starting and, because of a UFT victory that took place in June, we are coming back two days later than last year. We feel a little more relaxed and ready for the new school year, and hope you do, too.

You will recall that at the end of last year, the UFT agreed to a few pension changes that will guarantee that new members will still be able to retire at age 55 and that will make the retirement system even more financially secure than it already is.

The changes, including the guarantee of 7 percent interest on the Fixed Tax-Deferred Annuity account, need enabling legislation. As of this writing, the legislation has not passed and therefore, until new legislation is enacted, the TDA fixed account will continue to pay 8.25 percent and members who join the Teachers’ Retirement System will be covered by the current level of benefits.

As you know, public pension plans across the nation are in the crosshairs of anti-public-employee groups. The fight to preserve final-average-salary, defined-benefit pension plans is being led by the American Federation of Teachers, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems and the National Education Association, three groups that we are very active in.

All three groups belong to the National Public Pension Coalition, which is leading the fight in the United States to protect public pensions. The UFT is a strong supporter of the Employee Free Choice Act being considered in Congress. Passage of EFCA will help employees in the private sector to unionize. Unionized workers have a much better chance of having pension protection than nonunionized workers. Getting more Americans covered by defined benefit pension plans will take away some of the pressure to do away with ours.

UFT offers many pension services

For most of us, the benefits we enjoy through retirement system membership are our largest fiscal asset. The UFT seeks to keep you informed about these benefits by supplying the following services:

• this column, which appears in each issue of the New York Teacher;
• a pension newsletter, PensioNews;
• factual pension handbooks;
• speakers for chapter meetings or faculty conferences;
• pension consultants in each borough office for consultations, when appropriate, or to answer questions by phone;
• boroughwide meetings on tax-deferred annuities and other current issues;
• the Ready-or-Not program for those five to 10 years from retirement;
• pension clinics for all tiers for those two to three years from retiring;
• a final consultation to give detailed information to members about to retire;
• three teacher-members who represent you on the Teachers’ Retirement Board; and
• up-to-date information on the union’s Web site, www.uft.org.

Pension file

Each TRS member should set up and maintain a file of important pension-related papers. This file should be accessible to a trusted person and should include:

• your copy of the up-to-date Designation of Beneficiary for the Qualified Pension Plan and, if you participate in the Tax-Deferred Annuity program (and we hope you do), a separate TDA Designation of Beneficiary form;
• your most recent Annual Benefits Statement which, among other things, has a record of your credited service and a listing of your beneficiaries;
• your most recent Quarterly Account Statement(s), one for QPP and one for the TDA, if you participate; and
• any other document relevant to your retirement benefits (such as tier change and purchase of layoff time documents).

Pension calendar

September: Newly appointed members and paraprofessionals who have not done so should file TRS enrollment applications. Nonappointed pedagogues and part-timers who have not done so should enroll in the Board of Education Retirement System.

This is especially important this year since, if you get your application in before the Legislature enacts any new benefits, you will be enrolled under the current program.

October/November: Study carefully the facts about the TDA program. Read the articles in the New York Teacher and study materials provided by the TRS. Join the TDA program as soon as possible if you are not currently enrolled in order to maximize your contributions for the 2010 tax year.

Dates for filing Investment Election Change Form

In-service members in Tiers I/II and all in-service TDA members as well as TDA deferred members:

Investment election changes take place on the following dates: Jan. 1, April 1, July 1 and Oct. 1.

You may submit the form at any time and your election would take effect on the next conversion date that occurs at least 30 days after TRS receives your form.

Retired Tier I/II members and all retired TDA annuitants:

Investment elections take effect on the above dates.

You may submit the form at any time and your election would take effect on the next conversion date that occurs at least 60 days after TRS receives your form.

Protect your loved ones

Thousands of in-service members as well as those of you joining TRS this fall must file a designation of beneficiary form for both the basic pension plan (QPP) as well as the Tax-Deferred Annuity. These forms will make sure that your loved ones will be protected by the substantial TRS death benefits payable if the member passes away while in service.

In-service TRS benefits

Retirement may seem so far away that many of you are not thinking about it. But there are retirement system benefits and protections that are provided while we are still in service. The Secure Your Future column is going to describe in detail in coming issues:

• Death benefit provisions
• Disability retirement provisions
• The TDA program
• Loan provisions.

Identity theft

You see ads about this on TV regularly. One of the easiest ways to find out if your identity has been stolen is to regularly check your credit status with the three major credit information-gathering agencies — Equifax, Experian and Trans-Union. A federal law requires the three agencies to provide you with a free credit report annually. To get this report you should go to www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228.

A prudent person should contact one of the agencies every four months. You could contact one of the agencies in September, a second in January and the third in May. Or set up any schedule convenient for you.

Finally, this column is written for you. If you have any idea related to your retirement security that you would like us to write about, please let us know.

“Secure your future” is compiled and written by Mel Aaronson, Sandra March and Mona Romain, teacher-members of the NYC Teachers’ Retirement Board. For further information on items discussed, call your UFT borough office or the TRS. BRONX: 1-718-379-6200; BROOKLYN: 1-718-852-4900; MANHATTAN: 1-212-598-6800; QUEENS: 1-718-275-4400; STATEN ISLAND: 1-718-605-1400; Teachers’ Retirement System: 1-888-8NYC-TRS (692-877), www.trs.nyc.ny.us.