Q: Suppose a Civil Service Retirement System employee has over 30 years of federal service and is over age 55, and thus eligible for retirement and pension under CSRS. If this employee has not yet retired, are there any circumstances where the employee can be denied his retirement and pension? Similarly, are any adverse actions in existence that his office can carry out which have the impact of denying the employee his pension? A: Yes. See 5 U.S. Code, Subchapter II, Forfeiture of Annuities and Retired Pay.
Author Reg Jones
Reg Jones
Reg Jones was head of retirement and insurance policy at the Office of Personnel Management. Email your retirement-related questions to fedexperts@federaltimes.com.
Q: I have worked for the Army as a civilian for a total of 25 years and recently sent for an early retirement estimate. I was covered under the Civil Service Retirement System from 1983 to 1987, then switched over to the Federal Employees Retirement System. I quit in 1994 and took a lump sum retirement refund (thinking I would not work for the government again) but ended up returning to work for the Army in 1997. In 2002, I spoke with a benefits person within the Army, who advised me not to make the retirement redeposit. She said I…
Q: I am a federal firefighter (GS-0081). Prior to entering federal civilian service, I was on active duty in the Army for seven years and I am currently a National Guardsman. I will retire from the National Guard in three years. If I choose to buy back the seven years of active-duty time for my Federal Employees Retirement System retirement, will I have to forfeit the National Guard retirement or that portion of the National Guard retirement? A: No — if you make a deposit for your active-duty time, you won’t have to forfeit any part of your National Guard…
Q: I will be eligible to retire from the government with 32 years of service in November 2013. I am considering going to a part-time schedule (32 hours per week) for family reasons beginning in September 2010. Under new guidelines for computing annuities for part-time employees, how will this affect my “high 3?” A: For high-3 purposes, your part-time service will be treated as if you had been working full-time; therefore, your annuity will still be based on your highest three consecutive years of average salary. On the other hand, your service credit for that period of part-time employment will…
Q: I’m confused about the following issue. I have medical conditions for which I am applying for disability under the Federal Employees Retirement System. I’ve already applied under SSI and was denied because I am still working. Will my children receive any money if I am awarded disability under FERS? I’ve been told that if I were awarded dissability under SSI they would all receive checks. I do not understand this. Do I have to apply for FERS? Or can I skip FERS and just apply for disability under SSI? Also, since my application is currently under review under FERS…
Q: I recently retired from the Bureau of Land Management as a Federal Employees Retirement System employee and have the opportunity to be hired on a temporary basis by the federal government as an administratively determined (AD) casual hire. My question is, as an AD hire, will my FERS annuity be offset or reduced by what I earn on incident assignments, or will I be able to collect my full FERS annuity, as well as the full AD salary? A: If you are being hired as an employee of the federal government, the answer is yes. The salary you receive…
Q: Can a Civil Service Retirement System rehired annuitant be hired for an Active Guard/Reserve (AGR) position? I am eligible for CSRS retirement next month and my military unit has an opening that is AGR, Title 32 active-duty military. Can I draw CSRS retirement and work full-time in Title 32 status? A: Accepting an active-duty position in the armed forces should have no effect on your CSRS annuity. Whether your CSRS annuity would have any effect on your military pay is something you’ll have to explore with your branch of service. My guess is that it wouldn’t; however, Title 32…
Q: I am a federal firefighter (GS-081 series) covered by the Civil Service Retirement System. I work for the National Park Service. My department is being abolished this year, with a local city department taking responsibility of fire supression. RIF notices are coming out next month. I am under CSRS retirement. I have 27.5 years in, I am 48.5 years old. I can retire at age 50. The Park Service has said that they can’t place me anywhere else because they have no GS-081 positions anywhere. They want to give me an early retirement. Will I face any penalties for…
Q: I have 15 years and 11 months military time, which I have bought back. I also have 3.5 years with the VA. Our human resources office says that I must have at least five years of civilian service in order to retire. The only reference to any kind of five-year rule I can find on the Office of Personnel Managment Web site only applies to those transferring from the Civil Service Retirement System to the Federal Employees Retirement System. I know there is a 5-percent penalty per year for every year under 62. I have several medical issues and…
Q: I am a 40-year-old Air National Guard disability annuitant who had under five years of federal service at the time my disability/disease occurred (GS-13-Step 4 Special Salary). I am currently employed full-time as a civilian and may reach the 80-percent earnings limitation this year. After reading CFR 5 844.403, it appears that I can never get the annuity back should my earnings decrease below the 80 percent threshold. Any thoughts? A: If you are found to be restored to earning capacity, your disability annuity payments will stop six months from the end of the calendar year in which you…