Q: I have heard that under the new health care bill, the dollar amount of employer-provided health care premiums will be added to one’s income on one’s W-2 starting next year. Is this correct? A: Relax. That provision doesn’t go into effect until 2018. Further, it’s not entirely clear what its effect would be.
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: My husband has contributed $60,370 to the Civil Service Retirement Fund. He was employed by the Postal Service from Jan. 26, 1980, to Dec. 19, 2007. After writing to the Office of Personnel Management for a possible refund, we were informed he’s eligible for deferred annuity at age 62. This year, he will be 57 years old. He will not be seeking another federal job. We don’t know if we should just ask for a refund and roll it over into an IRA or just wait for his deferred annuity when he’s 62 in 2015. Can you tell me…
Q: I am a 45-year-old federal law enforcement officer with 20 years of 1811 service. If I separate from federal service, will I receive a federal annuity, Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan and survivor benefits when I reach the minimum retirement age (MRA)? If not, would I have to re-establish myself as an 1811 for a year and then “retire”? A: If you leave government after completing 20 years of covered service, you can apply for an immediate, unreduced annuity when you reach your MRA. At that time, you’ll be eligible to receive the special retirement supplement that represents the…
Q: I had 6.8 years of my military service used in determining my service computation date (SCD) of March 4, 1987. As a reserve officer on active duty, I retired after 32 years of service (National Guard, Army Reserve, Active Guard Reserve combined). I retired in March 1993 and began work as a Federal Employees Retirement System employee in November of the same year. I am wanting to retire July 31 (I was 66 — full retirement age — as of Jan. 1). I have received conflicting information on what my final FERS retirement annuity is made up of, i.e.…
Q: Is there a place at the Office of Personnel Management where I can forward a copy of my divorce decree and request an estimate of how much of my annuity will go to my former spouse? I have the retirement estimate from my human resources office and can provide them an amount of my total annuity. A: You can forward your divorce decree to the Office of Personnel Management, Retirement and Benefits Service, Court Orders Section, 1900 E Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20415. However, OPM won’t provide you with an estimate.
Q: I’ll be retiring in the near future with Civil Service Retirement System. I have been told that after I retire, I can work as an intermittent employee. I have read that my pay would be reduced by the amount of my annuity during the time I work. How is that calculated? Is my annuity paid on a “per day” basis, a weekly basis or a monthly basis? If I work 15 days in a month, would my monthly annuity get cut by half, or considering that 15 days is three weeks, would it be cut by approximately 75 percent?…
Q: I have been receiving my husband’s annuity since he died in 2003. If I were to remarry, would I lose his annuity? A: Your survivor annuity would be suspended if you were to remarry before age 55. If that remarriage ended in annulment, divorce or the death of your new spouse, the survivor annuity would be restored.
Q: I know a new law was passed so federal retirees could return to part-time federal employment without having their retirement annuities affected. I have not seen any details from the Office of Personnel Management on how this is done and recorded if an agency wished to do so. Do you have any information on this? A: The National Defense Authorization Act for 2010 included a provision that allows Civil Service Retirement System and Federal Employees Retirement System non-disability retirees to be re-employed on a limited basis and receive both their full annuities and the unreduced salaries of their new…
Q: My question is regarding Social Security supplements. I am a 50-year-old law enforcement officer who has met my 20 years of civilian government service. I know that when I am eligible to apply for Social Security benefits, I will be asked for proof of my military service (via DD 214). I am being told that if I give Social Security proof of my service at retirement time, I will get extra on my Social Security supplement in the meantime. Is there any truth to that? A: No. The special retirement supplement is based solely on a retiree’s total years…
Q: I retired from the military, and have worked in civil service since June 2008. Am I entitled to receive credit for leave based on my time served from either the Persian Gulf War or based on any one of many service medals that I have been authorized to wear? A: For non-disability retired members of the armed forces, leave accrual credit is only given for actual service during a war declared by Congress or while participating in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign ribbon is authorized. Your branch of service can tell you which periods of service…