Q: Some lawmakers propose that CSRS and FERS employees contribute more to the cost of their pensions, specifically 50 percent of the cost. As a CSRS employee, I contribute 7 percent of my base pay to the retirement system. My pay stub reflects the dollar amount of that contribution. It also shows the federal government pays in the same dollar amount. If CSRS employees and the federal goverment each chip in the same amount to the pension fund every pay period, aren’t we already paying 50 percent of the cost? Can you explain why we should be contributing as much…
Browsing: CSRS annuity computation
Q: I have 14 years 10 months of federal service under CSRS that ended in May 1993. I am returning to federal service later this year. Can I be reinstated under CSRS? Also, my “high three” likely will be based on my earnings from the new employment as it is at a higher level than when I left in 1993. How do I calculate my retirement? A: When you return to work for the government, you’ll be placed in CSRS Offset (CSRS and Social Security) with the option of transferring to FERS. Your annuity will be calculated under the rules…
Q: I am 58 years old, and I started work for the government in 1981. I have 30 years of service as a Defense Department civilian employee and four years as an active-duty service member. I am under the Civil Service Retirement System and plan to retire at age 62 with 38 years of total service. I have not bought back any of my active-duty time. What impact will that have on my retirement annuity and what impact will that have if I decide to take another job after I retire? A: Because you were first hired before Oct. 1,…
Q: I am a postal inspector under the Civil Service Retirement System. I plan on retiring with more than 2,500 hours of sick leave. The Office of Personnel Management shows a sick leave conversion chart rate based on 2,087 hours a year. The Postal Service human resources department uses a chart based on 2,080 a year. Upon retirement, does OPM accept the Postal Service conversion rate, or do they calculate based on their own conversion chart? Is there a reason the Postal Service uses a different conversion chart? A: By law, a work year is 2,087 hours long. OPM will…
Q: I just received notice from Social Security that my benefits check may be reduced because of the windfall elimination provision. I retired under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset program Oct. 31, 2010. My time in service under CSRS was approximately five years, nine months. I withdrew the money that I put in after each job because at the time I did not expect to retire from civil service. My last withdrawal from CSRS was from the period of May 1981 to December 1982. I returned to government work in May 1984 and was placed in the CSRS Offset…
Q: I am 61 years old and have 31 years of federal service under the Civil Service Retirement System. I plan to retire in April 2012. Does it look like we will be offered a buyout? If so, is there anything that would keep me from being part of the offer? A: We have no information about which agencies, if any, will be offering buyouts, and even less information about which employees would be offered one. However, if you were offered one, nothing would prevent you from accepting it. The fact that you are already eligible to retire is irrelevant.
Q: I requested retirement calculations for mid-2014 and recently learned that after I left the government in September 1984, the retirement money I withdrew would have to be repaid in order to receive the benefits for that money. I withdrew $3,700; repayment with accumulated interest would be more than $22,000. I returned to the government in March 1987 under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset program. I thought I read that if a person who receives money under CSRS can also receive full Social Security benefits (no windfall) if that person has enough credits with Social Security (approximately 30 years).…
Q: I have been a full-time Federal employee for 37-plus years under the Civil Service Retirement System. I am considering retiring by year’s end and working on a part-time basis (64 hours per pay period) for the next six to eight months. Will this affect my monthly retirement annuity calculation? A: Yes, it will. However, the shorter the period of part-time service is, the less its impact. You’ll find the formula used to compute an annuity with part-time service on the Office of Personnel Management website here (scroll down to Section 55B2.1-1). Although this section refers to Federal Employees Retirement…
Q: Please explain what CSRS Offset is. A: Civil Service Retirement System Offset employees are those who are covered by both CSRS and Social Security. In general, there are two categories of employees who are covered by CSRS Offset. First, those who had a break in service that exceeded one year and ended after 1983 and had at least five years of creditable service as of January 1, 1987. Second, employees who were hired before Jan. 1, 1984, acquired CSRS interim coverage between 1984 and 1987, and had at least five years of creditable civilian service by Jan. 1, 1987.…
Q: I retired under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset pension plan in 2001 (early buyout retirement at age 51 with 23 years of service). My husband passed away in August 2006. I started receiving a survivor benefit based on his Social Security earnings when I turned 60. My question is, should my CSRS Offset pension have been reduced by the amount of the Social Security that I am receiving based on his earnings, or does that reduction not take effect until I turn 62 and then is based on my Social Security benefit? The amount I am receiving as…