Q: I am in CSRS Offset and am eligible for an immediate voluntary retirement. I plan on continuing working until the end of 2012. There have been discussions about changing our retirement benefit to a High-5 calculation from the High-3 calculation. I want to retire before that change is implemented. If Congress passes and the president signs a retirement change like that, when would it become effective? Is it on the date the president signs the law, is the date designated in the law, or is it when OPM writes the rules implementing the law? What is the best way…
Q: I am a 52-year-old federal employee with 25 years of service. I plan on working five more years. I will then be 57 with 30 years. Will I be penalized in any way if I go out under a FERS immediate retirement? A: No.
Q: I was a civil service employee with DHUD from 1969 to 1978. I withdrew retirement funds at that time and have contributed to Social Security since then. I am 64 and am considering going back to work for a government agency with civil service retirement. Can I buy back into civil service retirement and, if so, how long would I have to work and contribute to CSRS to be eligible to retire with civil service retirement? A: If you returned to work for the government, you would be placed in CSRS Offset (CSRS and Social Security) with the option…
Q: My small government agency lost almost 25 percent of its budget for FY11, and for FY12 it will be cut an additional 25 percent. From now until Sept. 30, they plan on reorganizing, offering VSIP and VERA, cutting back on all contractors and reduce contracts, etc. After all of this, they project that they will be $500,000 to $600,000 short for this year, and they are looking at furloughing everyone for one day each pay period for the last five pay periods of the fiscal year (total five furlough days). My question is, does an agency have the discretion…
Q: If I were fired from my Federal Employees Retirement System-covered position several months before turning 62, would it affect my future eligibility to sign up for the group health insurance available to retirees, assuming that I already have enough years of service to retire? A: If you were already enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits program and were eligible to retire when you were separated, you could retire instead and, as long as you had five years of continuous coverage, continue that coverage in retirement. On the other hand, if you were separated before you were eligible to…
Q: I plan to retire at the end of December, 2011. I will have 44 years of continuous federal service under CSRS. I have 1,300 hours of accrued sick leave. Will my sick leave in any way increase my monthly annuity? If yes, at what rate? A: Let’s start at the beginning. Because you have more than 41 years and 11 months of creditable service, your earned annuity will be capped at 80 percent of your High-3. Any additional contributions you have made to the retirement fund will be refunded to you with the option of purchasing additional annuity that…
Q: A former supervisor recently told me that my time as a tribal employee before being hired by the Bureau of Indian Affairs is creditable service under Public Law 93-638 Self Governance Act. I was hired by a federal employee in 1979 into a federal organization (BIA) but as a tribal employee. I was paid according to the GS payscale. It was a federal forestry organization with a few tribal employees. In 1992, I transferred to the BIA, with no break in service, to the same pay band, performing the same duties, with the same supervisor. Everything remained the same…
Q: I am a federal employee who bought back three years of active duty many years ago. During my federal service I have been receiving VA disability for a service-connected injury that happened on active duty but did not happen during a period of war or by an instrument of war. Will my FERS retirement annuity be affected in any way by my “non-war time” service connected VA disability? A: No, it won’t.
Q: I am 65 with a birthday in July. I plan on retiring next year (FERS), and am considering submitting for my Social Security benefits back to my 66th birthday, in December 2011. I believe that means I will collect my four months of previously earned checks next year, thereby pushing my tax liability for that money into 2012. Am I misreading the Social Security website (it says six months max back payment), or is this possible? A: What you read on the Social Security Administration website is correct. However, while you are reviewing the tax implications of applying for…
Q: I am 68 and still work as a CSRS Offset civilian. I have about 17 years of government service, 10 years as CSRS and seven years as CSRS Offset. I also have more than 30 years of substantial Social Security earnings outside of the CSRS Offset. I am single and all of my earnings for retirement and Social Security are mine. I am pretty sure I won’t fall into the Windfall Elimination Provision category but cannot determine how much the Offset will apply. My Offset income is substantially higher now than it was when I left the government in…