Q: I am a CSRS employee who was disabled in 1984. I was approved for CSRS disability retirement on Jan. 24, 1985. I was approved for OWCP benefits. Now at 62 I am told I should convert from USDOL/OWVP compensation to disability retirement benefit. How does one compute the basic annuity? My retirement computed to Jan. 28, 1985, was as follows: $25,293 (high 3) for five years and four months of service which gave a basic annuity of $ 2,044, which computed to $843 per month. How much would that compute to in 2011? A: Your annuity would be based…
Browsing: CSRS
Q: I am 56 and was just shy of 30 years of service (21 years in CSRS and the rest FERS) as a GS-1811 before I retired at the end of 2007. Because I do not meet the MRA to collect Social Security benefits, I receive a FERS supplement instead. When I retired, my monthly Social Security benefit was calculated according to the annual salary that I had earned as a federal employee (GS 15). To subsidize my retirement, I now work for myself, and my annual salary is a lot less than I received as a federal employee. Because…
Q: I am 55 and have 29 years of government service (22 years in FERS and seven years in CSRS). I have been offered an early out by my agency and want to know what effect the early out would have compared to working one more year to reach MRA of 56 and 30 years. From what I’ve read under the VERA, there would be no penalty reduction in retirement benefits. Would I still be eligible to receive the FERS annuity supplement when I reach MRA in March 2012? Other than the delay in receiving the supplement and the reduced…
Q: I have been receiving a civil service disability since 1999. I turn 65 in April 2011. My spouse is covered under Blue Cross-Blue Shield that I have with the disability annuity. Must I enroll in Medicare at 65 — thus forcing my spouse to be without health care coverage? Or can I continue to get disability benefits and be covered by Blue Cross-Blue Shield? A: Signing up for Medicare doesn’t alter your right to continue your enrollment in Blue Cross-Blue Shield. Part A coverage is free because you paid for it through mandatory payroll deductions. Enrolling in Medicare Part…
Q: I will have 32 years of service (USPS) as of Feb. 17, 2011. I began as CSRS, then switched to FERS, so I have a frozen CSRS component of about five years. I reached MRA (age 56) in August 2010. I am confused about the postponed annuity issue. If I retire later this year, do I have to postpone my annuity until age 62, or will I receive an annuity immediately? If the annuity must be postponed, my only federal income would be the Special Supplement payable until age 62? A: Because you already meet the age and service…
Q: I was employed under CSRS and retired in 2008. From about 1967 to 1971 I paid Social Security taxes while working for the government as a Veterans Administration trainee. I later bought back this time. I am 63 and I have almost enough quarters to qualify for Social Security. I understand that any Social Security would be reduced by the windfall elimination law. Will the time I bought back also count toward my Social Security calculations (effectively therefore being counted for both CSRS and Social Security? If I don’t collect Social Security until my full retirement age (in my…
Q: On Feb. 11, 2011, a question was asked in regard to loss and reinstatement of the Special Retirement Supplement. Where can I find in writing the answer that once you fall back below Social Security max amount, the SRS amount lost will be reinstated? I could not find this information in chapter 51 of OPM CSRS/FERS handbook. A: What you are looking for is implicit in Part 51A3. A reduction is only made in the special retirement supplement when a FERS retiree’s earning from wages or self-employment exceed the Social Security annual earnings limit. When annual earnings no longer…
Q: I am about to retire soon from CSRS. How can I find out if I will be eligible for Medicare? I don’t see from my pay stub that a Medicare tax has been taken out. The CSRS tax is at 7 percent with AT next to it. What do I need to do to ensure that I will be eligible for Medicare when I reach 65? A: Relax. Medicare taxes in the amount of 1.45 percent are automatically deducted from every employee’s pay to cover the cost of Medicare Part A. That’s been the case since 1983.
Q: If I elect a survivor benefit for my husband and I die before he does, will his Social Security/FERS pensions be reduced by either WEP or GPO? I am 62, retiring next month with 42 years of CSRS federal service. By law I must leave my husband a survivor annuity of 55 percent of my base salary for which monthly payments will be taken out of my retirement annuity. He is now 64, retired last year with 10 years of federal service (FERS) and now receives Social Security pension and a FERS annuity. A: Neither the windfall elimination provision…
Q: My 59-year-old husband was a GS-6 from 1974-1982. He was otherwise employed for 40 quarters but at very low pay. His estimated CSRS annuity is $197 and his Social Security Statement says his benefit at age 62 is $365. My understanding of GPO and WEP is that his CSRS annuity is reduced (eliminated) by his Social Security annuity, and even if there is a floor for the reduction, his Social Security annuity is then reduced $2 for every $3 of the CSRS annuity. I am 52, retired active duty, and a FERS GS-13. I intend to work until 2029…