Q: I learned in 2008 that my disability retirement annuity is wrong because my Preliminary and Final SF 2806 forms were prepared by a state-funded agency rather than my former employer. I was an Army Department employee. I have provided extensive evidence to OPM, however, they have refused to correct my annuity or explain why a state-funded agency prepared my separation documents, why they don’t match the personnel action forms prepared by my former employer, and why my last day in pay status was provided to OPM by the state-funded agency two months after I was separated. I have been…
Browsing: OPM
Q: Will the 2011 family plan premiums increase significantly because of the new law requiring dependent coverage until age 26, or will the Office of Personnel Management create a new plan other than “single” or “family”? A: I’m not aware of anything in the the new law, other than adding dependent children up to age 26, that would affect next year’s health benefits premiums. And I’m not aware of any plans to request a change in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Act that would permit the addition of another option.
Q: I am employed by the Defense Department under the Civil Service Retirement System. My service computation date is Dec. 17, 1977, and I will turn 62 on Nov. 16. Prior to entering civil service, I earned enough quarters to qualify for Social Security. I have not selected a retirement date, but I am considering Dec. 31 of this year or January 2011 to receive a payout from the National Security Personnel System. If I retire Dec. 31, I will be reimbursed for all of my annual leave, but after that reimbursement I would be limited to the maximum amount…
Q: I withdrew my CSRS retirement in 1993 and then started back in the government in 1999 and was hired as a CSRS offset employee. My service comp date is October 1981. I also have years of service from 1977 to 1981 and then came back in 1982 and worked until 1993. I resigned in 1993 and went back into government from 1994 to 1995 and then resigned again. I then came back in the government in 1999 and I am still working. I am a CSRS Offset who unfortunately withdrew my retirement when I left in 1993. I asked…
Q: We are on the federal Blue Cross/Blue Shield plan, and our son will turn 22 evidently before the extension comes into effect. I understand that he gets a month of courtesy coverage, which would expire on Dec. 22. So, what do we do for the additional nine or 10 days to keep him covered? A: He will be offered an opportunity to continue his coverage under the Temporary Continuation of Coverage provision in the current law. The cost of that coverage would be 100 percent of the monthly premium, plus an additional 2 percent for administrative costs. Note: The…
Q: I have 30 years of federal service and am under the Civil Service Retirement System. Next week, I will be 52 years old. I was thinking about retiring before age 55, and I know about the 2 percent reduction in monthly retirement benefits for every year under age 55. When I contacted the Office of Personnel Management about an early retirement, the answer was that I had to wait until age 55 to retire unless my agency offered an early out or buyout. Maybe I’m not using the correct terminology. Is there any way for me to “retire” before…
Q: Can an offer be made and accepted on a federal position prior to an effective retirement date? A: There’s no prohibition against accepting another federal position prior to retiring from your current position, as long as the reporting date is after you retire. However, you need to consider the potential consequences of becoming a re-employed annuitant. For example, if you retired on an immediate unreduced annuity, the salary of your new position would be reduced by the amount of that annuity, unless you were being hired into one of those rare positions where you are allowed to keep both.…
Q: I saw your answer to a letter to a CSRS recipient saying OPM will only check once to determine if they are eligible for a Social Security benefit. This is for a retirement before reaching age 62. What I would like to know is if this “checking” is during the year a person is 62 or on the day of their 62nd birthday, or whenever they “catch up” with checking on this, which could be years later? Also, and when they do this, is the person being checked on notified that they have done this “checking”? A: As I…
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 had to retire from FERS on disability with 26 years and 9 months at the age of 53. The first year I got around $2,650 monthly from OPM. A year later I did get my Social Security at $1,788 per month and $1,195 monthly from OPM . Could you tell me what I will get at age 62? My average high 3 years were $59,755.00. Minimum retirement age was 56. Could you break this down for me? A. I can’t tell you what the breakdown will be. I can give you the formula used. Here it is. During…