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Welcome to the Video Guide - Planning Your Successful
Retirement.
Hello, my name is Susan MacLennan.
I am sure you have a lot of questions about planning for
your retirement and these videos were created to help executive
branch state employees with the answers for those important
decisions.
In this video, What Do I Need to Know About My Retirement System
Benefits After I Retire?, Bonnie Clark, an Information
Representative from the Office of the State Comptroller, will
pass along information on when you can expect your first
pension check, advance pension payments, using direct deposit,
the post-retirement death benefit, New York State
survivor's benefit, working after you retire, and
cost-of-living adjustments.
You will also want to carefully review Chapter 9 of the online
version of the Self-Help Guide to Pre-Retirement Planning for
more details.
You will find the Self-Help Guide on the Work-Life Services
website at worklife.ny.gov.
The retirement process doesn't end the day you retire.
It's important to know what happens next so that you will be
prepared to make a successful transition into retirement.
Once I retire, how long will it take me to get my first pension
check?
When you first retire, you'll be placed on our Advance Payment
system.
Because it takes a few months after you retire to gather all
of the data we'll need and to calculate your final pension
amount, we'll start you off by sending you an Advance Payment.
For most retirees, the average wait time to receive their first
check will be approximately five to eight weeks after they
retire.
In this example, for a member who retires sometime during the
month of February, we will calculate an Advance Payment
during the month of March, and mail out their first Advance
Payment on the first business day of April.
So, if someone retired on February 1st, they would wait
about two months for their first Advance Payment check to arrive
in their mailbox.
If someone retired on February 28th, they would wait a little
over one month from their Date of Retirement to receive their
first check.
Please note that Advance Payments are always paid in the
form of a paper check that is mailed to the home address we
have on file for you.
Since these checks are mailed out on the first business day of
each month, you should expect to receive them a few days after
that.
There are some additional important facts you'll need to
know about your Advance Payments.
The most important is the fact that we cannot pay any Advance
Payments until we have your proof of date of birth on file.
For most new retirees, the amount of your Advance Payments
will be based on approximately 85 to 90 percent of your
estimated monthly option amount.
Federal taxes will be withheld from your check based on the
withholding rate you selected when you submitted your W4-P
Federal Tax Withholding form.
After you're retired, you're allowed to change your
withholding rate at any time by simply submitting a new W4-P
form.
Please note that if your pension is subject to distribution on a
Domestic Relations Order, the amount of your Advance Payments
will be based on a rate proportionate to the amount
spelled out in the Order.
Once we've collected all of the necessary data and completed
your final retirement calculation, we'll mail you a
letter that will explain the details regarding your monthly
pension benefit.
At the same time, we'll pay you any money we owe you
retroactively back to your Date of Retirement.
And, if you had previously signed up to have your pension
paid to you via direct deposit, this retroactive payment will be
the first payment that will be deposited directly to your bank
account.
We strongly recommend to our retirees that they take
advantage of our direct deposit program.
It's quicker and it's safer than getting a paper check mailed to
your home, and it's an easy way to give yourself some peace of
mind.
While direct deposit is voluntary, if you sign up you
can feel secure in knowing that your monthly pension payment
will always be placed in your bank account on the last
business day of each month.
In addition to receiving a monthly pension benefit, some
retirees may also be eligible for post-retirement death
benefit coverage.
To be eligible, you must be a Tier 2, 3, or 4 member of the
Employees' Retirement System at the time of your retirement, and
you must either retire directly from the payroll or begin
collecting your pension benefit within one year of your last day
on payroll.
If you're eligible for post-retirement death benefit
coverage, it will be provided at no additional cost to you.
Vested members who leave public employment and begin collecting
their pension benefit more than one year after their last day on
a public payroll, are not eligible for post-retirement
death benefit coverage.
If you're eligible, the post-retirement death benefit
would provide your beneficiary with a benefit equal to 50
percent of your pre-retirement death benefit if you pass away
in the first year of your retirement.
If you pass away in the second year of your retirement, the
benefit paid would equal 25 percent of your pre-retirement
death benefit.
Once you begin your third year of retirement, the benefit
payable would equal 10 percent of your pre-retirement death
benefit and that coverage will remain in place for the rest of
your life.
If you have multiple beneficiaries on file at the
time you pass away, the benefit would be split amongst them.
Retirees from New York State government may be entitled to
New York State survivor's benefit coverage.
To be eligible for this coverage, you must begin
collecting your pension benefit immediately after leaving the
public payroll, and you must have had at least 10 years of
full-time service within the 15 years that immediately preceded
your retirement.
If you're eligible for New York State survivor's benefit
coverage, it will be provided at no additional cost to you.
If you're eligible, the New York State survivor's benefit would
provide your beneficiary with a benefit equal to $3,000.
If you have multiple beneficiaries on file for this
benefit at the time you pass away, the payment would be split
up amongst them.
If you decide to continue working after you begin
collecting your pension, please be aware that Section 212 of the
Retirement Law limits the amount of money you're allowed to earn
in a calendar year if you return to public employment within New
York State.
However, your earnings will not be subject to any limits if you
work for the federal government or another state government, or
if you work in private industry or are self-employed.
And, once you reach the calendar year during which you will have
your 65th birthday, you are no longer subject to any earnings
limitations for either any public or private employment.
A cost-of-living adjustment will be applied to your monthly
benefit when you become qualified.
To be eligible to receive this benefit, you must either be age
62 or older and retired at least five years, or you must be age
55 or older and retired at least 10 years, or you must be a
disability retiree and retired for at least five years.
Once you become eligible for a cost-of-living adjustment, your
monthly benefit will increase each year in September.
The amount of the additional benefit is based on the
cost-of-living index for that year, with a minimum increase of
one percent and a maximum increase of three percent based
on the first 18 thousand dollars of the Single Life Allowance
benefit calculated for you at the time you retired.
If when you retired, you selected a retirement option
that provided a lifetime benefit for your spouse in the event you
passed away, your beneficiary would be eligible to receive 50
percent of the cost-of-living adjustment you would have
received.
Always remember that we'll be here for you if you ever have
any questions after you retire.
We're just a phone call away, and we'll be happy to help you
in any way we can.
We encourage you to view the other pension videos and to
visit their website at www.osc.state.ny.us.
You may also call to speak with a representative at
1-866-805-0990.
Thank you for viewing this video segment and for your service to
New York State.
We wish you a successful retirement!