Lamont Says Ct State Worker Retirement Tsunami Was Milder Than Feared
State government agencies are emerging from the spring surge in employee retirements well-positioned to preserve vital services, Gov. Ned Lamont and other administration officials announced Wednesday.
The much-discussed silver tsunami is more like a summer storm, Lamont said during a mid-morning press conference at the state Bureau of Information Technology offices.
Competitive salaries and bonuses, more strategic recruiting efforts and an increased reliance on digital platforms and hybrid working conditions have helped agencies weather the challenges of more than 4,000 retirements, administration officials said.
The administration has hired more than 6,000 people this fiscal year, which ends Thursday. Thats about 1,000 more than the state has averaged in recent years, said Nicholas Hermes, the states chief human services director.
The State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, which represents most bargaining units in state government, sees things differently.
The exodus has only exacerbated the destruction of the vital state services that all working people across Connecticut depend on, in particular black and brown, women, and immigrant workers, the coalition wrote in a statement.
Basics Of Splitting Retirement Assets
Entering these conversations with the following in mind can help streamline the process:
- Usually retirement accounts accumulated during the marriage are considered marital property to be split in divorce even if only one of the spouses earned them.
- A qualified domestic relations order may be needed to split some retirement plans, usually pensions.
A QDRO is a court order that provides instructions to the retirement-account administrator on how to pay benefits to the nonemployee spouse after a divorce. The order is important because it allows the separation and withdrawal of retirement funds without steep tax penalties.
Connecticut State Employee Disability Retirement
About twice per month the retirement services division will hold hearings to determine eligibility for disability retirement. A typical decision will grant or deny a Connecticut worker disability benefits.
The Connecticut state retirement summary plan description and C.G.S. §§ 5-169, 5-192p provide the definition of disability.
Definition of Disability
At first, disabled means you are permanently unable to perform the duties of your job. After you have received disability benefits for 24 months, you are considered disabled only if you are totally unable to work at any suitable and comparable job. Your disability may be service-connected or non-service connected.
The retirement services division can review your claim at any time after you have been granted and hold a continuing disability review. Your income from outside work, current medical records and ALL social media may be brought before the medical examining board for review.
Time Periods Filing Your Claim
The time period for filing an application for disability retirement benefits or petition for service-connected disability retirement shall begin on the day after the applicants last day of paid employment by the State of Connecticut and shall end at close of business on the date that is twenty-four months after the applicants last day of paid employment. Regs. Conn. State Agencies § 5-155a-2.
Waiver of Overpayment
Sec. 5-156c. Erroneous payments adjustment waiver of repayment regulations.
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Roughly 30,000 people work full-time at executive branch agencies in Connecticut, while another 20,000 work for the courts, the General Assembly, hospital systems and the state universities. Those 20,000 were not included in the scope of the report.
Women continue to be underrepresented in certain agencies and divisions such as police services, highway operations, engineering and construction, and one prison included in another report produced by UConn and the State Comptrollers Office. The analysis is based on data pulled in March 2021 of nearly 28,360 full-time state employees who work in executive branch agencies.
The same report found the number newly hired Black and Hispanic women for jobs in male-dominated state agencies is far below their representation in the overall Connecticut population. For example, between March 30, 2020, and March 30, 2021, 3.7% of the new hires were Black women, while they make up about 5% of the population. Hispanic women made up 2.8% of the new hires, despite comprising 7% of the population.
While the total number of white employees in executive branch agencies as a whole continues to exceed the percentage of white residents living in Connecticut a gap that has diminished with new hires the total number of Hispanic state employees is the most underrepresented group. The gap has worsened with new hires, according to the report.
Cts Revenues Are Finally Growing Faster Than Its Debt Analysts Say
And the first COLA payment for retirees wont come until 30 months after retirement. Under the outgoing system, that payment comes within the first nine to 15 months.
The comptrollers office reported Wednesday morning that 3,090 state employees had retired between Jan. 1 and June 1 and that another 1,361 have filed their written intentions to retire by July 1.
In a typical year, the state sees 2,000 to 2,500 retirements.
And while the spring retirement surge has created challenges, Hermes said, Our workforce numbers are looking fantastic.
Hermes, who is deputy commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, said employment in the Executive Branch excluding public colleges and universities is slightly more than 31,000, the highest mark since 2016.
Connecticut also has become much more strategic in its hiring, targeting talent with technological skills to help as government transfers more services online and relies more heavily on data analysis.
Were really excited for the future, he said.
Hermes added that there are some hot spots in state government. Agencies particularly need licensed health care and engineering professionals and information technology specialists. These are incredibly challenging careers to recruit and, even more specifically, to retain, he said.
But unions counter the state still needs to move much faster to fill vacancies.
Unions say hiring hasnt improved sufficiently since Lamont took office in January 2019.
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About State Of Connecticut:
State of Connecticut Teachers Retirement Board Retirement Division is located at 950 Main St in Downtown Hartford, CT Hartford County and is a government agency specialized in Government. State of Connecticut is listed in the categories State Government, Miscellaneous Government, Government Offices State and Government Offices. After you do business with State of Connecticut, please leave a review to help other people and improve hubbiz. Also, dont forget to mention Hubbiz to State of Connecticut.
Categories: State Government, Miscellaneous Government, Government Offices State and Government Offices
Specialties: Government
State Family Law And Pensions
Pensions are often more difficult to split than other plans, like the 401. In addition to these general rules on splitting retirement funds, specific state laws may apply to the division of pensions. In Connecticut, three methods are often used to determine both the value and distribution of pension benefits: present value, present division and reserved jurisdiction. The court may also use a different method if it finds it to be more appropriate than any of these three for particular circumstances.
The parties to a divorce can negotiate which division method to apply to their pensions, or if they cannot agree, the judge will have to choose which approach to take.
Under the present value method, the pension funds are valued at the time of the divorce. The employee spouses life expectancy, account interest rate and projected retirement date are all taken into consideration to come up with this value. The nonemployee spouse is then granted other marital property to offset the amount of pension benefit to which he or she would have otherwise been entitled. This method provides a clean break, since the valuation and offset can be made prior to finalization of the divorce.
The present division method delays distribution until the pension matures. Instead, the parties negotiate or the judge decides at the divorce trial the percent of the payout each spouse will eventually get. That percentage is then applied closer to the date of retirement. A QDRO is needed for this method.
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Pensions Retirement Plans And Divorces Oh My
Whether belonging to a member of the growing group of baby boomers filing for divorce or to someone who is part of a younger generation, retirement accounts and pensions are often a major consideration when determining how to split marital property.
Retirement accounts are often a major portion of the total assets accumulated throughout a marriage. Common retirement vehicles include pensions and 401 plans. A 401 plan is a tax-friendly account built through employee contributions made from each paycheck and sometimes matched in part by the employer, while a pension is employer funded and pays monthly benefits to a retiree in an amount based on the years he or she worked with a company and the salary earned.
Most people rely on their retirement assets to provide financial security during their golden years. Because of the importance they can play in funding basic needs in retirement, retirement assets can be major points of contention in a divorce negotiation when the parties decide how these assets will be split in the divorce.
If the parties cannot come to a negotiated agreement about how these assets will be split, that decision will be left to the judge.
State Of Texas Retirement For Active Employees
The State of Texas Retirement program is a defined benefit retirement plan for eligible employees of State of Texas agencies, with mandatory participation.
Note: ERS does not administer retirement benefits for employees of higher education institutions, the Community Supervision and Corrections Department, or Windham School District. If you work for one of these entities, please see the Teacher Retirement System of Texas/Optional Retirement Program page for information about your retirement benefits. Please see the Insurance Benefits in Retirement page for information about your insurance benefits as a retiree.
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Irs Cracks Down On Connecticut Pensions Could Place Heavy Burden On Some State Retirees
The Internal Revenue Service has issued rules that will possibly lower pension payouts for some retired Connecticut state employees, or force others to pay money back to the state retirement system, according to a memorandum from the Office of the State Comptroller.
In some cases, the pensioner may see an increase in their pension payment, including retroactive increases.
Under the new Voluntary Compliance Program, implemented in April of 2020, SERS will have to adjust an unknown number of retiree pension payments.
The new rules will end a long-standing conflict between the IRS and the Connecticut State Employee Retirement System, which was paying pensions well in excess of the $230,000 limit outlined by the federal government.
But to whom the new rules apply will depend on a more complicated formula based on the age of the retiree, when they entered the SERS system, when they retired, how much they were paid during state service and how much they receive from their pension.
The implementation of the corrections that are required under the VCP Approval will place a heavy burden on some SERS members, wrote John W. Herrington, Director of the Retirement Services Division for the Office of the State Comptroller.
The implementation of the corrections that are required under the VCP Approval will place a heavy burden on some SERS members.
John W. Herrington, Director of the Retirement Services Division
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What Are The Signs Of An Eating Disorder
Eating disorders involve extreme and dangerous eating habits, including binge eating, purging, and drastic reductions in food intake. Sometimes, eating disorders are severe enough to require emergency care and hospitalization. It can be difficult for family members to detect the signs of an eating disorder because it isnt unusual for patients to try to hide these behaviors.
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State Employee Retirement Q& a
online
The Retirement Services Division with the Office of the State Comptroller will host a live online Q& A for you to ask your retirement questions.
**This is available for all state employees pending retirement prior to July 1, 2022.
Even if you made your retirement elections you are eligible to change them up until you retire. This Q& A session will help those who have yet to make their retirement elections or those who have done so already and are seeking additional guidance.
Final Report On Connecticut State Retirement Systems: Sers And Trs
The reports key findings are:
- Connecticuts pension systems for state employees and teachers face large unfunded liabilities, despite recent efforts by the State to fund.
- A significant source of the problem is the legacy debt built up before the State began pre-funding its pensions in the 1970s.
- Since pre-funding began, inadequate contributions from the State and low investment returns have added to the problem.
- One way to address the problem is through a two-step approach:
- fund ongoing benefits using a level-dollar amortization method over a reasonable rolling period and reduce the long-term assumed return.
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The Alternate Retirement Program
This is a defined contribution plan qualified under section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code. An ARP member’s benefit is based upon their contributions to the plan and investment earnings. The employee has the option of contributing either 5% or 6.5% of your salary, contributions are made on a pre-tax basis. The State of Connecticut contributes an amount equal to 6.5% of your salary. Plan contributions are invested at the direction of the member in investment funds available under the plan.
The 30th Annual Rich Mauti Tennis Classic At Stone Creek 2017
On March 30th April 2nd 2017, Stone Creek Club & Spa is hosting a charity tennis tournament to help raise funds for cancer research, education, cancer screenings and individual needs in our local community. This special event will kickoff the opening of this spectacular tennis facility at Stone Creek. All funds raised will be
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State Employees Retirement System
Connecticuts State Employees Retirement System , the States largest retirement system, is a defined benefit plan administered by the State Employees Retirement Commission. A defined benefit plan means, upon retirement, an eligible member participating in the SERS will receive a fixed pension benefit that is determined by among other factors the number of years the individual worked for the State of Connecticut and the individuals final average salary. The SERS is funded with contributions from the State and employees, plus any investment returns generated by the systems assets.
Although the SERS began providing retirement benefits to its members in 1939, the State adopted a pay-as-you-go approach to the system for much of the SERS history and inadequately saved for retirement benefits promised to state employees. Instead of pre-funding, or contributing to an employees pension benefits from the beginning and entirety of his/her employment, the State of Connecticut paid pension benefits to retired SERS members as they came due through annual appropriations.
As a result of this practice, and several other critical factors, the SERS has accumulated nearly $22.3 billion in unfunded liabilities and currently has one of the lowest funded ratios of any state pension system in the nation. The funded ratio refers to the SERS total assets in proportion to its liabilities for future pension benefits to retirees and current state workers.
City Employees Retirement Fund
The Retirement Board for City Employees is comprised of seven members: the Mayor, City Controller, three mayoral appointees, and two members of the fund nominated and elected by members of the fund .
Members are appointed by the mayor and approved by the Board of Alders. Term of board membership is three years.
The retirement board works to submit annually to the Mayor a schedule of estimated appropriations of money necessary for the administration of the Citys retirement plan and shall receive, control, manage and expend according to the provisions of this plan all of said fund, including any monies contributed by employees and shall invest and reinvest all of said fund in accordance with the provisions of the general statutes governing trust funds.
View a complete list of the boards powers and duties under Article IX, Sec. 123 of the Citys Special Laws.
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