STATE OF CONNECTICUT
NANCY WYMAN COMPTROLLER	OFFICE OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER 55 ELM STREET HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT 06106-1775	MARK OJAKIAN DEPUTY COMPTROLLER

COMPTROLLER'S MEMORANDUM NO. 2004-34

September 24, 2004

TO THE HEADS OF ALL STATE AGENCIES

I. INTRODUCTION

All employees insured under the Group Life Insurance Plan pursuant to Section 5-257 of the General Statutes, whose yearly gross compensation rate increased on or before October 1, 2004 will have an increase in their insurance in accordance with the attached schedules of insurance.

Note that CORE-CT Benefits Administration automatically calculates premium deductions based on the amount of coverage in force, therefore, manual intervention is no longer required during this process for the purpose of increasing an employee's premium deduction. 

II. BASIS FOR INCREASE

An employee's base salary as of October 1, 2004 as noted in the Compensation Plan issued by the Department of Administrative Services, shall be used to determine his or her eligibility for increased insurance coverage. Additional payments, such as longevity, overtime, shift differential or maintenance are not considered as base salary for the purpose of determining life insurance coverage. 

Life insurance is not recalculated to the effective date of a retroactive compensation increase. For example, a wage increase effective September 15th but not entered until October 2nd, will not be considered until the following April 1st.

III. LIFE INSURANCE COVERAGE UPDATE PROGRAM

The life insurance coverage update program uses an employee's compensation rate, current in the job data pages, to determine whether an update to life insurance coverage is applicable. This program compares the employee's compensation rate with the life insurance wage/coverage table to ensure that the Annual Benefits Base Rate (ABBR) is accurate. Be advised that if the compensation rate field is not maintained and updated on a regular basis, the amount of insurance will be incorrect. 

The life insurance coverage update program ran on September 20, 2004. Salary increases that are entered and effective between September 20, 2004 through October 1, 2004 must be reviewed separately to determine if an increase is appropriate. Contact the Employee Benefits Unit for instructions if you have any employees in this situation. 

IV. EFFECTIVE DATE OF INCREASE

The effective date of the increase is October 1, 2004. Premium deduction changes for those employees receiving increased coverage are reflected in the paychecks dated:

V. PROJECTION/INCREASE CRITERIA

In order for the insurance coverage projection and premium increase to be processed correctly by Benefits Administration the following criteria must be met: 

A. Employee must be properly enrolled in the life insurance plan

 

B. Employee status must be active or on paid leave

The coverage projection and premium increase is not applicable to inactive (unpaid leave) or terminated employees.

 

C. Compensation rate must be accurate

This information is required in order to determine the coverage projection for which the employee is eligible.

 

D. Bargaining Unit designation must be accurate

This establishes the eligibility for coverage in excess of $38,000.00.

VI. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

The Insurance Projection Report has been replaced by a Benefits Administration query, which is available in the CORE-CT EPM system and is entitled: CT_CORE_BN_LIFE_AUDIT. The query is now available and will remain available until such time as the next increase is processed. Information regarding the CORE-CT EPM system can be obtained at the following Internet address: http://www.core-ct.state.ct.us/epm/

Similar to the projection report, the query will contain the following: employees whose coverage has been updated, the amount of new coverage, and the amount of their old coverage. The query should be checked thoroughly for accuracy. Contact the Employee Benefits Unit at (860) 702-3543 if it is determined that a correction is required.

VII. MAINTAINING GROUP LIFE INSURANCE COVERAGE AMOUNTS

Agencies must periodically audit life insurance coverage amounts. The Life Insurance Invalid Report has been created to accomplish this task. The Life Insurance Invalid Report is located in Core CT at the following Menu path: Compensate Employees > Administer Base Benefits > Report > Life Insurance Invalid Report. The report lists the employee's name, employee number, benefit plan, salary (derived from the employee's compensation rate on the job data pages of their primary job), current coverage and expected coverage. It compares the employee's compensation rate in job data with the life insurance wage/coverage table to ensure that the ABBR is accurate. 

After reviewing the report, make the appropriate changes to the employee's record to correct the errors. In the event agency information disagrees with the information contained in the report, contact the Employee Benefits Unit for assistance. The Life Insurance Invalid Report will be monitored centrally to ensure compliance. Be advised that an invalid coverage amount could cause beneficiaries to be severely disadvantaged. 

Further information regarding the ABBR can be found in the Core-CT Daily Mail dated February 5, 2004. http://www.core-ct.state.ct.us/hr-golive/daily/20040205.doc

VIII. SCHEDULES OF INSURANCE 

Attached are two Schedules of Insurance. Schedule No. 1 is for collective bargaining employees with a $38,000.00 limit on basic life insurance. Schedule No. 2 is for employees who are (1) not in a collective bargaining unit or (2) whose bargaining unit has a stipulated maximum amount of insurance greater than $38,000.00.

IX. CONCLUSION

To ensure delivery of the appropriate benefits to each employee with group life insurance coverage, the information maintained in Core CT must be current and accurate. 

Agencies should notify employees of the retroactive deductions and that deductions will automatically revert in accordance with the attached schedules in their next paycheck. 

Questions concerning the administration of group life insurance benefits may be directed to the Retirement & Benefit Services Division, Employee Benefits Unit at (860) 702-3543.

Very truly yours,

Nancy Wyman
State Comptroller

NW/NM/sa

Attachments 

Schedule No. 1

Schedule No. 2

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