STATE EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT COMMISSION		55 ELM STREET HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT 06106-1775 TELEPHONE: (860) 702-3480 TELEFAX:(860) 702-3489
MEDICAL EXAMINING BOARD for DISABILITY RETIREMENT
HEALTH CARE COST CONTAINMENT COMMITTEE
	STATE OF CONNECTICUT RETIREMENT AND BENEFIT SERVICES DIVISION OFFICE OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER

RETIREMENT & BENEFIT SERVICES DIVISION MEMORANDUM

September 15, 2004

TO THE HEADS OF ALL STATE AGENCIES

 GENERAL INFORMATION

The Personal Statement of Benefits for Tier I, Tier II and Tier IIA State Employees Retirement System (SERS) members will be mailed directly to employees on or about October 1, 2004 at the addresses on file with the Retirement & Benefit Services Division (Division) as of June 30, 2004. Notices to inform members of this mailing will be enclosed with the payroll checks dated October 1, 2004.

The statements will contain retirement and other employee benefit information as of June 30, 2004. Contributions and awarded interest balances will be reflected for Tier I members, Tier II hazardous duty members and Tier IIA members.

The employee's primary agency address is printed as the return address; therefore, any undeliverable statements will be returned to the agency, to the attention of the personnel or human resources office. Returned statements for employees whose mailing address is incorrect, incomplete, or missing should be given directly to each employee. To resolve address discrepancies, agencies should contact the Division's Data Base Unit at 702-3515. Statements for employees who have transferred from your agency should be forwarded to the new agency. Statements for employees who have left state service should be accumulated and then sent to the Division's Data Base Unit at the address on this letterhead along with a memorandum that provides the name of each terminated employee, their termination date and the reason for their termination.

With respect to SERS members who report that they did not receive a Personal Statement of Benefits, please accumulate their names and forward them with identifying employee numbers and Social Security numbers to the Division's Data Base Unit at the address on this letterhead. Please note: employees hired on or after June 11, 2004 will not receive a 2004 Personal Statement of Benefits. Do not report missing statements for such employees; rather, you should inform them that they will receive their first statement in the Fall of 2005.

The rest of this memorandum is devoted to outlining the information provided on the 2004 Personal Statement of Benefits as well as the procedures that must be followed to change or correct any of that information and explaining where additional information for each type of benefit may be obtained. For convenience sake, the instructions are organized according to sections within the statement. Please note that Social Security information is no longer being provided on the statement; in addition, to help safeguard employees' personal information, only the last four digits of an employee's social security number are now printed on the statement.

Please remember that all requests to change or correct personalized information must be initiated and processed at the agency level.

SPECIFIC INFORMATION

I IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR RETIREMENT BENEFITS

• This section provides an explanation of the retirement benefit estimates and payment options shown on the statement in the section entitled "Your Benefits at Retirement".

II PENSION AND HEALTH CARE BENEFITS FOR SAME SEX DOMESTIC PARTNERS

• This section provides general information regarding the pension plan and health insurance benefits available to same sex domestic partners. Further information regarding these benefits may be obtained through the Internet at www.osc.state.ct.us or you may contact the Division's Health Care Analysis Unit at 702-3535. Please do not refer individual employees to this number. 

III ADDITIONAL BENEFITS FOR ACTIVE EMPLOYEES 

• This section provides general information regarding additional benefits available to active state employees: the Supplemental Employee Benefits Program, the Deferred Compensation (457) Plan and for eligible state educational employees, the State of Connecticut 403(b) Program, and the Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefit Program. Further information regarding these benefits including the participating vendors may be obtained through the Internet at www.osc.state.ct.us or you may contact the Division's Employee Benefits Unit at 702-3543. Please do not refer individual employees to this number.

IV YOUR BENEFITS AT RETIREMENT 

• Retirement benefit calculations for the Personal Statement of Benefits are based on information obtained from the State Employees Retirement Data Base. 
• If a member believes that his/her contributions and awarded interest totals are incorrect, a request must be made in writing for an explanation of his/her retirement account balance. The attached request form must be used for this purpose. To avoid unnecessary requests, it should be emphasized that the interest awarded for the period from July 1, 2003 to June 30, 2004 was computed on the balance of the contributions and interest as of July 1, 2003. 
• "Your benefit payment options at retirement" sub-section provides information regarding the various payment options available to members of SERS at the time of retirement. This information has been compiled using employment data from State Employees Retirement Data Base records and assumes continuous and full-time employment from the employment date shown on the statement to the age indicated on the statement. Additionally, it is assumed that the employee is married and that their spouse is the sole contingent annuitant and is the same age as they are. The benefit payment option estimates are for illustrative purposes only; these amounts do not portray actual benefits. It should be noted that if an employee retained a pre-October 1, 1982 spousal option such employee is ineligible to make another selection at retirement.
• Additional information on regular benefits from SERS may be obtained from the Tier I, Tier II and Tier IIA Summary Plan Description (SPD) booklets. 

V YOUR DISABILITY BENEFITS 

• Information on disability benefits from SERS may be obtained from the Tier I, Tier II and Tier IIA SPD booklets. 
• All employee questions regarding the State Group Life Insurance coverage should be addressed by the appropriate agency personnel or payroll officer. Agency personnel may contact the Division's Employee Benefits Unit at 702-3543 for assistance; however, please do not refer individual employees to this number. 

VI YOUR SURVIVORS' BENEFITS 

• All employee questions regarding the State Group Life Insurance coverage should be addressed by the appropriate agency personnel or payroll officer. Agency personnel may contact the Division's Employee Benefits Unit at 702-3543 for assistance; however, please do not refer individual employees to this number. 
• Retirement plan contributions plus interest balances for the statements are obtained from the State Employees Retirement Data Base. Refer to Section IV of this memorandum for direction if a member believes that his/her contributions and awarded interest totals are incorrect. 

VII MEDICAL AND DENTAL BENEFITS AS AN ACTIVE EMPLOYEE 

• Active employees' medical and dental benefits are briefly outlined in this section. Each spring, an annual summary of health care choices, prepared jointly by the Office of the State Comptroller and the Labor-Management Health Care Cost Containment Committee, is mailed to employees' home addresses; employees should refer to this summary for more specific information regarding these choices as well as details concerning the enrollment process. 

VIII EMPLOYEES' PERSONAL INFORMATION 

Employees' personal information is extracted from the State Employees Retirement Data Base. Again, please note that only the last four digits of an employee's social security number now appear on the statement. 

To correct the following errors, the appropriate information as outlined below must be submitted to the Division's Data Base Unit for processing. 

• Employee number incorrect - notify of the correct number by memorandum. 
• Date of birth incorrect - submit a copy of birth certificate attached to a copy of the employee's latest Form CO-931. 
• Retirement plan beneficiaries incorrect, missing or require change - submit Form CO-931.
• Employing agency incorrect - notify by memorandum specifying name of former agency, date and reason for separation and name of current agency, reemployment or transfer date and a copy of Form CO-931 completed at the time of reemployment or transfer. 
• Employee name incorrect - to resolve discrepancies, agencies should contact the Division's Data Base Unit; a Form CO-931 reflecting the correct information may be required. 

Employees making group life beneficiary changes must see their agency personnel/payroll officer in order to secure the appropriate Core-CT Enrollment Statement. Once the employee completes and returns the Core-CT Enrollment Statement, the agency data enters the information in the Core-CT system. Once data entry has been completed at the agency level, the agency forwards the Core-CT Enrollment Statement to the Division's Employee Benefits Unit. 

VIII ADDITIONAL SERVICE CREDIT 

• The additional service credit information is obtained from the State Employees Retirement Data Base. It indicates miscellaneous service credit purchased by Tier I, Tier II hazardous duty and Tier IIA members and obtained by Tier II non-hazardous duty members. Purchases in progress are not reflected. Please note that this section does not reflect prior Connecticut state service for which Tier II members may automatically receive retirement credit provided there is no permanent break in service. 
• If the additional service credit information is incorrect or incomplete, the employee is advised to return the panel to the Division's Data Base Unit, with a copy of the Division's acknowledgment of credit which may be obtained from their own or agency records. The Division reviewed all the additional service credit panels that were returned last year; corrections or adjustments were made if necessary and are reflected in this year's statement. 

Any questions you have concerning this memorandum or the 2004 Personal Statement of Benefits may be directed to the Division's Data Base Unit at 702-3515; please do not refer individual employees with inquiries to this number. 

Very truly yours,

STATE EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT COMMISSION
NANCY WYMAN, SECRETARY EX OFFICIO 

BY: 

Thomas C. Woodruff, Ph.D., Director
Retirement & Benefit Services Division

TCW/JK/jk

Attachment

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