Benefit recipients: Please note that the 3% COLA for FY2007 will be included in your July 2006 payment
As you probably know, the Governor and Legislature have approved a 3% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for FY2007. Effective July 1, 2006, the COLA allows an increase of 3% on the first $12,000 of the retirement benefit, for a maximum increase of $360/year or $30/month. Members who retired on or before June 30, 2005 are eligible for this COLA.

Also, please note that we have made a change in how your benefit amount is listed on your statement. Your “Earnings” are now shown as “Base” (your total benefit amount plus any past COLAs) and “COLA” (the monthly amount for the current fiscal year’s COLA, if any). See Your check stub or direct deposit statement for details.

Please note:
Our main office has moved from Boston to Cambridge
Our main office is now on the second floor of One Charles Park in East Cambridge, right next to the CambridgeSide Galleria shopping mall. We are very excited about this new building, which offers us and our members reasonably priced nearby parking, a comfortable first-floor amphitheater for educational programs, 24/7 security and housing for all of our member files.

Please take note of our new contact information and update your records:

• Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System (MTRS)
• One Charles Park, Cambridge, MA 02142-1206
• Phone: 617-679-MTRS (6877)
• Fax: 617-679-1661
• Directions to our Cambridge office

Benefit recipients: Your 1099-R tax form for 2005 was mailed to you by our vendor on Friday, January 27.
If you received a retirement or survivor benefit from the MTRS in calendar year 2005, then you should have received your tax statement, Form 1099-R, and your 2006 Benefit Verification form in the mail by now. For more information, please see:

• How to read your 1099-R form (for retirees and beneficiaries)
• 1099-R Q&A for refund recipients (generally, former MTRS members who left the MTRS and withdraw their funds)
• The Benefit Verification Process: Need another copy of your 2006 Benefit Verification form? At this time, if you lost or misplaced your original Benefit Verification form, please do not contact us to request a duplicate; instead, please wait to receive a “Second Notice” from us in the mail: On March 30, our vendor mailed Second Notices to the 5,207 retirees who have not yet submitted their Benefit Verification forms. If you are in this group, please be sure to complete and return your form by Friday, April 28.

Legislative update: Vocational work experience service purchase approved: This new law, which takes effect on December 14, allows certain certified vocational-technical educators to purchase up to three years of service credit for their prior experience in their occupational field.

Benefit recipients: Your 1099-R tax form for 2004 will be mailed to you in January 2005. You should receive your form at your home address by January 28. For more information on this important tax form, if you are a retiree, please see How to read your 1099 tax form; and, if you are a member or a former member who received a refund from us in 2004, please see our Refund Q&A page.

Recent Legislative action changes the interest rate charged for creditable service purchases: In July 2004, the Massachusetts Legislature passed two bills, Chapters 279 and 280 of the Acts of 2004 that will increase the rate of the interest charged for the purchasing of creditable service. More..

PERAC votes to change effective date of new actuarial equivalent mortality table and interest rate, which affects members who retired on or after July 1, 2004 under option B or C. More..

A note on the MTRS and the EGTRRA Tax Law: The Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System is a defined benefit plan that operates as a qualified employer plan under Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. Through December 31, 2001, we were only able to accept, as tax-free transactions, “eligible rollover distributions” from other 401(a) retirement plans and certain other eligible plans. More..

Part-Time Service Regulation: On June 15, 2000 the Supreme Judicial Court issued an important decision in Madden v. Contributory Retirement Appeal Board, 431 Mass. 697, that clarifies how the MTRS’s part-time service regulation affects members’ service. More..

Legislation allows MTRS members to purchase Peace Corps Service: On Jan. 1, 2003, Acting Gov. Jane Swift signed legislation that allows MTRS members to purchase up to three years of Peace Corps service as creditable service toward retirement (Chapter 468 of the Acts of 2002). More..

Last modified: July 27, 2006