What’s new

January 26, 2010
Benefit recipients: Please watch your mailbox for your 1099-R tax form to arrive soon

On Wednesday, January 27, our vendor will begin mailing 1099-R tax statements to our more than 52,000 benefit recipients. Accordingly, if you received a benefit payment from the MTRS in calendar year 2009, then you should receive your 1099-R tax statement in the mail shortly. Along with your tax form, you will receive an insert that includes information on how to read your 1099-R as well as the pension payment schedule for 2010 . If you do not receive your form by Wednesday, February 10, 2010, please call our Cambridge office at 617-679-6890 to request a duplicate.

Please note, however, that you will NOT receive a Benefit Verification form this year as we are not conducting this process in 2010.

As you may know, for the past several years, we have combined the mailing of our blue-and-yellow Benefit Verification form with the 1099-R form, and retirees and survivors have been required to complete and return the Benefit Verification form in order to document their eligibility to continue to receive retirement benefits. However, this year, in an effort to cut costs, we have suspended our policy of conducting the Benefit Verification process on an annual basis; instead, we will perform this process once every two years, as allowed by PERAC regulations (840 CMR 15.01). As always, we will continue to be vigilant and use other available resources to help achieve the purpose of the benefit verification process: to ensure that MTRS benefits are being paid to the correct individuals, and that these individuals are still alive and, therefore, eligible to receive benefits.

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 withdrew their funds)
• How to change your federal tax withholding

November 18, 2009
Pension Commission finalizes comprehensive report
On October 14, the Special Commission to Study the Massachusetts Contributory Retirement Systems finalized its comprehensive report. The Legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Service held a public hearing on November 9, 2009. We will continue to monitor any developments and post any updates on our website.

The Final Report of the Special Commission to Study the Massachusetts Contributory Retirement Systems (pdf, 75 pages)

September 22, 2009
Chapter 21 of the Acts of 2009:
An Act Providing Responsible Reforms in the Pension System

While this legislation addresses a number of issues affecting the administration of benefits across the Commonwealth’s 106 public retirement systems, its most significant impact for MTRS members is in its amendments to the definition of regular compensation.

The MTRS will be updating our regulations as necessary and working with the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission (PERAC) to implement the provisions of the new law.

For more information, please see:

• the MTRS's commonly asked questions page
• the full text of the Act
  
• PERAC's section-by-section description of the Act issued on June 22, 2009
  
• PERAC's frequently asked questions—and answers
  

September 14, 2009
MTRS seeks owners of unclaimed funds

If you are:
• the executor or executrix, or
• the survivor or beneficiary
of a deceased MTRS retiree, the MTRS may have unclaimed funds on account for you. Please check our Unclaimed funds page for additional information.

July 14, 2009
Benefit recipients: 3% COLA to be included in July 2009 payment

As you may know, the Governor and Legislature approved a three percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) as part of the Commonwealth’s FY2010 budget. Effective July 1, 2009, this COLA allows an increase of three percent on the first $12,000 of the retirement benefit, for a maximum increase of $360 per year or $30 per month. Members who retired on or before June 30, 2008 are eligible to receive this COLA. If you are eligible to receive this COLA, it will be included in your July 2009 payment. Your monthly gross amount for July will then be your new monthly gross amount until any future COLAs are granted.

For more information on:

• how to read your statement, please see Your check stub or direct deposit statement and
• past COLAs, please see Cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs).

April 29, 2009
Retirees—take note:
The Federal Stimulus Bill may have lowered your federal tax withholding beginning with your April 2009 payment
If you are affected, you might want to request a change in your withholding amount

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), known as the federal stimulus bill, lowered tax withholding rates for retirees beginning April 1, 2009 and continuing through 2010. Accordingly, if your federal income taxes are withheld from your monthly benefit payment based on:

• marital status and the number of exemptions claimed (the IRS tax tables), the net amount of your monthly benefit may have changed as a result of the new tax rates. The decrease in your federal tax withholding will result in a corresponding increase in your monthly payment. (In fact, the new tables may lower your taxes so much that no tax is withheld from your benefit payment.)
• a set dollar amount—including zero dollars, meaning that no taxes are withheld from your monthly payments—your benefit amount will not change as a result of the new tax tables.

If you would like to change your federal tax withholding amount or method, please submit a revised Substitute W-4P form (pdf, one page), and be sure to see The Federal Stimulus Bill: FAQ.

NEW: 8 Things you should know as an active member: Test your knowledge of the basics with this quick True-or-False quiz!

Last modified: January 26, 2010