This error will appear for any 8% or 9% member who is listed as full-time with a salary of more than $30,000 but did not have a 2% deduction taken.

Check this member’s record to make sure the proper rate is really 8% or 9% and that the member earns enough to require a 2% deduction. If this member is not having 2% deducted in error, please start taking the 2% deduction in the next payroll cycle.
Please note: Once the 2% is being taken properly, please contact your Employer Services Representative and arrange to make an adjustment for the next pay period through your payroll system to correct the error. This correction should be reported as an adjustment record.

BERT has detected a negative deduction in the 2% field.

Look at the record to see why the amount is negative. All corrections should be submitted in adjustment records. If this negative amount is a result of an adjustment, please make sure you are reporting it as an adjustment record. If this record is reported as a normal record but should be an adjustment, change the record type from N to A at the top of the Edit Record Page.

BERT has detected a record with a member rate code of 05 or 11 that had a 2% deduction taken.

Please verify that the member’s rate code is correct and if this is an actual error, stop taking 2% deductions in your next payroll cycle.
Please note: After the erroneous 2% deduction has been stopped, please contact your Employer Services Representative and arrange to make an adjustment for the next pay period through your payroll system to correct the error. This correction should be reported as an adjustment record.

BERT has detected a member who is listed as a part-time member at 50%.

Please ensure that the full-time equivalent annual salary and the rest of the contract data is correct.

BERT has detected an adjustment record in the file that you have sent to fix a previous error.

Make sure this adjustment record is valid and that the MTRS receives an explanation for the adjustment.

The four-digit agency code (example: 0100) is missing.

Contact your payroll vendor and ask why the agency code is not showing up on the report. If you do not have a payroll vendor, please update your payroll system or manually change the records in BERT.

The annual salary cannot be blank, zero, or negative.

Please update the annual salary in your payroll system, and make the correction in BERT. Be sure to enter the annual salary as the full-time equivalent salary for members starting mid-year and part-time employees.

BERT has computed the base earnings using the annual salary and full-time percentage and the calculated figures don’t match your figures.

Make sure the annual salary and full-time percentage are reported correctly. If they are not, correct them in your payroll system and either generate a new text file from your payroll system or make the correction in BERT.

The city field cannot be blank for any records.

Update the city field in your payroll system. If you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

The value being reported is either blank, zero, or not a valid selection from the dropdown menu.

Determine what the correct contract term is (number of months the employee is contractually required to work) and correct it in your payroll system. If you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

BERT has calculated your employee’s regular deduction using the reported earnings and rate code in the record and it does not match the deduction you are reporting.

Look at the member’s record and make sure all the earnings and deductions match your payroll system. If the earnings or deduction data doesn’t match your system, correct the errors and save your changes. If the amounts all match what is in your payroll system and this error is a real problem, please inform your Employer Services Representative.
Note: Once the cause of this error has been fixed, please contact your Employer Services Representative and arrange to make an adjustment for the next pay period through your payroll system to correct the error. This correction should be reported as an adjustment record.

A deduction has been taken; however, no eligible earnings are listed on the report.

Research your payroll system and, if eligible earnings are missing, add them to the record. If there are no eligible earnings because the deduction in the record was not taken from eligible compensation, please inform your Employer Services Representative.
Please note: Once the cause of this error has been fixed, contact your Employer Services Representative and arrange to make an adjustment for the next pay period through your payroll system to correct the error. This correction should be reported as an adjustment record.

The coach earnings are being reported in a field other than the coach earnings field (most likely the base earnings field).

In BERT, move all coach earnings to the coaching field. Also, make sure to code the earnings correctly, so they appear in the correct field in future reports.

Earnings are listed in the payroll record; however, it is showing no regular retirement deduction was taken.

If this member should have had retirement contributions deducted and did not due to an error, contact your Employer Services Representative and discuss how to handle the correction. If this record pertains to someone who should not be making retirement contributions, such as a retired or substitute teacher, delete the record from the BERT file.

This message is intended as an alert that the employee might not be eligible for MTRS membership.

Determine whether the employee is working at another school district at the same time. If the combined FTE% between the school districts adds up to at least 50%, he or she is eligible and therefore leave the report as it is. If the person is found to be not eligible, contact your Employer Services Representative.

The full-time percentage is either blank, zero, or above 100%.

Correct the full-time percentage in your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

There is no name listed on the deduction report record.

Update your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

The information that you have listed in the name field is not in the proper format or is missing required information. The proper name format can be found in the MTRS Earnings and Contribution Report File Layout.

Correct the manner in which you are reporting this name and either add or remove a comma as needed.

BERT has detected a negative value in an eligible earnings field.

Examine the record in BERT and determine why the earnings are negative. All corrections should be submitted as adjustment records. If this negative amount is due to an adjustment, please make sure you are reporting it as an adjustment record. If this record is reported as a normal record but should be an adjustment, change the record type from N to A at the top of the Edit Record Page.

The pay date and period being reported have different months. Example: pay date is 3/30/2009, and the period date is 200904 (April).

Check your payroll system to see why the dates did not match. If this is a payroll software error, have your software corrected. This can be fixed in BERT on the individual member’s Edit Record page, or globally, by clicking on the File Changes screen and changing the pay date, which will automatically fix the period date. If this error message appears because this record is being reported as a normal record but should be an adjustment or retro record, please change the record type from N to A or R at the top of the Edit Record Page.

The pay duration and pay frequency are not a logical combination.
Example of error:
Pay frequency = 21 (bi-weekly over 10 months)
Pay duration = 12 (12 months)

Make the necessary changes in your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

It is not logical for someone to work longer than the period of time in which they are being paid.
Example of error:
Contract term = 12
Pay duration = 10

A teacher’s contract term is usually 10 (working September through June) and an administrator’s contract term is usually 12 (working the entire year). Review this employee’s contract data in BERT and make the necessary changes in your payroll system. If you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

The pay duration is either blank, zero, or not listed under the valid pay duration dropdown menu.

Correct the pay duration, both in your payroll system and in BERT. For a list of valid pay durations, click on the dropdown menu on the Edit Record page.

The pay frequency is either blank, zero, or not listed under the valid pay frequency dropdown menu.

Correct the pay duration, both in your payroll system and in BERT. For a list of valid pay frequencies, click on the dropdown menu on the edit record page.

Pay frequencies of 01, 02, 03, and 06 are only valid for coaches.

If the person is a coach, change the position code to COACH in BERT. If not, correct the pay frequency in your payroll system and in BERT.

The pay period is either blank or in the wrong format. The correct format is yyyymm; for example, March 2009 should be 200903.

Contact your payroll vendor and find out why the pay period is not being populated correctly. Make the necessary changes in your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

A record for an hourly employee is on the deduction report.

Look at the record on the Edit Record Page and make sure all information is being reported correctly.

The position code is either blank or has been entered incorrectly. The position code must be in caps and spelled correctly.

Correct the position code in your payroll system as well as BERT. A list of valid position codes can be found by clicking on the position code dropdown menu in BERT or in the MTRS Earnings and Contribution Report File Layout.

The rate code is blank or not a valid code.

Determine the member’s correct contribution rate and update both your payroll system and BERT. In BERT, there is a dropdown with the valid entries: 05, 07, 08, 09, and 11.

BERT has detected a record on the payroll report with all earnings and deductions reported as $0.00. This error commonly appears in July and August for employees who received a lump-sum payment.

If you have verified that is this record should not be on the MTRS report, click on the “File Changes” button, and then click on the “Remove Blank Records” button. This will remove all the blank records, thus dealing with the condition that caused the error message. If this member should have had deductions, contact your Employer Services Representative.

The deduction field is blank and is showing no value.

Check your payroll records to determine what exactly was deducted. If nothing was deducted, change the deduction amount to zero in BERT. Contact your Employer Services Representative and discuss how to handle the correction.

BERT has detected a negative regular deduction.

Examine the record and determine why the amount is negative. All corrections should be in adjustment records. If this negative amount is due to an adjustment, please make sure you are reporting it in an adjustment record. If this record is reported as a normal record but should be an adjustment, change the record type from N to A at the top of the Edit Record Page.

There is a possibility the salary has been entered incorrectly, or the employee might not be eligible for MTRS membership. If this person is a coach, please change the position code to COACH.

Check BERT to see if the salary listed is correct. If not, make the necessary changes. If this employee is eligible for MTRS membership and the full-time equivalent salary is really less than $20,000, or if you determine that this employee is not really eligible for membership, contact your Employer Services Representative.

The Social Security number is either blank, all zeroes, or is an unlikely number, for example: 123-45-6789, or 111-11-1111.

Make the correction in your payroll system, and the necessary change in BERT.

The state abbreviation listed in the record is not one of the 50 states, or has been entered incorrectly.

Please make the correction in your payroll system and the necessary change in BERT.

The address listed in your payroll record is blank.

If needed, add an address to your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

The transaction date is either blank or all zeroes.

This date should match the pay date of the transaction that you are reporting. Make the necessary changes in your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, also make the correction in BERT.

There can only be three types of transactions: N for Normal records, A for Adjustment records, and R for Retro records.

Make the necessary changes in your payroll system and if you are not generating a new text file from your payroll system, open the Edit Record page in BERT and find out what transaction type is listed in the upper left hand corner. Choose the appropriate record type from the dropdown menu.

BERT has detected an installment payment. Installment payments are not currently allowed by the MTRS.

If there is money being reported in the installment field, it is most likely due to an adjustment or retro payment. If the amount in the installment field is an adjustment, please report it in a separate adjustment record. If it is a retro payment, please: either create a separate retro record; or, add the amount of deductions you’ve reported in the “installment payment” field to the regular deductions (and 2% deduction if necessary), and list the associated earnings in the retro earnings field.

The zip code is blank, all zeroes, or less than five digits.

Make the correction in your payroll system and the necessary change in BERT.