What’s new

July 22, 2008
Retirees: The approved 3% COLA on a $12,000 base will be paid in July to eligible benefit recipients; revisions to COLA still pending

As of today—our deadline for preparing the July retirement payments—the COLA approved for FY2009 stands at 3% on the first $12,000 (the “base”) of a retiree’s allowance. Accordingly, this 3% COLA will be paid in our July 2008 payments to all eligible benefit recipients (to be eligible to receive this COLA, a member must have retired on or before June 30, 2007). As in recent years, this COLA allows for a maximum increase of $360 per year or $30 per month.

As you may know, however, revisions to the COLA are still pending with the Legislature and the Governor. The FY2009 state budget approved by the Legislature and sent to the Governor for approval included a provision that would increase the COLA base from $12,000 to $16,000. In responding to the Legislature, the Governor did not approve this increase, but rather included an amendment to this provision that would increase the COLA base to $16,000 for retirees of the State and Teachers’ Retirement Systems who receive an annual pension benefit less than $40,000. The Governor stated in his message, “In general, I recognize the need of our retirees, most of whom are on limited fixed incomes, for this very modest cost-of-living adjustment. This need is less critical, however, for those receiving larger pension payments. Considering the existing size of our unfunded retirement liability, therefore, I recommend limiting this adjustment to those retirees whose annual pension payments are below $40,000.” The amendment is now before the Legislature, which has several options:

1. They can reject the Governor’s amendment altogether and forward to him the original provision increasing the COLA base to $16,000 for all state and teacher retirees. The Governor would then have 10 days to either sign or veto the bill;
2. They can adopt the Governor’s recommendation as is and return it to the Governor for his signature;
3. They could send the bill back to the Governor amending his recommendation (e.g., strike $40,000 and replace it with another amount). The Governor could then either sign or veto the bill;
4. They could do nothing, and the COLA base would remain at $12,000.

What they do and when they do it is very important, as the Legislature will complete its formal sessions by midnight on July 31. Please be assured that we are monitoring this issue very closely, and will update our homepage as soon as information becomes available.

June 26, 2008
Retirees: 2008 Benefit Verification “Final Notices” mailed

Retirees and beneficiaries: If you received a benefit payment from the MTRS in 2007, we sent you a Benefit Verification form in January 2008, which you were required to complete and return by March. To date, 98% of our retirees have submitted their forms—and we sincerely thank all of you who responded for your prompt attention and cooperation. If you have not yet returned your form, you will receive a Final Notice in June; please be sure to complete and submit it by July 15, or your MTRS benefits will be suspended, beginning with your July payment. Questions? See About the Benefit Verification process.

June 11, 2008
Active members: Please watch your mailbox for your 2007 annual statement to arrive in June!

Our vendor is mailing our annual statements to our more than 106,000 active and inactive members on June 13. If you don’t receive your statement in the mail by June 27, please call us at 617-679-6890 to request a duplicate. For more information and FAQ, please see FAQ: Your 2007 Annual Statement of Annuity Savings Account. Need to update your beneficiary designation? See our page on Survivor benefits and designating your beneficiary for information and the link to our downloadable form.

May 13, 2008
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.

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Last modified: July 22, 2008