State Retirement Board - Active Member Newsletter Treasurer's Message Sound financial planning is critical to running state government with the highest degree of fiscal responsibility, accountability and transparency. Please view my office as a resource for you and your families on the many issues surrounding your retirement. Experienced retirement board staff are available and ready to assist you with any questions that you may have. Thank you for your dedication to our commonwealth and to its people. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions, concerns or feedback you may have. Sincerely, Deborah B. Goldberg, Treasurer and Receiver General BOSTON OFFICE Downtown Crossing One Winter Street, 8th Floor Boston, MA 02108 Office Hours: 7:45 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. M-F Phone: (617) 367-7770 Fax: (617) 723-1438 SPRINGFIELD OFFICE 436 Dwight Street, Room 109A Springfield, MA 01103 Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. M-F Phone: (413) 730-6135 Fax: (413) 730-6139 TOLL-FREE (800) 392-6014 (Mass. Only) DIRECT DIAL TO BYPASS CALL CENTER If you know your party's three digit extension (617) 367-9333 +ext. EMAIL SRB@tre.state.ma.us WEBSITE mass.gov/retirement 2 2016 Retirement Board Election Update; New Computer System Coming Soon to the MSRB!; Increased Benefit Requests Being Managed By MSRB Staff 3 MSRB Debuts Educational Video Library!; Voluntary Separation Incentive Program; Pension Estimate Percentage Charts 4 PRIM Board Update; Reminders 2016 Retirement Board Election Update Pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws c.10, §18 and c.32, the State Board of Retirement ("Board”) is conducting a regularly scheduled election for one of the two elected positions to its five-member Board. The elected member will serve for a three-year term without compensation beginning January 2017. Official ballots were mailed on Monday, October 24, 2016, to all members of the Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System (MSERS). Members have the choice to vote either by the paper ballot or online. Instructions are included on the ballot as well as on the Board's website. The deadline to cast your vote is Friday, December 2, 2016. If you are voting via the paper ballot, please allow extra mailing time to ensure that the Board's designated agent receives it by December 2, 2016. Please note, If you need a replacement ballot or have an election question, please contact customer service via telephone at (866) 384-9978, or via email at MSRB@election-america.com. New Computer System Coming Soon to the MSRB! The Massachusetts State Retirement Board (MSRB) is in the final stages of implementing a new computer information system called MARIS (Massachusetts Retirement Information System). In January 2017, MARIS will replace the Board's current forty-year-old computer system which processes member transactions. No action is required by members, and no changes are taking place at this time! Additional information and details about MARIS will be communicated from the Board to Members of the State Employees Retirement System as it becomes available. For the latest news from the MSRB, please be sure to visit our website at mass.gov/retirement and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Increased Benefit Requests Being Managed By MSRB Staff Due to the recent unexpected announcement of the voluntary incentive program for Executive Branch employees, and other ongoing employee activities such as the separation of manual toll collectors from MassDOT, the volume of benefit and related requests to our office has increased significantly. As a result, it may take a little longer for us to get back to you, answer your individual questions or process your benefit requests. Our Board currently supports more than 60,000 retirees and beneficiaries along with over 90,000 active members. We are trying to prioritize the high volume of previously filed retirement applications and other requests for benefits from members and survivors, including those requests which continue to be received daily. Thank you in advance for your continued understanding and patience! Page 2 MSRB Debuts Educational Video Library! Now Showing: How to Apply For Retirement. In an effort to provide enhanced Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System (MSERS) member services, the Massachusetts State Retirement Board (MSRB) is pleased to introduce its Educational Video Library. This media-based digital learning opportunity enables active members, retirees, survivors and beneficiaries with the ability to get their retirement questions answered 24/7 via short video clips. We hope all MSERS members will consider this a quick, convenient and truly informative way to learn about general information related to their pension benefit. The MSRB educational video series is titled Understanding Your Benefits, and it will include an in- depth explanation of the various aspects of the MSERS pension benefit. The first video for active employees is titled "How to Apply For Retirement.” This video explains in great detail how to fill out a regular Superannuation Retirement Form. You can view it by visiting the MSRB's Education Video Library web page: http://www.mass.gov/treasury/retirement/state-board-of-retire/msrb-video-archive.html. MSRB staff hopes you will watch this video and find it helpful. In the coming months, MSRB staff will continue producing videos on a wide range of topics regarding your pension benefits. New videos will be posted on announced on our Facebook and Twitter pages as soon as they become available, so be sure you are following us! Voluntary Separation Incentive Program Questions related to eligibility and time lines for the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program for Executive Branch Employees should be directed to your individual agency Human Resources Office. Information may also be found at http://www.mass.gov/anf/. Pension Estimate Percentage Charts Members can calculate their own retirement benefit estimate using the appropriate Retirement Percentage Chart. The charts are available for downloading from the MSRB website, mass.gov/retirement and by visiting the following links below: If you were HIRED PRIOR TO 4/2/2012 go to http://www.mass.gov/treasury/docs/retirement/retpercentagechartbeforeapril2-2012.pdf If you were hired ON OR AFTER 4/2/2012 go to http://www.mass.gov/treasury/docs/retirement/2016-percentage-chart-for-those-hired-after-april-2-12-updated.pdf Information on how benefits are calculated can be found in our Retirement Benefit Guide beginning on page 14. PRIM Board Update The Pension Reserves Investment Trust (PRIT) Fund is a pooled investment fund established to invest the assets of the Massachusetts State Teachers' and Employees' Retirement Systems, as well as the assets of county, authority, district, and municipal retirement systems that choose to participate. The PRIT Fund was created by the Legislature in December 1983. The Treasurer and Receiver General of the Commonwealth is a member ex officio and serves as the chair of the nine-member Pension Reserves Investment Management (PRIM) Board, which is responsible for overseeing the Fund. The State Employees' Retirement System has two representatives on the Board: one is elected by the members of the Retirement System and one is an elected member of the State Retirement Board. (PRIT) Fund Assets: $63,264,006,000 State Employees' Retirement System (SERS) Assets: $24,339,739,518 PRIT Fund updates are courtesy of PRIM. Due to limited space, we can only provide a condensed version of fund updates. For full quarterly updates and more detailed information on the PRIM Board go to: www.mapension.com Important Dates to Remember: November Friday, 11th: Veterans Day, Office Closed Tuesday, 22nd: Retirement Board Meeting* Thursday, 24th: Thanksgiving Day, Office Closed December Thursday, 22nd: Retirement Board Meeting* Monday, 26th: Christmas Day, Office Closed Have You Recently Moved? Be sure to provide your new address to your Human Resources department so that they update your employee file. Has Your Email Address Changed? Be sure to notify your Human Resources and/or Network Administrator (IT) department so that they can update your electronic profile. Please note: MSRB staff is not able to update active members individual state email addresses. Thank you! BOARD MEMBERS Chair Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg Elected Members Ralph White Theresa McGoldrick, Esq. Appointed Member Patricia Deal Chosen Member Chris S. Condon EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Nicola Favorito, Esq., Deputy Treasurer DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Marianne Welch EDITOR Paula Daddona Need a Form or a MSRB Publication? Our most current forms and publications are available for download on our website: Key Resources > All Forms and Publications Like us on Facebook facebook.com/mass.state.retirement @MassStateRet Follow us on Twitter mass.gov/retirement *Unless otherwise noted, meetings are held at: One Winter St, 8th Floor, Boston, MA If you have any questions of comments, please email us at: MSRBCommunications@tre.state.ma.us Page 4