Life Services Toolkit flyer - February 2024

History of COLAs flyer - January 2024

Lifetime Benefits - January 2024

Tax Withholding Authorization and IRS W-4P form - January 2024

Total Compensation Calculator - January 2024

Termination and Reemployment Rules and Potential Corrective Action

We Need Your Help to Correct Member Data Errors

Scheduling In-Person Visits

Learn About Your MOSERS Benefits!

Recently Updated Resources

Please remind employees that before receiving a benefit payment from MOSERS, IRS rules require a “bona fide termination” of the member’s employment. For purposes of MOSERS Board Rules, a "bona fide termination" occurs when:

• The member has completely severed employment;
• The member has not entered into a prearranged agreement (written or oral), prior to retirement, with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer for subsequent employment on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other); and
• The member is not subsequently employed with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other) within 30 days after their employment with their prior employer has ended.

If a member receives retirement benefits without a bona fide termination, then all further benefit payments will end and the member will be required to repay the System all retirement benefits received, plus applicable interest, based on the assumed rate of return on the date of the member's retirement. Any amounts (including interest) not repaid by the member to the System will be subject to collection from the member's future retirement benefits. In addition, any payment considered to be an in-service distribution may be subject to a 10% early distribution penalty by the IRS.

The member's retirement will be considered null and void. The member can apply for retirement benefits at any time during the member's continued employment but must have a bona fide termination of service and observe the 30-day separation-of-service period to receive retirement benefits.

We collect contributions from you — our employer partners — to help fund retirement, life insurance, and long-term disability benefits for benefit-eligible state employees.

Each month, we receive a record of the previous month's pay and contributions for all covered employees. A small percentage of those records contain an error, or discrepancy, between the pay and contributions MOSERS expected to receive for an employee and what MOSERS actually received.

There are two error reports within the secure Employer Login that employers must work each month to address pay and contribution discrepancies:

• The Aged Accounts Receivable Report (for active employees)
• The Terminated Report (for separated employees)

Employer representatives responsible for working the reports receive an email notification when a report is released and ready to work. 

Staying current on monthly error reports and submitting outstanding leave of absence, transfer, and termination forms to MOSERS is vital in administering timely and accurate benefits for your employees.

Maintaining the integrity of member records is a joint effort between MOSERS staff and covered employers. Feel free to contact the Employer Services team with your questions by emailing employers@mosers.org or calling (800) 827-1063 and selecting option 2.

If members have questions about their MOSERS benefits, including retirement, life insurance, and long-term disability insurance, they can certainly ask those questions over the phone or by email. However, if they prefer to meet with a benefit counselor in our office, they can schedule an appointment in advance. There are several advantages to scheduling the appointment in advance rather than just stopping by. The biggest advantage is that members will likely have a much shorter wait time if they make an appointment. Counselors are available to assist members from 8 a.m. to noon and from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Our office is open during the noon hour for members who would like to drop off forms, but we also have a drop box outside our office available 24/7.

Our benefit counselors can:

• Print off benefit estimates during an appointment.
• Discuss retirement options.
• Demonstrate how to retire online.
• Provide personal assistance when submitting a claim for life insurance or long-term disability benefits.
• And so much more!

Please encourage your employees to schedule an appointment in advance and to look at our tips for in-person visits.

If employees would rather meet virtually instead of in-person, they can just let us know when they contact us to schedule an appointment. We will set it up through Microsoft Teams, making it easy to connect one-on-one with a benefit counselor.

Please encourage your team members to sign up for MOSERS education events in 2024! We’ve got something for all career stages.

Newer Employees & MOSERS Webinars

• For employees who are newer to the state but have less than five years of service (not yet vested).
• Daytime and evening webinars are available.
• Speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp.
• Webinars are approximately 2 hours.
• Register via GoTo Webinar for a daytime webinar or evening webinar.

Mid-Career Webinars

• For employees with at least five years of service (vested) and more than five years until retirement eligibility.
• Daytime and evening webinars are available.
• Speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp.
• Webinars are 2 ½ hours.
• Register at myMOSERS by following step-by-step instructions for enrolling in a webinar via myMOSERS and GoTo Webinar.

Ready to Retire Webinars and Seminars

• Full-day webinars or in-person seminars.
• Speakers include MOSERS, MO Deferred Comp, the Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan (MCHCP), and the Social Security Administration (SSA).
• Visit the Ready to Retire page to get all the details!

This year, in addition to our MSEP 2011 webinars, MOSERS is offering IN-PERSON Ready to Retire seminars for MSEP 2011 members in Jefferson City and two new locations!

February 27 in Jefferson City
March 28 in Macon
July 18 in Blue Springs (Kansas City area)
July 23 in Jefferson City
MSEP 2011 webinars on May 29 and Nov 7

See all seminar and webinar options for all career stages on our Education page.

Benefit Providers Table – January 2024

COLA memo – January 2024

Highlights of Your Total Compensation Package brochure – January 2024

Impact of a Layoff on MOSERS Benefits Guide – January 2024

Smart Start Checklist – January 2024

Understanding Your 1099-R Form – January 2024

The 2024 Education Schedule is Here!

Leaves of Absence - Impact on MOSERS Benefits

Termination Forms for Retirees

Retiree Sick Leave Reports

Recently Updated Resources

Please encourage your employees to register for one of our educational programs as they are designed for every career stage. The schedule includes both in-person seminars and online webinars.

As an HR rep, you have an open invitation to attend any type of session. If you are unable to enroll through myMOSERS, email us at MOSERSEducation@mosers.org.

Feel free to copy and paste the information below in an email to your employees.

2024 Education Schedule is here!

Newer Employees & MOSERS Webinars – Learn about the state benefits administered by MOSERS, including pension plan features, life insurance, long-term disability, and your personal retirement savings plan options with MO Deferred Comp.

Mid-Career Webinar – Find out how different career and life events may affect your pension benefit.

Ready to Retire Sessions – Learn about the retirement process and how different decisions may impact your pension benefit. If you are within five years of retirement eligibility, register to attend a Ready to Retire webinar or seminar.

Visit the Education page for more information!

BIG NEWS IN 2024 - New MSEP 2011 Seminar Locations!

Macon and Kansas City

A key resource highlighted at Benefits U last month was the Leaves of Absence - Impact on MOSERS Benefits flyer. We hope this document clarifies how various unpaid leaves of absence or leave events impact your employees’ benefits through MOSERS. To ensure accurate records for your employees, submit the Leave of Absence/Back to Work form through the secure Employer Login as soon as your employees have unpaid leave events or return to work from unpaid leave.

Another point of emphasis at Benefits U last month was submitting status change forms, such as leaves of absence, transfers, and terminations to MOSERS as quickly as possible. This is particularly important for employees who are retiring. To accurately calculate an upcoming retiree’s pension, we need the employee’s termination form no later than the first week of the month the employee is retiring. You can access status change forms through the secure Employer Login. Thank you for your continued assistance in reporting status changes for your employees to MOSERS.

For SAM II employers, MOSERS receives final unused sick leave balances from SAM II to calculate pension benefits for retirees. Once MOSERS has captured this information, the retiree appears on the Current Retiree Sick Leave and then the Previous Retiree Sick Leave reports within the secure Employer Login.

When a retiree appears on these reports, you can safely remove their unused sick leave balance from SAM II. Removing unused sick leave from SAM II will not remove retirees from the reports - they will drop from the Current Retiree Sick Leave Report to the Previous Retiree Sick Leave report as the next month’s retirees' cycle through the process.

Working these reports is important because a retiree reemployed in a benefit-eligible position cannot receive additional retirement credit for pre-retirement unused sick leave, including any remaining hours that did not convert to whole months of service credit at retirement.

Basic & Optional Life Insurance Handbook - December 2023

Destination Retirement Checklist (University Employees) - December 2023

Destination Retirement Checklist - December 2023

Key Facts Regarding Funding - December 2023

Legislators & Statewide Elected Officials' Retirement Handbook (MSEP, MSEP 2000, & MSEP 2011) - December 2023

Long-Term Disability Insurance Handbook - December 2023

Missouri Public Pension Exemption flyer - December 2023

MOSERS Strategic Plan - December 2023

New Employee Orientation brochure - December 2023

Pension Payment & Holiday Schedule - December 2023

2024 Education Schedule - Coming Soon!

Thank You to All Who Attended Benefits U 2023

2024 Education Schedule – Coming Soon!

We are currently in the process of finalizing our 2024 education schedule and anticipate having registration for Ready to Retire sessions open by mid-December. The schedule includes both in-person seminars and online webinars.

Newer Employees & MOSERS Webinars – Employees can start learning about the state benefits administered by MOSERS.

• For employees who are newer to the state with at least six months but less than five years of service (not yet vested)
• Speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp
• Sessions last approximately 2 hours
• Daytime sessions run from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
• Evening sessions run from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Mid-Career Webinar – Employees can learn how different career and life events may affect their pension benefit.

• For employees with at least five years of service (vested) and ten or more years until retirement eligibility
• Speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp
• Sessions last approximately 2.5 hours
• Daytime sessions are held from 9:30 a.m. to Noon
• Evening sessions are held from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Ready to Retire Sessions – Employees can learn about the retirement process and how different decisions may impact their pension benefit.

• For employees within 5 years of retirement eligibility
• Speakers include MOSERS, MO Deferred Comp, the Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan (MCHCP), and the Social Security Administration (SSA). 

For MSEP/MSEP 2000 members:

• Full-day webinars are from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., with a 30-minute lunch break.
• Full-day seminars are from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and include a box lunch.
• Evening webinars are held from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp only.

For MSEP 2011 members:

• Full-day webinars are from 9:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., with a 30-minute lunch break.
• Full day seminars are from 9:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and include a box lunch.

Universities – Ready to Retire on-campus dates have been assigned. Feel free to check the calendar mid-December as well.

• On-campus events
• Speakers include MOSERS and MO Deferred Comp

Stay up to date and visit our Education page frequently for more information, including schedules and how to register.

MOSERS Benefits During Military Leave flyer - November 2023

Divorce and Your Pension Benefit brochure - October 2023

Lifetime Benefits - October 2023

2023 Benefits U Conference - Register Now!

2024 Annual Life Insurance Review & Open Enrollment Opportunity

Attention University Employers!

Welcome, Zach Burns!

Phoenix Update

If there is someone else in your office who may be interested in attending the Benefits U Conference have them follow the instructions to register.