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Announcements
Attention State Health Benefits Program (SHBP) members who have yet to respond to the SHBP Dependent Eligibility Verification Audit. (11/06/09)
Attention State Health Benefits Program (SHBP) members. The deadline of October 23, 2009 has passed for SHBP participants who have yet to respond to the SHBP Dependent Eligibility Verification Audit. As we await further direction from the Division of Pensions and Benefits, it is strongly recommended that if you have yet to respond, that you take advantage of this opportunity to submit the required documentation.
Please refer to the Division of Pensions and Benefits web site for the latest posted information. Please feel free to contact your campus Human Resources Benefits Office at one of the following telephone numbers if you have any questions.
Camden and Stratford |
(856) 566-6168 |
Newark |
(973) 972-5314 |
Piscataway and New Brunswick |
(732) 235-9417 |
NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan Campus Information Sessions (10/30/09)
Attention all regularly scheduled faculty and staff members working 20 hours or more per week.
The NJ State Employees' Deferred Compensation Plan (NJSEDCP) (IRS Code 457), administered by Prudential Retirement, offers the opportunity to invest for the future and to help ensure that you will enjoy a comfortable, secure retirement. If you are considering:
- Voluntary pretax contributions for the first time.
- Additional pretax contributions beyond your current voluntary 403(b) plans (Alternate Benefit program and Additional Contributions Tax Sheltered Plan (ACTS).
- An alternative to the 403(b) plans.
Through the NJSEDCP you can contribute a portion of your salary for retirement (up to annual Tax Deferral limit) on a pre-tax basis. Participation in the plan is voluntary. You make the entire contribution. There is no employer match.
You are invited to attend your Campus Information Session conducted by a Prudential Retirement Representative.
The scheduled campus sessions (from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m.) are:
Date |
Day |
Campus |
Location |
November 17 |
Tuesday |
Newark |
NJDS - B554 |
November 18 |
Wednesday |
Piscataway |
SPH 1B |
November 19 |
Thursday |
New Brunswick |
Training Room A, Third Floor |
November 20 |
Friday |
Stratford |
University Educational Center
Room 1081 |
There is no pre-registration required. A representative from Prudential Retirement and the Campus Human Resources Benefits Office will be present. Please contact one of the following campus Benefits Representatives if you have any questions.
Camden and Stratford |
Tamika Major |
(856) 566-6168 |
Newark |
Seiichi Mano |
(973) 972-5314 |
Piscataway and New Brunswick |
Lola Vickers |
(732) 235-9417 |
Our goal is to fully communicate the State’s benefits plans and options that supplement cash compensation, providing security for our employees and their families.
Open Enrollment for the State Health Benefits Program and the New Jersey State Employees' Tax Savings Program (Tax$ave 2010) (9/29/09)
This year’s State Health Benefits Program (SHBP) for eligible employees is from October 1 through October 30, 2009. There is also the NJ State Employees' Tax Savings Program (Tax$ave 2010) Open Enrollment period which is from October 1 through October 31, 2009.
Please see below the Campus Benefits Fairs Schedule. Health plan providers will be in attendance along with representatives for the Tax$ave 2010 and Commuter Tax$ave Program. Investment providers for the Alternate Benefit Program (ABP), Additional Contributions Tax Sheltered Program (ACTS) and NJ State Employees’ Deferred Compensation Plan (NJEDCP) will also be in attendance.
Date |
Time |
Campus |
Location |
October 12 |
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. |
New Brunswick |
MEB Main Lobby |
October 13 |
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. |
Newark |
NJMS – Main Lobby |
October 14 |
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. |
Piscataway |
RWJMS – Great Hall |
October 15 |
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. |
Stratford |
Academic Center Complex
- Multipurpose Room |
Fringe Benefits Management Company (FBMC) is the administrator for the Tax$ave Program’s Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). Please be reminded that participation in Tax$ave 2009 does not automatically carry-over into 2010. You must file a new Enrollment Form with FBMC during this Open Enrollment period to participate in 2010.
Please refer to the Human Resources Open Enrollment web site for detailed information.
Please contact your campus Human Resources Benefits Office at one of the following telephone numbers, if you have any questions.
Camden and Stratford |
(856) 566-6168 |
Newark |
(973) 972-5314 |
Piscataway and New Brunswick |
(732) 235-9417 |
SHBP Dependent Eligibility Verification Audit (DEVA) (7/16/09)
The Division of Pensions and Benefits has advised us that information regarding the Dependent Eligibility Verification Audit (DEVA) has been returned for some employees due to incorrect home addresses on file. These employees are being contacted by the campus Human Resources Benefits Office at their current home address and at their interoffice address and advised to contact the SHBP DEVA Service Center at (866) 641-5651 and enter the institution’s code 8642. They will be requested to provide a current home address so that the dependent audit information can be mailed to them.
Please contact your campus Human Resources Benefits Office at one of the following telephone numbers:
Camden and Stratford |
(856) 566-6168 |
Newark |
(973) 972-5314 |
Piscataway and New Brunswick |
(732) 235-9416 |
401(a) and 403(b) Loans and Withdrawal Authorization (6/12/09)
Effective January 1, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service implemented regulations that imposed additional recordkeeping requirements and fiduciary responsibilities on educational and non-profit employers that provide 403(b) tax-deferred compensation plans to their employees.
The University is required to monitor employee contributions, deferral limits and catch-up contributions, authorize hardship withdrawals, in-service withdrawal, separation withdrawals and loans (both 401(a) and 403(b) plans).
Stimulus Package Expands COBRA Benefits (6/10/09)
President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) on February 17, 2009. Former employees (identified as Assisted Eligible Individuals - AEIs) who were terminated involuntarily, e.g., laid off or fired for cause – accept for gross misconduct from September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009, will be able to request COBRA and pay a lower premium since COBRA has been very expensive - if the former employee did not request COBRA or discontinued his/her payments. If the Assisted Eligible Individual elects to receive
COBRA, they will be subsidized starting February 17, 2009 for nine months. The former employee will be subsided by 65% and only have to pay 35% of the premium costs.
Click here for detailed information.
Attention Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) and Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS) Members - New Mandatory Online Loan Application Procedure Effective November 1, 2008 (10/24/08)
The New Jersey State Division of Pensions and Benefits is implementing significant changes to pension loan application procedures for members of the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) and Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS).
1. Effective November 1, 2008, an eligible PERS or PFRS members who wishes to borrow against their pension account, must submit their loan requests online using the Pension Loan Application accessible through a personal account with the Member Benefits Online System (MBOS). MBOS is a set of Internet applications that allow registered PERS and PFRS members access to their pension account.
The Loan Application will no longer be available as a printed form or through the Division’s Web site. Paper Loan Applications that are received by mail as of November 1, 2008, will be returned to members with instructions on submitting the loan request through MBOS. The Loan Fax number, which has been phased out of use since the introduction of loans through MBOS, will be completely disabled.
2. MOS Access
The Member Benefits Online System (MBOS) is a set of Internet applications that allow registered PERS and PFRS members access to their pension account information.
MBOS provides members with the fastest, most efficient method for requesting a pension loan. Confirmation of a completed application is provided to the member on screen and by e-mail. Under normal circumstances, a loan application submitted through MBOS before the close of business (4:30 p.m.) on a Friday is processed and mailed on the following Wednesday.
Members who are already registered MBOS users currently have access to the online loan application through their MBOS account.
Members who are new to MBOS can access MBOS after they register with both the MyNewJersey Web site and MBOS. Registration is free; however, the registration process requires several steps and new users should carefully follow the MBOS Registration Instructions.
If, after following the MBOS Registration Instructions, a member still needs assistance registering for or using MBOS, they should call the MBOS Help Desk at (609) 777-0534 or send an e-mail with the subject line "MBOS E-mail" to: pensions.nj@treas.state.nj.us.
3. Exceptions to Online Loan Application
While the majority of member loan requests will require processing through MBOS, a limited number of members are not able to access the MBOS Loan Application. These member groups include:
Retirement system members who have established a security freeze on their accounts due to an instance of ID theft (these members must contact the ID Theft Coordinator to request a loan); and members shown in the loan processing system as inactive from payroll, including:
- Members who apply for a loan within 6 months of returning from a leave of absence;
- Members who apply for a loan within 6 months of transferring within the same retirement system to a new employer;
- Members whose employer was late in submitting the Report of Contributions for the quarterly posting.
Members shown as inactive from payroll may still be able to borrow, but a Certified Loan Request form must be submitted by the employer to verify the employee’s active pay status. (Employees from a late-reporting location, after certification, may only borrow amounts based on the previously posted quarter.)
A sample of the Certified Loan Request form is attached. Please do not begin using this form until the November 1, 2008, implementation date when it will be available to employers through the online Employers Pensions and Benefits Administration Manual (EPBAM).
Members should also note that limited access to a computer or a member’s reluctance to use MBOS will not be considered sufficient circumstances to allow manual loan processing.
4. Other Pension Loan Provisions (remain unchanged)
Other provisions of the pension loan program remain unchanged. These include:
Eligibility - Members must have at least three years of pension service credit posted to their retirement system account. Pension contributions and credit are posted to accounts on a quarterly basis and normally takes 45 days from the end of a quarter to be posted. For example, if a member was enrolled in the pension fund on January 1, 2006, the member would not have three years posted to the account until the posting in February 2009.
Loan Amount - Eligible members may borrow amounts between $50 up to one-half of the posted contributions or a maximum loan balance of $50,000, whichever is less. Loans are made in increments of $10.
Interest Rate - Interest is charged on the declining balance of all loans at a commercially reasonable rate set annually by the New Jersey State Treasurer. For loan applications received in 2008, the interest rate is 4.69% on the declining balance of the loan.
Administrative Fee - Chapter 92, P.L. 2007, established an administrative processing fee on all pension loans. For loan applications received in 2008, the administrative processing fee is $8.00. The administrative processing fee is not an added charge, but is taken from the requested amount of the loan to recover the actual costs of administering the pension loan program. The administrative processing fee is subject to change annually with any change announced in December and the new fee taking effect the first of January.
Five Year Repayment Rule - IRS regulations require that members who have multiple loans outstanding must repay the balance of all loans within a period not to exceed 5 years from the issuance of the first loan taken after January 1, 2004.
This means that some members who take multiple loans may be required to pay substantially higher repayment amounts, so that repayment of the full outstanding balance will not exceed 5 years from the date of the first loan.
Furthermore, under state law, loan repayments cannot exceed 25 percent of base salary. If a loan cannot be fully repaid within the five years when paid at 25 percent of base salary, the loan request may be denied or the member may be issued a loan in a smaller amount than originally requested.
Members are notified in writing if a loan repayment will significantly increase or the Division must deny a loan as the result of the minimum repayment exceeding 25 percent of the member’s base salary.
5. Additional Information
For assistance registering with or using MBOS, contact the MBOS Help Desk at (609) 777-0534 or send e-mail with the subject line "MBOS E-mail" to: pensions.nj@treas.state.nj.us
6. Attachments
Certified Loan Request
"Transforming the Delivery of Human Resources Services"
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