State Agencies Bulletin No. 1369

Subject
Supplemental Retirement Annuity (SRA) and Tax Deferred Annuity (TDA) Contribution Limits for 2015
Date Issued
December 11, 2014

Purpose

To inform agencies of OSC ‘s annual record update process and provide data entry instructions for entering SRA and TDA deductions to ensure compliance with contribution limits.

Background

Pursuant to IRS Regulations, Section 403(b):

  • The regular annual contribution amount will increase from $17,500 to $18,000 for 2015.
  • An additional deferment is available to employees age 50 and over. These employees can defer up to $6,000 in catch-up contributions in addition to their regular contribution amount for a combined total contribution limit of $24,000 in 2015.
  • An additional deferment is also available to employees who qualify for the 15-Year Rule. These employees can defer up to $3,000 in addition to their regular contribution amount for a combined contribution limit of $27,000 in 2015.

Effective Date(s)

Institution paychecks dated January 8, 2015
Administration paychecks dated January 14, 2015

Affected CUNY Employees

Employees who currently have any of the following SRA or TDA deductions:

Deduction Code   Narrative Description
403 Supplemental Ret Ann CUNY
413 NBE Tax Deferred Annuity
414 NYT Tax Deferred Annuity
417    HRC TDA
419 CUNY TDA Copeland

Affected SUNY Employees

Employees who currently have any of the following SRA or TDA deductions:

Deduction Code Narrative Description
404 Supplemental Ret Annuity Prog
408 SUNY TDA Fidelity
415 SUNY Tax Deferred Annuity

Affected Education Department, School for the Blind and School for the Deaf Employees

Deduction Code Narrative Description
432  ED TDA Copeland 

OSC Actions

In order to help prevent employees from making excess 403(b) deferrals in 2015, OSC will insert a new effective-dated row using the beginning date of the first pay period of 2015 for employees who have an active SRA or TDA deduction and whose status is Active, Paid Leave, or Leave Without Pay.

The new effective-dated row will reflect:

  • The employee’s current biweekly deferral election.
  • The regular maximum contribution amount of $18,000 for 2015 in the Goal Amount field.
  • A beginning contribution balance of zero (0) for 2015 as reflected by the blank Goal Balance field.

OSC will terminate all active SRA and TDA deductions for employees whose status is Retired, Terminated or Deceased by end dating the deduction.

Agency Actions

Agencies must review the Control-D report NBEN749 (SRA/TDA Default Goal Amount) which lists participating employees. This report will be available in Control-D on or about December 19, 2014 for Institution agencies and on or about December 26, 2014 for Administration agencies.

Agency Processing Instructions to Change Existing Deductions or Start New Deductions

If a change to the employee’s current deduction or Goal Amount for 2015 is necessary, agencies must update the General Deduction page in accordance with the instructions below.

Note:  Agencies must not begin this data entry until after December 19, 2014 for Institution agencies and December 26, 2014 for Administration agencies.

When making changes, the transactions should be entered only during the processing of the pay period when the deduction will take effect. Agencies must not insert future-dated transactions for these deduction codes.

To change the Goal Amount for employees who are eligible to make additional contributions in 2015 under the age 50 and over and/or the 15-Year Rule, the agency must insert a new effective -dated row for the applicable SRA/TDA deduction code in the employee’s General Deduction Data record. All information will roll up on the newly inserted row. The agency must override the Goal Amount to reflect the employee’s 2015 deferral limit.

To change the Deduction Amount (for employees of SUNY, Education Department, School for the Blind and School for the Deaf) or the Percent (for employees of CUNY), the agency must insert a new effective-dated row for the applicable SRA/TDA deduction in the employee’s General Deduction Data record and override the Deduction Amount/Percent to reflect the employee’s new biweekly deferral election.

To cancel the deduction, the agency must insert a new effective-dated row for the applicable SRA/TDA deduction in the employee’s General Deduction Data record and populate the Effective Date and End Date fields with the first day of the pay period.

In order to prevent employees from making excess 403(b) deferrals in 2015, agencies must not enter or change the Goal Balance Amount under any circumstances.

Questions

Questions regarding this bulletin may be e-mailed to the Workers’ Compensation mailbox.