Did You Know? Tax Withholding Information

Withholding Certificate for Pensions or Annuity Payments (W-4P)

You may change your withholding option at any time by submitting a new W-4P to the Division. Please note, the new certificate overrides all tax withholding that is currently in place. This includes Step 4, Section C, Extra Withholding.

If you have not updated your certificate in several years, you may want to review your filing status and whether or not you chose additional withholding.

When you are appointed to receive monthly benefits, federal income tax will automatically be withheld from your benefit in accordance with your chosen tax elections filed on the W-4P form. If you do not send the Division of Retirement and Benefits a Form W-4P, the IRS requires your default withholding to be single with zero adjustments. If you choose to not have income tax withheld, you may indicate “no withholding” under Step 4(c).

Retirement benefits are taxable by the federal government upon receipt. However, a portion of your monthly benefit maybe tax excludable.

The federal government requires the tax-excludable amount be calculated based on your total contributions which have been taxed and a factor which takes into account your life expectancy. If a survivor’s benefit will be payable after your death, your spouse’s life expectancy will also be taken into account. This results in a payout of your tax-excludable contributions over your expected lifetime.

For the Visually Impaired

Visit our ADA-compliant website to read these newsbreaks online, with features for those with visual challenges.

drb.alaska.gov/news/#newsletters

For a high-contrast version of the website, click on the “eyeball” icon in the main menu bar at the top of the page. If you are visually impaired and using a screen reader, head to our website and press the TAB button.

TAB = Next, SHIFT = Back, SPACEBAR = Expand, ENTER = Select.

Reminder: Update Your Beneficiary Forms

One of the most important things you can do for your retirement benefits is keep your beneficiary forms up-to-date. It is one aspect that is constantly overlooked.

When is the last time you updated yours?

• A change in marital status
• Birth or adoption of a child
• Death of a loved one
• Beneficiary move
• Beneficiary name change

In the event of your passing, we must be able to locate your beneficiaries in order to pay them your death benefits. Correct and updated information on file can ensure this process is done in a timely manner and sent to the correct person. Without the up-to-date information on file, this may cause unwanted hardship and a delay in the processing of your benefits.

A trust or will does not take the place of a designated beneficiary form. If you update your will, you must update your beneficiary forms as well. Please note, you can name a trust as a beneficiary, but not a will. Please submit a copy of the trust along with the beneficiary form if you do decide to name a trust as a beneficiary. Any changes made to the trust after it has been accepted will not be valid unless you submit a new copy and a new beneficiary form.

Keeping up-to-date beneficiary information on all your accounts is easy to do and only takes a few minutes. Most importantly, you can feel confident that your loved ones will receive the assets you intend for them without delay.

Depending on your employer, your date of hire, and the plans in which you have elected to participate, you may be enrolled in numerous plans administered by the Division of Retirement and Benefits (Division) which may require beneficiary updates.

Update Beneficiary Forms On All Your Accounts

Where to Update Your Beneficiaries

• PERS Defined Benefit Plan (Tiers I, II, III)
• PERS Voluntary Savings Plan (Tiers I, II, III)
• TRS Defined Benefit Plan (Tiers I and II)
• Retiree Optional/Select Life Insurance
• Updates for the above plans are made by paper form, which can be found on the Division’s website at drb.alaska.gov/docs/#B.
• State of Alaska employees, do not forget to update your Designation of Beneficiary for Unpaid Compensation form.

Benefitfocus: Voluntary Benefits

• Active Members Basic/Select Life Insurance
• Voluntary Supplemental Life Insurance
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment

The previously listed plans must designate and update their beneficiaries on the Benefit Focus website at secure3-enroll.com/go/soa. After logging in, you can update your beneficiaries by clicking on the “Benefits” section. For assistance, please call (844) 939-0543.

Empower Retirement

• State of Alaska Deferred
• Compensation Plan (DCP)
• Supplemental Annuity Plan (SBS-AP)
• PERS Defined Contribution
• Retirement Plan Account (DCR)
• TRS Defined Contribution
• Retirement Plan Account (DCR)

New State and political subdivision employees must designate beneficiaries with Empower Retirement a week after their first payroll.

To review or update your beneficiaries for the plans referenced above, please log in to your account at akdrb.com. Click “Account”, choose the applicable plan, click “Account Overview”, and then click “Beneficiaries”. For assistance, please call Empower Retirement at (800) 232-0859.

Have You Recently Added a Dependent or Did You Lose a Dependent?

Active Members

In the event of a marital status change or the birth or adoption of a child:

• Notify Human Resources of your status change.
• Update your health plan dependents.
• Update your health and/or voluntary benefit elections.
• If you experience a divorce or dissolution, submit your divorce documents to the Division.
• Update all beneficiary forms as needed.

In the event of a deceased dependent:

• Notify Human Resources of your status change.
• Update your health plan dependents.
• Update your health and/or voluntary benefit elections.
• Notify the Division and submit the death certificate.
• Update all beneficiary forms as needed.

Retired Members

In the event of a marital status change or the birth or adoption of a child:

• Notify the Division of your status change.
• Update your health plan dependents.
• Update your health, dental-vision-audio, and/or long-term care benefit elections.
• If you experience a divorce or dissolution, submit your divorce documents to the Division.
• Update all beneficiary forms as needed.

In the event of a deceased dependent:

• Notify the Division and submit the death certificate.
• Update your health plan dependents.
• Update your health, life, dental-vision-audio, and/or long-term care benefit elections.
• Update all beneficiary forms as needed.

Reminder—when updating beneficiaries, keep in mind other accounts in your estate, such as life insurance plans, IRAs, and bank and brokerage accounts.

Questions?

Contact our Member Education Center toll-free at (800) 821-2251 or in Juneau at (907) 465-4460, Monday-Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Alaska Time, or email us at doa.drb.mscc@alaska.gov.

Retirees In Touch

Meet Fernando Ting

In 2011, Nancy Hummel retired from her job as a seventh-grade Social Studies teacher in Fairbanks, Alaska, after 27 years. Now, she and her husband Marc areFernando G. Ting was born and raised in the Philippines. Growing up in a tropical climate, he only saw snow in movies and tried to imagine what it would be like. Little did he know, one day he would be a world away, digging himself out of his house by the shovel load.

When Fernando’s immigrant visa came up after 19 years in May 1998, his wife and their young daughter were granted derivative status and together they arrived in Anchorage, Alaska. He can still remember his first breath of fresh Alaskan air as he stepped outside for the first time. Fernando’s first job was as a housekeeping supervisor at a local hotel. Three years later, through the Local 71 union, he got a job at the Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage as an environmental journeyman. He kept the airport spotless for more than 11 years and retired in March 2013.

In June of the same year, Fernando and his wife moved home to the Philippines to enjoy the tropical climate once again. With sufficient financial resources, Fernando was able to visit his two sisters and meet their families in Hong Kong. Luckily, his nieces spoke English, making interactions possible. They enjoyed one another’s company as well as the sights and sounds of Hong Kong.

In 2016, Fernando survived a back-to-back cardiac syncope (a sudden loss of consciousness due to decreased blood flow in the brain) while aboard an international flight. The episode led to a successful cryoablation at Providence Alaska Heart Center, which would not have been possible without his AlaskaCare medical insurance coverage.

Feeling revitalized, Fernando helped his daughter move from Anchorage, Alaska, to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2018. The two of them took turns driving on the Alcan Highway. In 2019, Fernando and his wife sold their property in the Philippines and officially moved back to the United States, this time to North Las Vegas, to be close to their daughter.

Now settled, Fernando began writing his memoir of six years spent in Saudi Arabia as an expatriate worker, entitled The Kingdom I Came to Love. The book was published in September of 2020 and won three awards: a finalist medal in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, an honorable mention certificate in the Author Shout Reader Ready Awards, and a finalist medal in the British Wishing Shelf Award.

The Tings’ COVID-19 experience was nearly catastrophic when Fernando’s wife almost died due to asthma complications. Worried, their daughter requested they move back to the Philippines to be close to family who could provide more help than she was currently able to. They did so in June 2022 and while Fernando’s wife was saddened to be away from their daughter, she found solace in participating in local church events and speaking engagements.

In their free time, Fernando’s wife enjoys sewing small items like placemats and table runners, which she gifts to friends, and Fernando has begun his next writing project titled Why Alaska?, which will tell tales of their adventures in the great state.

“The biggest benefit of retiring after diligently working for this awesome state and the dignity and freedom it gives us to live independently with its generous pension and sufficient medical coverage will be among the salient points of my forthcoming book, God willing.” Fernando says.

The Post Retirement Pension Adjustment

The automatic PRPA is payable to a Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) retiree under age 60, if retired for five years or more on or before July 1, 2024.

In addition to the above requirements, a retiree must have been receiving a benefit in the prior year (2023) to be eligible for the 2024 PRPA. Eligible recipients, who have not received pension benefits during the entire preceding calendar year, will receive a prorated PRPA.

If you meet these requirements or are age 60 to 64 on July 1, 2024, you will receive 50% (0.487%) of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) change during 2023.

Retirees aged 65 or older and all disability benefit recipients receive 75% (0.730%) of the CPI. The PRPA for survivor benefit recipients is calculated on the member’s eligibility.

The CPI for the 2024 PRPA is 0.974%.

If you do not meet any of the above criteria, you are not eligible. Due to fund conditions, the Division did not recommend an ad hoc PRPA for 2024. The ad hoc PRPA is defined in statute as, “…based on the financial condition of the retirement funds.”

Example of Monthly Statement

• This example shows a retiree who is receiving a benefit from the PERS.
• Your statement will show more than one benefit if you worked for both retirement systems or if you are also receiving a survivor’s benefit.

1. Prior PRPAs: The combined monthly amount of all PRPAs paid from the date you retired through June 30, 2024.
2. 2024 Automatic PRPA: This is effective July 1, 2024, based on the change in consumer price index (CPI).

Safeguarding Your Identity After Death

Important Notice for Retirees and Their Spouses

It is well known that taking steps to protect yourself from identity theft is important, but what is less known is that identity protection efforts need to continue after death. According to fraud prevention firm ID Analytics, nearly 2.5 million deceased Americans have had their identity used to fraudulently open credit card accounts, apply for loans, file fraudulent tax returns to obtain refunds, or to obtain other services. ID Analytics reports that roughly 2,200 families of deceased persons are deliberately targeted each day. Alaska retirees are among those targeted.

The Division of Retirement and Benefits has received an increasing number of reports from survivors of our members who have been victims of this fraud. The perpetrators troll through obituaries looking for deceased persons who have worked in Alaska government and are assumed to have been recipients of PERS or TRS benefits.

The good news is that ultimately the surviving family members are not financially responsible for any charges arising from this type of identity theft. However, the scam can create much distress to the family members while the fraud is being sorted out.

Our Promise to You

The Division guards all of our members’ and survivors’ personal information and do not release it to anyone unless a written release or other legal documents signed by the member is produced. Additionally, to protect yourself, here are a few things you need to know about our practices. The Division will not:

• Contact your survivors in the evenings or on the weekends, which is when most of the phone call scams occur.
• Delay benefits from a retirement plan due to issues with life insurance—our pension plans and life insurance plans are separate.
• Contact your survivors by phone as the initial contact. Our first contact with survivors occurs by official letter, not with a phone call, unless your family has contacted us first to report a death.
• Ask for your Social Security number or other personal information from your survivor—we already have all your information on file.
• Ask your survivor to provide their personal information over the phone. We guard the identity information of members and survivors under strict confidentiality statutes.
• Try to intimidate or threaten your survivor or family in any way. We are here to help survivors through this process.

All contacts to your survivor or family members will come through official phone calls from the Division during regular business hours. If there is any doubt on the part of your family members that they are speaking with a Division of Retirement and Benefits employee, they should terminate the call and contact the Division directly and ask to speak to the Benefits Processing Manager or other Survivor Section staff member.

What To Do if You Are Contacted

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) recommends survivors take the following steps to protect your identity after your death:

• In obituaries, list the age, but don’t include birth date, mother’s maiden name or other personal identifiers that could be useful to ID thieves. Omitting the person’s address also reduces the likelihood of a home burglary during the funeral (sadly, this does happen.)
• Using certified mail with “return receipt,” send copies of the death certificate to each credit-reporting bureau—Equifax, Experian and TransUnion—and ask them to place a “deceased alert” on the credit report. Mail certificates to banks, insurers, brokerages and credit card and mortgage companies where the deceased held accounts. If you’re closing an individual account, make sure the institution lists “Closed: Account Holder Is Deceased” as the reason. For joint accounts, remove the deceased’s name.
• Report the death to Social Security by calling (800) 772-1213. This is important, because otherwise it takes six months for Vital Statistics reports to show up in the Social Security system. This notification will stop any thief from using the deceased’s Social Security number fraudulently.
• Contact the Department of Motor Vehicles to cancel the deceased’s driver’s license to prevent duplicates from being issued to fraudsters.
• A few weeks later, check the credit report of the person at annualcreditreport.com to see if there has been any suspicious activity. Several months later, visit the website again to get another free report from a different credit-reporting bureau.

When you are finished with this Newsbreak, take this article and put it with your important papers so that your family will be prepared for any contact they may receive in the event of your death.

2024 Retiree Benefit Mailing Dates

Retiree benefits will be mailed on the following dates in 2024:

• January 25
• February 23
• March 21
• April 25
• May 23
• June 25
• July 25
• August 22
• September 25
• October 24
• November 25
• December 23

The mailing date is also the date that funds are available from your financial institution. If you would like to have your benefit directly deposited, complete the Electronic Direct Deposit Authorization for Retirees form and return it to the Alaska Division of Retirement and Benefits.

You can find the form on the Benefit Mailing Dates page.

You, Power of Attorney, and Your Benefits

What is Power of Attorney?

If you sign a power of attorney, you give another person (your agent) the right to make decisions for you and you give them the authority to carry out those decisions. You can give your agent broad powers to do almost anything you could do for yourself, known as a general power of attorney, or you can give the agent certain powers, or, a specific power of attorney.

What You Should Know

It is critically important that you trust the person you name as your agent. The authority you give as the “principal” can have a major impact on you. A person acting with a power of attorney does not have to answer to a court. There is no formal oversight of your agent regarding the decisions he or she makes on your behalf. You need to make sure your agent understands your wishes and desires.

You can choose to appoint an agent immediately or you can make the appointment effective only if you become disabled. In that case, your agent will need two affidavits from medical experts stating you are disabled and unable to make decisions before he or she can act on your behalf. You can limit the time your agent will have the power to act on your behalf or you can make the appointment “durable,” which means your agent will have powers even if you become disabled or otherwise incapacitated.

You can also state the appointment will be revoked upon your incapacity. You should clearly state on your power of attorney form what powers you want your agent to have and when and under which conditions they are or will become effective. As long as you are competent, you do have the right to revoke a power of attorney. You must revoke a power of attorney in writing. If you write a new power of attorney naming a new agent, the new power of attorney supersedes the previous one as long as the powers are the same or similar.

You can also name more than one agent to act on your behalf. If you name more than one agent, you need to make it clear whether the agents can make decisions independently or they must act jointly. Want to learn more about power of attorney or general information about filling out a power of attorney form? You can find more information about power of attorney in Alaska Legal Services Corporation’s Power of Attorney

Booklet available through the Alaska Court System’s Self-Help Center.

Power of Attorney and Your Retirement Benefits

Have you given a power of attorney to someone? If you have and you gave your agent the power to make decisions about your retirement benefits, please send a copy of the power of attorney to the Division of Retirement and Benefits at .

Glossary

• Agent:
  The person authorized to act on the behalf of the principal.
• Principal:
  The person authorizing the other person—the agent—to act on their behalf. Also known as grantor or donor (of the power).
• Power of Attorney:
  A written document through which you can give another person (your agent) the right to make decisions for you and the authority to carry the decisions out.

We Want To Hear Your Story!

We want to share your retirement story with your fellow members. Are you volunteering, traveling, involved in the community or just enjoying life? Let us know where you are living now, what you are involved in, where you were employed, and how your State of Alaska retirement has allowed you to enjoy new adventures in retirement.

Submit your stories on our Retirees in Touch page, or email your stories to .

You can also mail your stories and photos to:

Attention: Newsbreak Editor
State of Alaska Division of Retirement and Benefits
333 Willoughby Avenue
6th Floor
P.O. Box 110203
Juneau, AK 99811-0203.

Please keep your stories to 500 words or less.