Important Information Regarding Retirement PlansA. Your Quarterly StatementsYou will receive quarterly statements from TIAA-CREF and/or Vanguard in October. As these will be the first statements since Penn introduced the Tax-Deferred Retirement Plan (TDR) on 7/1/00, you may notice some differences. The TDR provides eligible employees with University contributions, which are determined by your age, your base salary, and the amount you choose to contribute to the plan. All eligible employees receive University Basic contributions (a percentage of your base salary based on your age) once you complete one year of service--whether you contribute to the TDR or not. Then, any amount you contribute up to 5% of your base salary (within IRS limits) receives University Matching contributions. Prior to 7/1/00, all contributions to the plan were made on a 403(b) basis. Now, however, the University Basic contributions will be made on a 401(a) basis. The addition of the 401(a) gives plan participants more flexibility because:
Before 7/1/00, all of your balances appeared under the 403(b) component; therefore, your cumulative balances before this date will remain in the 403(b). These balances and the investment experience credited to your account will not be affected by the retirement changes. As of 7/1/00, your contributions and the University Matching contributions will continue to go into the 403(b). However, you will now notice that the University Basic contributions are reported separately on your quarterly statements, as 401(a) balances. If you have any questions about the retirement plan changes or about your TIAA-CREF quarterly statement, please call the University of Pennsylvania Retirement Call Center at 1-877-PENN-RET (1-877-736-6738). If you have any questions about your Vanguard quarterly statement, please call Vanguard at 1-800-523-1188. B. Educational SessionsTIAA-CREF and Vanguard will hold educational sessions to review their quarterly retirement statements. The location for the October 2000 sessions is the Learning and Education Training Center at 3624 Market Street, Suite 1B South. Pre-registration is not required.
C. Maximum Contributions to the PlanYour combined total annual contributions to the TDR (employee contributions under the Matching component) and the Supplemental Retirement Annuity (SRA) generally cannot exceed the lesser of $10,500 or 20% of your base salary. It is your responsibility to keep track of the calculation of your maximum allowable contribution and your deductions for each calendar year. If you have questions or want a personalized calculation, please contact the University of Pennsylvania Retirement Call Center at 1-877-PENN-RET (1-877-736-6738). Note: If you receive a paycheck through the CPUP payroll and want a maximization calculation, please contact Gail Dorn at (215) 349-5435. --Division of Human Resources Almanac, Vol. 47, No. 7, October 10, 2000 |