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Retirement Counseling

EconSys can provide your agency with on-site expert retirement counselors to furnish individual counseling to employees who are preparing for retirement. Our counselors have extensive hands-on experience with work at Federal agencies including the General Accounting Office, Department of Education, Department of Treasury, EPA, National Archives & Records Administration, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the OPM FERCCA project. We have worked with agencies in computing thousands of annuity estimates for employees who are applying for immediate retirement as well as for those not ready to retire immediately.

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Retirement Seminars

Our team of counselors specializes in delivering early mid-career, mid-career, and pre-retirement seminars on the topics that are crucial to retirement planning and making financial decisions. Our presenters can effectively convey the key points and field questions on a wide range of topics that cover basic retirement eligibility and benefits as well as the financial aspects of retirement. For many years, EconSys’ retirement counselors have been engaged to present numerous retirement seminars ranging from half-day employee briefings to two-day seminars for agency retirement specialists. Attendees always receive concise, clearly written materials. Our clients include FDIC, the U.S. Postal Service, Department of Defense, Department of Education, Department of Commerce, the Office of Thrift Supervision, and Immigration and Naturalization Service. Topics available include:

• Retirement Eligibility
• Creditable Service
• FERS & CSRS Annuities
• Deposits & Redeposits
• Survivors’ Benefits
• Social Security
• Thrift Savings Plan
• Health & Life Insurance
• Taxation of Federal Annuities
• Financial Planning and Investment Considerations
• Application Process
• Retirement Processing and Time Frames

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FERCCA – Training and Counseling

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Web Help Desk and Call Center

EconSys subject matter experts will respond to questions that may pertain to FRB user interface, understanding reports, and understanding applicable rules and regulations. Employee access to FRB Web facilitates self-service, but employees may still have questions and require some assistance. EconSys RSC specialists are available to support or supplement agency HR resources in this regard. The RSC is also equipped to handle inquiries directly from employees without agency intervention or sponsorship if such employees are prepared to pay for the service out of their own funds. The EconSys subject matter expert reviews the employee’s question and case and prepares an appropriate response. As part of the response, the subject matter expert may run and save new scenarios in FRB or change certain inputs. There may be follow-up questions and answers via email or telephone as well.

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Military Retirement Benefit Calculator

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Forms

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) requires that Agencies submit certain forms to support its Federal retirement and benefits processing. FRB Web Integrated Solution includes an automated forms package, iForms, to assist the Federal human resources community in preparing these forms. Data entered in iForms can be saved in the software’s database, if the user needs to access this data or print the forms at a later time. The iForms package has the following 52 forms:

CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM (CSRS)

•      Application for Immediate Retirement
        (SF 2801, and Schedules A, B, and C)
•      Certified Summary of Federal Service (SF 2801-1)
•      Spouse’s Consent to Survivor Election (SF 2801-2)
•      Election of Former Spouse Survivor Annuity or Combination         Current/Former Spouse
•      Annuity (SF 2801-3)
•      Agency Checklist of Retirement Procedures (SF 2801, Schedule D)
•      Application for Refund of Retirement Deductions (SF 2802)
•      Current/Former Spouse’s Notification of Application for Refund of         Retirement Deductions (SF 2802B)
•      Application to Make Deposit or Redeposit (SF 2803)
•      Application for Death Benefits (SF 2800)
•      Documentation and Elections in Support of Application for Death         Benefits (SF 2800A)
•      Designation of Beneficiary (SF 2808)

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM (FERS)

•      Application for Immediate Retirement
        (SF 3107, and Schedules A, B, and C)
•      Certified Summary of Federal Service (SF 3107-1)
•      Spouse’s Consent to Survivor Election (SF 3107-2)
•      Agency Checklist of Retirement Procedures (SF 3107, Schedule D)
•      Designation of Beneficiary (SF 3102)
•      Application for Death Benefits (SF 3104)
•      Documentation and Elections in Support of Application for Death         Benefits (SF 3104B)
•      Application for Refund (SF 3106)
•      Current/Former Spouse’s Notification of Application for Refund of         Retirement Deductions (SF 3106A)
•      Application to Make Deposit or Redeposit (SF 3108)
•      FERS Election Coverage (SF 3109)
•       CSRS & FERS (Documentation in Support of Disability Retirement –         SF 3112 Package)
•      Applicant’s Statement of Disability (SF 3112A)
•      Supervisor’s Statement (SF 3112B)
•      Physician’s Statement (SF 3112C)
•      Agency Certification of Reassignment and Accommodation Efforts (SF         3112D)
•      Disability Retirement Application Checklist (SF 3112E)

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS

•      Employee Health Benefits Election Form (SF 2809)
•      Notice of Change in Health Benefits Enrollment (SF 2810)

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES GROUP LIFE INSURANCE

•      Claim for Death Benefits (FE 6)
•      Settlement of Claim; Option C – Family Life Insurance (FE 6, DEP)
•      Claim for Dismemberment Benefits (FE 7)
•      Life Insurance Election (SF 2817)
•      Continuation of Life Insurance Coverage (SF 2818)
•      Notice of Conversion Privilege (SF 2819)
•      Agency Certification of Insurance Status (SF 2821)
•      Designation of Beneficiary (SF 2823)
•      Assignment Election (RI 76-10)

THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN (TSP)

•      Thrift Savings Plan Election Form (TSP-1)
•      TSP Election Form (Catch-up Contributions) (TSP-1C)
•      Designation of Beneficiary (TSP-3)

OTHER

•      Certification of Agency Offer of Position and Required Documentation        (OPM 1510)
•      Military Service Deposit Election (OPM 1515)
•      Estimated Earnings During Military Service (RI 20-97)
•      Request for Preliminary Employment Data (SF 75)
•      Verification of a Military Retiree’s Service in Nonwartime Campaigns        or Expeditions (SF 813)

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Seminars for HR Specialists

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On-Line Tutorials for Employees

It is very important that employees understand their benefits and entitlements in retirement. Many of us believe that the “system” will take care of us and that there is really no need to think about the issues.

We do not take the time to read our personnel documents, to understand the action, or to ensure that the information is correct. This is especially true when it comes to retirement. We all look forward to it, talk about it, dream about it...but many of us do not take the time to plan and study the full scope of our Federal retirement program.

This course was prepared with the employee in mind. It gives the basic information employees need to reach retirement goals and to make decisions based on knowledge, not guesswork.

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On-Line Tutorials for Military Members

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Benefit Administration On-Site and Off-Site

EconSys benefit specialists will provide benefits administration services either on-site or off-site at our Benefit Services Center in Falls Church, Virginia. Staff will be deployed to client locations to extract information from OPFs, provide in-person counseling to employees as the need arises, and coordinate with client management on the performance of the work.

Our Benefit Services Center offers a Benefit Web Help Desk and Call Center to efficiently and effectively deliver services to employees and is particularly instrumental in accommodating cyclical swings in the workload such as might occur during open seasons on benefit options.

The Federal Retirement Benefits (FRB) Web calculator developed by EconSys provides an integrated solution for benefits calculations and form filling for both specialists and employees. Additional features include:

1. HR specialists and employees have access to the same data, calculation engine, and “what-if” scenarios. The software facilitates email communication links between specialists and employees.
2. Specialists and employees have different interface screens, reflecting their respective level of access and availability of data for editing.
3. The web-based application minimizes hardware and software requirements for local users. FRB Web is a central hosting and database system. All that is required is a Web browser.
4. The retirement calculator in FRB Web handles voluntary, early, and disability retirement benefits; part-time and intermittent service; deposits and redeposits owed; death-in-service benefits to survivors; Social Security/FERS supplement benefits; Thrift Savings Plan benefits; survivor benefits; and severance pay.
5. FRB Web contains 52 CSRS, FERS, FERCCA, and other government forms for electronic form filling, data storage, and case management.
6. Employees can fill out forms electronically in remote locations, and the data flows automatically to the central database.
7. Service and salary history information flows from the retirement calculator to retirement forms without additional key entry.
8. Data in the central database is updated on a periodic basis from payroll/personnel system (e.g., bi-weekly).
9. The service history input module in FRB Web mirrors the SF 2801-1 and SF 3701-1 forms and enables the calculator to generate accurate estimates once this service history has been entered.

At our Benefit Services Center, subject matter experts respond to questions on individual cases and provide counseling to employees in remote locations. This service is provided through the Internet medium and through the call center’s capability as well. Our software has the capability to produce benefit reports in PDF format such that they can be readily sent as attachments to email to employees.

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