News From Federal Diary

[swsop]

As TSP Grows, Participants Get Chance to Chart Future

Account balances in the Thrift Savings Plan could grow to $200 billion by year's end, the chairman of the board that oversees the 401(k)-type plan for government employees said yesterday.

Hitting $200 billion would make the TSP twice as large as four years ago, Andrew M. Saul , the head of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, said at the board's monthly meeting. "That's really a milestone," he said

Full Story

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/16/AR2006101601067.html?referrer=email

 

[swsop]

Loftier Limits for Retirement Savers

By Stephen Barr
Friday, October 20, 2006

Federal employees will be allowed to invest up to $15,500 in their retirement savings plan in calendar year 2007, $500 more than this year's limit, the Internal Revenue Service has announced.

The elective deferral limit, which applies to 401(k) plans in the private sector as well the federal government's Thrift Savings Plan, was adjusted for inflation, as required under the tax code.

The TSP, the 401(k)-type program for government employees, allows investors to change their contribution amounts at any time. Investors can designate withholdings from their biweekly pay in either percentage or dollar amounts.

Employees covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System, though, should structure their investments so they do not hit the IRS dollar limit until the end of the year, in order to continue receiving matching government contributions. Those covered by the old Civil Service Retirement System and persons in the military do not receive matching contributions.

The IRS also announced that the "catch-up" contribution amount will remain unchanged at $5,000 in 2007.

Catch-up contributions are allowed during a calendar year for people age 50 or older who have hit the elective deferral limit or who are on a pace to do so by the end of the year. There are no matching contributions for catch-ups, which were approved by Congress in 2002 as a way to help employees who did not have an opportunity to participate in a 401(k)-type program early in their career to save more for retirement.

 

[swsop]

Thrift Savings Plan Could Use More Options, Workers Say

TIPS. Bonds. Roth 401(k) accounts.

These are among the investment options that government employees would support adding to the Thrift Savings Plan, according to a survey released yesterday.

The survey was the first since 1991 to query civil service employees, postal workers, military personnel and others in government about their satisfaction with the TSP, a 401(k)-type retirement program that has $206.6 billion in assets.


SWOP

Full Story
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email

 

[The_Technician]

Thrift Savings Plan Could Use More Options, Workers Say

TIPS. Bonds. Roth 401(k) accounts.

These are among the investment options that government employees would support adding to the Thrift Savings Plan, according to a survey released yesterday.

The survey was the first since 1991 to query civil service employees, postal workers, military personnel and others in government about their satisfaction with the TSP, a 401(k)-type retirement program that has $206.6 billion in assets.


SWOP

Full Story
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email

I personally wish we could buy currencies on a daily basis....among shorting these funds.....

 

[swsop]

Thrift Savings Plan Hopes to Engage No-Shows

For lack of a better phrase, we'll call them the TSP No-Shows.

Some members of the Thrift Savings Plan rarely or never check to see how much money is in their retirement accounts. Others have seemingly vanished because their mail is returned to the TSP as undeliverable.

SWSOP
Full Story

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email

 

[James48843]

The Washingtonpost story is good-
My favorite line from there:
----------------------------------
TSP's International Chase


Not all TSP participants are disengaged.

Last month, the TSP handled trades worth more than $1 billion in its international stock index fund, as participants tried to maximize their returns. The participants also ran up $523,123 in trading costs, far more than the costs incurred by the large and small-cap U.S. stock funds, Tracey A. Ray, the TSP chief investment officer, reported to the board.

The trading costs for the I Fund are high because the Australia and Asian stock markets close before the fund manager, Barclays Global Investors, receives the TSP buy-and-sell orders for the day. The trades are executed the following morning and in times of greater volatility, as was the case last month, the time lag can be costly.

 

[swsop]

Help Unknown to Many Parents

Child care is always at the forefront for working parents, and most government agencies have adopted policies to help parents balance the demands of work and home.

But the agencies could do a better job telling their employees about child-care programs, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Few government employees, for example, take advantage of a tax break -- the flexible spending account -- designed to ease child- and elder-care costs. Only 7 percent of the employees who responded to a government-wide survey said they had such accounts.

Twenty-six percent said they did not know whether their agencies offered dependent-care flexible spending accounts, and 8 percent said they did not know how to use such accounts.

swsop

Full Story.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email

 

[ChemEng]

Child care is FSA-able? Can anyone verify this?

 

[Show-me]

Child care is FSA-able? Can anyone verify this?

USPS yes, but it may depend on Agency.

 

[Show-me]

The Dependent Care FSA can be used to cover eligible dependent care (day care) expenses for your qualified dependents you have because you (and your spouse, if you are married) are working. It does not cover your dependents’ health care expenses. For complete information on eligible and ineligible expenses, qualified families, and qualified dependents, refer to IRS Publication 503, Child & Dependent Care Expenses. The information in this section is based on 2005 tax information.

 

[Hobie14T]

Dependent care up to $5000. www.FSAFEDS.gov

 

[ChemEng]

Ok... Ive been waiting to get onto the Feds FSA until they introduce the debit card method of drawing from the account instead of the reimbursement.

Has this started yet? If not, how is the reimbursement process?

Looks like my situation is going to be changing in the near future so that plan may need to change...

 

[Hobie14T]

I have BCBS for health care with the paperless reimbursement option and the funds are transfered into my checking account. For the dependent care I fill out a simple for and fax it to them. Takes about five days to see the money, no problems so far. I am not sure about the debit card.

 

[swsop]

OPM Suggests Retirement Reforms


From Federal Diary

Instead of a leap into retirement, federal employees may be given the opportunity to take a slow walk into the golden years.

The idea of phasing in retirement is a key feature in proposals recently sent to Congress by the Office of Personnel Management, which is concerned that federal agencies will need to hold on to their baby boomers if they are unable to attract skilled replacements in an increasingly competitive labor market.
Current rules, rooted in law, make it difficult for federal employees to switch to part-time work and offer little financial incentive for a retiree to come back to the government to work on a short-term project or serve as a mentor.

Projections show that about 60 percent of federal workers will be eligible for retirement over the next 10 years, and while officials do not expect them to leave all at once, they are worried that federal programs could be at risk if agencies fall behind in hiring replacements.

Most agencies have stepped up their recruitment efforts, but some officials are concerned that Uncle Sam will not be able to counter job offers made by corporations and nonprofit organizations. Some surveys also suggest that many young people are not interested in a federal career or would be interested in public service for only a part of their career.

To address some of these concerns, Linda M. Springer, director of the OPM, has sent proposals to Congress that would:

Full Story http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email
Swsop

 

[swsop]

Thrift Savings Plan Looks Good at 20

By Stephen Barr
Monday, August 6, 2007; Page D01

The Thrift Savings Plan is celebrating its 20th birthday this year, and the numbers for the 401(k)-type plan are looking pretty good.

Government workers add more than $1.6 billion each month, and have pumped up plan assets to $224 billion. Overhead and administrative expenses have been kept low, about 30 cents for each $1,000 invested.

And the outlook for federal employees nearing retirement seems promising.

Full Story

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...1213.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter

 

[rokid]

"Those in their late 50s, with 10 to 20 years in the workforce, have averaged nearly $115,000 in their accounts." - Stephen Barr

A $115K TSP balance will generate $4,600 in taxable income ("rule of thumb" 4% per year withdrawal rate). Nice to have, but a little shaky for one leg of a three legged retirement stool.

I'd say for the average government employee, in their late 50s and nearing retirement, TSP has been a failure. However, it has saved Uncle Sam some money and helped shore up Social Security.