TSP officials ask lawmakers to end open seasons
Thrift Savings Plan officials said Monday that "open seasons" are outdated and appealed to lawmakers to end the restrictive enrollment and contribution adjustment windows.
The TSP currently holds two open seasons annually, during which federal employees can join the fund and begin to receive matching contributions from their agencies or adjust the amount they are saving each pay period. The open seasons scheduled for 2004 are April 15 through June 30 and Oct. 15 through Dec. 31.
TSP Board Chairman Andrew Saul told lawmakers Monday that "the board supports eliminating open seasons because it would expand participant access to the TSP and simplify plan administration."
Saul and TSP Executive Director Gary Amelio said that open seasons were helpful when the plan was in its infancy because of the "structure" they provided. The plan no longer needs the open seasons and they are, they added, hampering federal employees from making investment decisions.
"They are no longer useful in a daily-valued plan environment," Saul said. "Indeed, they restrict the opportunity for employees to make contribution elections."
Saul said the seasons also delay agencies from matching contributions for new TSP members.
The Employee Thrift Advisory Council supported the move.
"Open seasons made sense when the FRTIB was a new agency just getting started, and lacked the administrative capability to quickly enroll participants and to implement investment elections on a real-time basis," said Council Chairman James Sauber. "Eliminating the TSP open season is perhaps the single best way to reach that 13 percent of [Federal Employee Retirement System] employees who still do not make contributions to the TSP."
Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, R-Ill., the chairman of the subcommittee that oversees the TSP, said that he was committed to helping the savings plan resolve its legislative issues.
COMMENTS
- The problems with TSP are with the people that are handling our accounts, they are idiots and unlike a private bank where if you don't like what they do you can close your accounts and change banks, in the TSP system we can't fire these people even if they need it. Which I think they they do, but oh well what can one do but keep putting the bucks in and hoping for a great retirement from what you have earned, and that didn't get ripped off by the management at TSP. GovExec.com reader Posted April 22, 2004 12:05 PM
- TSP management has a lot of nerve. None of the changes they implement are ever submitted to those of us who have our hard earned dollars at stake in the funds. Information as to the value of shares is consistently late, sometimes 4 or 5 days late. They recently issued dramatic changes to the loan regulations (down from two loans to only one, a $50.00 charge for applying, etc) and now are implying we cannot handle making our own decisions as to how to apply the funds! How much more arrogant can you get? Do they forget who they are really working for? Where their salaries are coming from? Instead of constantly criticizing federal employees as to how many loans are applied for and how we handle our own money they should come down off their pedestals in Wall Street heaven and be a lot more humble and grateful to be working where they are, and remember who they are supposed to be working for, not against. mike lee Posted March 24, 2004 9:17 AM
- Before I invest another nickel, I want to know who owns the money I put into the TSP. I recently went to a retirement seminar and I asked the question, "whose money is it" and the presenter could not tell me. Before I spend one more nickel can someone tell me who owns the money we put into TSP. Don't tell me "I think" tell me who. GovExec.com reader Posted March 5, 2004 1:41 PM
