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Return to Article: The Check Isn't in the Mail

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  Retired jan 2008, interim payments were 500.00 more than I figured, I received them for 11 months. I figured it was maybe 200.00 a month higher than I would eventually receive, so I was expecting to pay back a lump sum of 2000.00 or so. WRONG. After I received my statement indicating my COLA and 2009 monthly rate, I got a notice stating that my correct amount should have been, and will now be, 1350.00 a month (no matter which formula I used- I.m FERS-i calculated 1500.00 a month. So since I was so overpaid, I owed over 7,000! I could file papers to challenge and/or arrange for alternative solutions. I had until April 1st to file this. I did send in documentation in the middle of March 2009. The reduction to 1350. a month started March 1, as well as 200.00 a month repayment of the 7 grand. So my annuity was reduced 50 per cent, to 1150. a month, without considering my appeal. When I finally got thru on the phone, after many emails, I was eventually handed off to an impatient, nasty ole post- retirement TRAINEE who demanded my phone number and she would call me back. Of course I have heard nothing since then (middle of April). I am disputing the FERS retirement calculation for someone under the age of sixty but eligible for a voluntary early retirement (that's me). Every handbook I was sent, every page in the handbooks on the internet I researched said I was classified as a voluntary early retirement. Finally, I recently looked at the Handbook the personnel use at OPM (you can see it on the OPM webpage), and it states "eligible for an UNREDUCED, voluntary retirement" (You know, the 5% per year reduction for each year under the age of 62) Well, I am 58. Has no one else noticed this MISTAKE in every official publication? So this whole thing is really undoing me, BIG TIME.

  sherry morrish Posted May 24, 2009 2:12 AM
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  how long it take for the ss suplement check to show up in y bank???????????from OPM. I retired on February 28 I did not get any money from OPM yet, phone number listed = 25 minutes waiting time, finally answer I dont know

  Myriam Posted April 4, 2009 12:22 AM
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  I retired from Federal Service under CSRS and received a leave payout. Since I was returning to work as a re-employed annuitant I had to pay the pay out back. In questioning the amount to pay back I received a determination from DFAS to not pay back the taxes portion of the pay out. I sent in my check and over three weeks later DFAS cashed it. Since I did not receive the tax amount in the pay out check, why pay it back. Three months later I receive the warning notice that I owe them the amount of the taxes, they paid tothe US Government on the pay out. I anticipate a long battle but before starting it thought others might have experienced the same situation with some resolution. Adivce is welcome

  Teri Dempsey Posted March 19, 2009 5:09 PM
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  I retired Dec 31, 2008. It has been nothing short of a nightmare. My first interim payment was 58.00. The OPM could care less and has been extremly rude. The numbers that you have listed and that they gave me are a waste of time. They don't answer or call you back. I called my union and they gave me a number that worked. Two of the three people I have talked to were very rude and told me they could not help me my paperwork was not even with a retirement specialist. One man did try to help me, amazingly he had access to my paperwork. I guess I will find out if he did any good next month. So here is a number that works to OPM 724-794-2005. Good luck, Debbie

  Debbie Posted February 23, 2009 10:19 AM
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  My last day in agency was 1/2/2009 I received an interim annuity payment on Feb 2nd and received a letter from OPM shortly after that I would begin receiving my full payments on March 2d. I received my AL payout with my last agency check. I had zero problems with OPM.

  norm Posted February 22, 2009 2:30 PM
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  This is how you can carry 568 A/L hours into retirement: 240 hrs. A/L + an extra 120 A/L hrs. your allowed to accumlate while working overseas (as long as you do not go below the 360 hrs you can keep it, which I did) + my 208 A/L hrs. for my last year before retirement = 568 A/L hrs. And no I was not SES, far from it. As I stated before OPM handled my retirement very well and I did my homework before signing the paperwork.

  B. R. J. Posted February 3, 2009 4:22 AM
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  Ms Tammy

  I need assistance with two problems that occurred when my retirement papers were processed from VA Medical Center - Atlanta GA.

  1. On 1/2/09, I retired from the VA Medical Center (34.3yrs) and US Army (3yrs) for a total of 37.3 years of service under CSRS. I have received lump sum payment for 335.5 hours of annual leave based on the 2008 hourly pay rate of $38.92. My hourly pay rate is $40.48 for 2009 but HR had refused to adjust the lump sum payment to cover the 2009 rate. HR stated that new hourly rate started on 1/4/09 after my retirement was effective. On Federalnewsradio.com you stated that employees should paid the 2009 hourly rate for lump sum leave.

  What is OPM rule on pay out of unused annul leave at retirement?

  2. In the past years, I was paid a cash award pay by mid December. For example, I received excellent rate and award pay for FY 2007 performance rating with an effective date of 12-7-07.

  I received an outstanding performance rating for FY2008. The rating starting 10/1/07 and ending 9/30/08 but VA Medical Center had refused to pay me cash award pay. As of 2-2-09 HR is not commenting on my cash awards pay.

  What is OPM rule on cash awards and bonus pay?

  What can be done resolve these retirement issue?

  Russell Davis Thanks

  Russell Davis Posted February 2, 2009 9:06 PM
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  You can go way over 240 hours of accrued leave by workin' overseas.

  kmp

  kmp Posted February 2, 2009 6:35 PM
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  Jim Chern wants to know how someone can carry over 568 hours of AL. It's easy.

  1. If you know you're going to retire at the end of the year and you already have 248 rolled over, you can add the 209 that you accrue for your final year and get 457.

  2. If you're SES, you're allowed to carry over more than 248 hours.

  3. If you're involved in a BRAC or RIF situation, you're allowed to carry over more than 248 hours.

  If you're allowed to carry over more than 248 hours in those situations, and don't use any AL in your last year, you are paid for all of the unused hours.

  Most likely, he was SES.

  Michelle Posted February 2, 2009 11:12 AM
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  In the article. One person claimed that "I received" my lump sum for 568 hours annual leave in my last regular paycheck." How is it possible for a person to have 568 hours of AL. When one can only carry over 240 hrs. and the most on can accrue is 208 hrs. (8 hr. x 26 pay periods)?

  Jim Chern Posted January 31, 2009 4:55 PM
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  Went out 03Jan08 and, like verybody else I know or have talked to who went out +/- 30 days from that date, went through a lot of stress until I finally started receiving my full monthly in May08. Once you're retirement -50 is approved by ABC-C at Ft. Riley, you go into limbo for months until OPM gets your packet from DFAS (the first time) and they generate your CSA number and site access and send it back to DFAS (the second time) for them to figure out the money and start payments. The problems are no accountability between stops and that DFAS is so overwhelmed (or just doesn't care?) handling both military and civilian retirements. My Army Reserve-based retirement is also paid thru/by DFAS, which was supposed to start on/about my 60th birthday Oct08, and has been an even bigger Charlie Foxtrot which will become even more complicated now that I've been approved for CSRS; I average one RAS weekly, none of which make any sense even to some ex-Dfas folks I've consulted - plus I've had to PAY BACK monies for a supposed overpayment on my first partial (15 days) pay from October. OPM has put in some work-arounds on the civilian side, but........If I hadn't received the pre-tax $25K on VSIP plus (CSRS) 432hrs of Annual Leave pay-out, I would've be in deep trouble, especially where I live in Southeastern Michigan - the epicenter of the current recession -depression. The system is is broke for both DACs and military retirements, period!

  Leo Miller Posted January 31, 2009 10:57 AM
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  I retired in November 2006 with 36 years at the same agency. Everything went smoothly and I had my full payment by the third month. I was shocked the amount paid was less than I had calculated. I discovered after recieving my retirement booklet that Federal Income Tax was being withheld at the rate for a single person even though I had sent in a W4-P with my retirement application. This is what had made the difference in the monthly payment. This was easy to correct online and I established payments for state income tax at the same time. A co-worker of mine had retired a year previous to me and didn't know he had to establish monthly payments for state income tax. When he filed his return he not only had to pay his taxes but also a substantial penalty for not withholding throughout the year.

  Albert Posted January 30, 2009 9:19 PM
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  I retired September 1, 2008 and have had only one glitch. Despite filling out two separate W4 tax withholding forms, one for Federal and one for state, OPM only withheld tax for Federal. Eventually they sent a letter that said that state tax was not withheld because I had not submitted an exact dollar amount. I called their toll free number and gave them an exact amount. They have gotten it right since then.

  Larry Penner Posted January 30, 2009 4:52 PM
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  I retired on disability in May 2008. I am still on interim payments. When I called OPM to talk to someone the person that answered said that I had not even been assigned to a caseworker yet. After 9 months, I am still waiting to get off the interim payments.

  Ann Friesner Posted January 30, 2009 3:40 PM
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  To retfed: Your lump sum is should not be counted as earnings. If you keep you last pay stub to show leave and earnings. It took several phone calls and three appointments, but I finally got someone to realize it was not earnings. SSA wanted over $4,000 in socalled overpayments from me. Of course, it took them over 18 months to get to the socalled overpayment. By that time my pay records were not readily available. I finally got a reasonable person to accept my pay stub as proof of the lump sum being leave. Keep the last pay stub and be persistent.

  Former DCAA Employee Posted January 30, 2009 3:18 PM
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  Look OPM is busy so if it takes awhile to get answers or your money you'll just have to tough it out. The taxpayers have to deal with this every day so when the shoe is on the other foot too many CS get upset

  dan ketter Posted January 30, 2009 3:03 PM
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  To "retfed": Earnings for the Annual Earnings Test are counted when "earned" not when "paid". So, if you quit work and then started Soc Sec, your lump sum annual leave payment likely wouldn't count against the work test for Social Security.

  Steve Posted January 30, 2009 1:40 PM
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  The effective date of a disability retirement is the day following the employee's last date in pay status. Thus, if the employee goes on LWOP following the exhaustion of all paid leave, the disability annuity will start the day following the last day of paid leave. This probably accounts for the earlier effective date than what the retiree was expecting.

  lscanlan Posted January 30, 2009 11:07 AM
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  Retfed... the lump sum annual leave check is considered a "special payment" and will not be counted against the Social Security earnings limit. Please contact Social Security and you may also need to contact your payroll office so that they can submit a form to SSA to confirm this special payment. Best wishes on your recent retirement!

  Tammy Flanagan Posted January 30, 2009 10:56 AM
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  please explain to me how a federal retiree can accumulate 568 hours of annual leave (and be paid for it) when you can only carry over 240 hours from the preceding year?

  elsie h samuels Posted January 30, 2009 10:54 AM
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  I retired from TSA on May 31, 2008. About a month later I got the letter from OPM saying I had been placed in interim status. So far, so good. Now, however, I have been receiving interim payments for 7 months, and I'm beginning to wonder if my account will EVER be finalized! Several email requests for the status of my account have been ignored. Before I retired, I followed all the good advice given by the other people here, and it didn't seem to help me. It's just like everything else in life - sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. Be sure to have a backup plan in case you are, like me, one of the losers.

  Chuck Avery Posted January 30, 2009 10:49 AM
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  I retired 11-29-08, I had not problems with pay issues. I received my lump sum annual leave check along with my last regular pay check. In 30 days I received my first interim retirement check. I worked under CSRS for 42 years. I have no compaints thanks to my agency who provided all the necessary paperwork to OPM in a timely manner. Thanks CSOSA & OPM.

  Geneva Queen Posted January 30, 2009 10:14 AM
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  I work for a geographically separated unit and the military installation where I am located will not assist me in answering retirement planning/questions. I am directed to a DoD web site. Not all questions can be answered by visiting a web site. There have been no seminars, etc. put on by the installation in several years. Our only option is to pay to attend a retirement seminar put on by a private company. Talk about being treated like a red-headed step child. In general, there are far too many in my office who just don't understand the basics of their own retirement system. In some cases I fault the individual for being lazy, but in others it is a fact the retirement system phamphlets, etc. is at times difficult to understand for some. That is why we do need a real live expert to rely on not just a pamphlet. Our own employer (federal government) is coming up short in this area for the sake of saving money.

  Mike Posted January 30, 2009 10:12 AM
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  Under Fers, you receive an annuity supplement if you retire before age 62. You can not go by "your social security statement" (from SSA) to give you an idea of how much that part of your annunity will be..OPM has their own way to figure that and in my case with 34 years service I receive about 1/2 of what my SSA statement said I would get. I believe this amount will also be cut,this year, when I state my "lumpsum" annual leave check was more than I am allowed to make for the year ($13,560 for 2008)..so I will end up paying back $1 for every $2 that I went over the limit.

  retfed Posted January 30, 2009 10:08 AM
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  My agency told me "never married/childless employees who didn't change retirement systems get processed the quickest." Mine was settled to include interim AND final, within 30 days.

  JJ Posted January 30, 2009 10:04 AM
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  It's easy to tell CSRS employees that they should plan in advance when to retire. But what about us poor FERS retirees who have no idea when we can actually afford to retire? With the C fund on life support, and the G fund returning practically nothing, how can we plan for a future retirement, when we don't even know how much we'll have in 5 - 6 years?

  Ginny Kinslow Posted January 30, 2009 9:27 AM
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  I retired in 2007. OPM never missed a beat. Stupid article.

  Mark Posted January 30, 2009 9:20 AM
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  These are absolutely the best and most informative articles on Gov Exec. Thanks and keep up the good work!

  abc Posted January 30, 2009 8:59 AM
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  I retired from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on August 2, 2008. The ATF Human Resources office did an exceptional job in assisting me with the retirement process and I am sure that contributed to how smooth everything went. However, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with OPM. Within the first month, I received my retirement pamphlet, the lump sum payment, and the interim annuity check was electronically deposited September 1. By October 1, the final annuity had been calculated and the checks have been coming since. OPM has also been extremely helpful on the occasions I've had to contact them and the OPM retirement website is also a very useful tool. And maybe choosing a retirement date of August helped, too. This was a job well done by both ATF and OPM.

  Cheryl Edgett Posted January 30, 2009 8:08 AM
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  Am I only allowed to accumulate my annual leave over the 240 the year before I retire?

  LaVerne Branch Posted January 30, 2009 7:45 AM
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  One commentor said people should go to multiple retirement classes in the last 5-years of service. Everyone should go retirement planning at least three times. First, within 5-years of entering civil service because some of the early advice, such as understanding the TSP investment options, require a long lead time. Again about ten-years before retirement to for the financial advice and catch up on any changes in retirement programs, then again within 3-5 years of retirement to make sure they understand what they need to do for an easy transition. They also need to check their personnel file whenever they change agencies or make a significant life change (marriage, divorce, kids, - beneficiaries etc.) to ensure the records are correct. Waiting until the last 5-years is too late to make some of the retirement decisions.

  Joe Tieger Posted January 30, 2009 6:56 AM
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  I retired in October of 2007 on a disability ( so I understand the process may take a little while longer) Anyway, I hadn't heard from OPM for at least 4 months, and that was because I called them. I had absolutely NO income from the OPM from October of 2007 until Febraury of 2008 and that was about 65% interim pay. A year later, that's right a year later I still could not get anybody at my agency or the OPM to return my phone calls. I was calling the OPM main line almost daily towards the end. I finally did get a phone call from my agency personnel specialist in September, swearing up and down that she had sent all the forms in etc etc. During one of my many conversaions with the nice people at eh OPM main number I finally found out what the holdup was. The FAA hadn't sent an insurance form over to OPM and OPM wasn't going out of thier way to get it. After a year I had enough and finally called my Congressman and explained my situation. I had the FAA on the phone with me within 2 days aplogizing for not sending the correct forms in etc etc, and I had a letter from OPM within 4 days telling me that they had all the forms they need and I would be getting my full annuity along with any makeup pay that they owed me. Well don't you know that either OPM or the FAA got the date of my retiremnet wrong. They had me retiring in July instead of October. This is significant for a couple of reasons. First off the OPM sent me a check for waaay too much money. Second of all the OPM is not calculating my annuity correctly. Instead of calculating it on 29 years and 11 months they are calculating it on 29 years and 8 months. Not a huge difference, but difference none the less. Anyway, that is my horror story. As far as getting the OPM to even acknowledge a letter that they had my retirement date wrong is still unresolved. Looks like a call to my senator may be in order.

  Rick

  Richard James White J Posted January 30, 2009 12:13 AM