A reminder that Open Enrollment began April 26th and will continue until May 21st at 5:00p.m. (MST). Rates and web application are available now.
MANDATORY ENROLLMENT - IF YOU ARE CLASSIFIED STAFF CURRENTLY ENROLLED IN A STATE MEDICAL OR DENTAL PLAN, YOU MUST TAKE ACTION DURING OPEN ENROLLMENT. IF YOU DO NOT, YOU WILL NOT HAVE COVERAGE JULY 1, 2010.
For all of the latest news and information on how to participate in open enrollment please follow this link: https://www.cu.edu/pbs/openenrollment/
FY10 Procurement Cutoff Dates
As you begin preparing to close out the current fiscal year, you may
need to obtain large-dollar goods or services with this year’s
money. Here’s what you need to do, and when you need to do it, to
assure delivery by June 30.
What – Your requisitions must be approved, and all necessary
documentation provided to the PSC. Your requisition comments
must state that the procurement needs to be received by June 30,
2010.
When – The deadline varies according to the dollar amount of the
procurement:
Friday, April 30: Last day to submit PO/SPO Requisitions for
purchases requiring formal bids. (These are purchases of
goods or services in excess of $150,000.)
Friday, May 14: Last day to submit PO/SPO Requisitions for
purchases requiring documented quotes. (These are purchases
of goods $5,000.01-$150,000 using federal funds or $10,001-
$150,000 using nonfederal funds; and purchases of services
$5,000.01-$150,000 using federal funds or $25,001-$150,000
using non-federal funds).
Friday, May 28: Last day to submit any additional PO Requisitions
that will use FY10 funds
Questions? Contact the appropriate purchasing agent for the
specific commodity.
PERA CHANGES
Colleagues,
A number of you have asked questions about a forthcoming increase in employees’ PERA contributions. The matter can be both confusing and troubling in this economy. The purpose of this communication, primarily directed to those of you who are PERA participants, is to clarify elements of the change.
What is driving this change?
On March 31, 2010, Governor Ritter signed into law SB 10-146, which his office sponsored to address a number of budget challenges for FY 2011 (beginning July 1, 2010) within state government. One aspect of the law was to shift a portion of the employer cost for PERA for one year to employees of state government, thus, requiring them to make an extra contribution of 2.5% of salary to PERA.
Who will be affected by the 2.5% PERA shift?
Approximately 5,700 CU employees are in PERA and will be affected: 4,237 classified, 789 exempt professionals (41% of all exempt professionals) and 707 faculty (11% of all faculty).
What is the difference between PERA and Optional Retirement Plans?
PERA and the optional retirement plan (ORP) at CU are very different structures. PERA is a defined benefit plan, which means the retirement benefit is set by a formula that includes age, length of service and contribution. The benefit does not change as a result of a good or bad economy. Even during these difficult times, the benefit upon retirement for an employee enrolled in PERA is assured. It may not rise as much without pay increases, but the benefit is guaranteed. CU employees in PERA do not have deductions for Social Security; PERA is an all-inclusive pension. PERA participants, with the new 2.5%, will contribute 10.5% to their retirement accounts.
The ORP is a defined contribution plan, requiring both employer and employee participation; the plan is largely self-directed by the employee through various investment choices and ORP fund sponsors. CU employees in the ORP must have Social Security deductions taken from their pay. ORP employees contribute 11.2% into their retirement plans (5% to ORP and 6.2% into Social Security). Future ORP benefits to employees are not guaranteed, because account valuation changes according to world financial markets and employees’ individual investment choices. Since 2007, when the stock market started falling, many employees in the ORP have experienced substantial losses. If these employees had invested in Dow Jones funds or Standard & Poors funds (and many of our ORP employees did), the overall loss over the three-year period has been more than twenty per cent of their retirement savings.
What is the effect of the new law if you are a PERA participant?
For one year beginning in July 2010, your pay will be reduced before taxes; the 2.5% that you will pay to PERA through payroll deduction will go directly into your personal account, so your monthly retirement savings will not be cut. PERA will continue to invest these contributions for you.
Your take-home pay, however, will be diminished each month for a year, but the effect will be less than the full 2.5% of your salary, because the PERA deduction will be taken before federal and state taxes are calculated. Here’s an example of how the calculation will work (assuming married, claiming two exemptions, but ignoring other pre-tax deductions and showing only the effect of the new PERA deduction with the additional 2.5%):
Today:
Present base monthly salary based on $40,000 = $3,333;
Less Present PERA deduction (8%) = $267;
Less Federal and state taxes on $3,333 = $285;
Take-home pay = $2,781
July 2010:
Base monthly salary of $3,333;
Less Present PERA + 2.5% (10.5%) = $350;
Less Federal and state taxes = $268;
Take-home pay = $2,715
For this example, the 2.5% increase to PERA ($83) results in a $66 decrease in monthly take-home pay.
I realize, however, that any action reducing the amount of take-home pay will require you to adjust your personal budget. Given the state of the economy, we generally are not receiving increases to our pay, while health care and other costs of living continue to rise. Conditions should improve. The State of Colorado and CU have experienced financial difficulties before and persevered.
I trust this memo has been helpful to you regarding the PERA contribution change effective this July. Should you have questions, please contact your human resources office or Payroll & Benefit Services at 303.735.6500.
Regards,
E. Jill Pollock
Senior Associate Vice President
And Chief Human Resources Officer
University of Colorado
Newly Published Articles
Congratulations to Dr. Mary Somerville whose article, "From information to learning commons: campus planning highlights," was just published in the journal New Library World. Here's the citation: Somerville, Mary M. and Naviit Brar (2010). From information to learning commons: campus planning highlights. New Library World 111 (5/6), 179-188.
www.emeraldinsight.com/10.1108/03074801011044052
Beall, Jeffrey. “Predatory” Open-Access Scholarly Publishers. The Charleston Advisor, Volume 11, Number 4, April 2010 , pp. 10-17(8)
