FAQs

Are my contributions to the PCRA used to fund the PCRA’s budget?

No. The contributions that the PCRA receives are not used to fund the PCRA, but to partially pay for your future monthly retirement. The PCRA’s budget and expenses are funded through the PCRA’s investment income.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Can I borrow against my PCRA account or take a loan from it?

No. You are not allowed to borrow against or take a loan from your PCRA account. The only time you are eligible to access your funds is if you end your employment and wish to take a refund or roll your funds over into another qualified plan. Please keep in mind that if you take a refund or roll your funds to another qualified plan, you are giving up any future retirement benefits from the PCRA. 

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Can I collect worker’s compensation and a retirement at the same time?

If you are collecting a superannuation retirement, you can collect both at the same time without any offset to your retirement or worker’s compensation. However, if you are collecting a disability retirement, the pension portion of your disability retirement is reduced by the monthly amount of your worker’s compensation. If you retire under a superannuation retirement, then later get approved for disability retirement, your disability benefits are retroactively offset back to your disability date of retirement.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Can I contribute more to my account to increase my retirement?

No. Your retirement is solely determined by your age, how many years of creditable service you have and your salary average. If you are interested in contributing more money towards retirement, check with your local HR Department and see if they have a deferred compensation plan that you can contribute to in addition to your PCRA plan.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Can I split the monthly benefits that I receive each month and have some go into two different accounts?

Yes. You can split your monthly benefits into no more than two different accounts. In order to do so, you would simply need to complete two Direct Deposit Authorization Forms and indicate on one of them specifically how much you would like to be deposited into that account. The rest of your benefits would then be deposited into your other account.

Category: Retirees
Can my ex-spouse begin to receive the benefits that are due to him/her, as detailed in our Domestic Relations Order (DRO), while I am still working?

No. The Domestic Relations Order (DRO) will establish a formula for calculating how much of your future retirement allowance will be divided. A calculation and distribution of any funds to an ex-spouse will only take place when the member of the PCRA applies, then receives, benefits themselves. This is whether the member is taking a retirement or taking a refund.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Do I need to have a Domestic Relations Order as part of my divorce?

Not necessarily. If your retirement allowance (or future retirement allowance) is to be divided between you and your ex-spouse, you will need a Domestic Relations Order (DRO). Otherwise, a DRO is not needed if your current or future PCRA retirement will not be divided. As with all divorce matters, you should discuss this matter as well as all others with your legal counsel.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Does contributing to an additional deferred compensation plan affect the benefits that I will receive from the PCRA?

No. A deferred compensation plan is a strictly optional plan to save more for your future retirement and will not affect your retirement benefits from the PCRA.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Does my retirement account accumulate interest as an active member?

Your account accumulates interest on an yearly basis. The interest is determined annually by the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission and is done so in consultation with the Commissioner of Banks and shall be obtained from the average rates paid on individual savings accounts by a sample of no less than 10 financial institutions.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
How far in advance do I need to submit my retirement application to the PCRA?

There is only one rule in regards to submitting your future retirement application. You are not allowed to submit an application more than 120 days before your intended date of retirement. Otherwise, you may submit your retirement application in person or by mail anytime within the 120 day time period. 

Category: Apply for Retirement
I am a disability retiree. Can I work post-retirement?

You can work if you are on a disability retirement, however there are restrictions to how much you can earn and how many hours* you can work in a calendar year. 

You cannot make more than the difference between the salary you would be earning if you were still working, plus an additional $15,000, and the retirement you are collecting.  For example: If you would be making $50,000.00 if you never retired to begin with, add the additional $15,000.00 to it to get $65,000.00 then you would subtract the retirement you are collecting from it, for example $40,000.00, to get the dollar amount you are allowed to earn in a calendar year, in this example, $25,000.00. ($50,000.00 + 15,000.00 = $65,000.00 - $40,000 = $25,000.00). 

*If your post-retirement work is in the public sector, then you are limited to 1,200 hours per calendar year between all public sector employments if you are working for more than one public employer. 

Once you reach the dollar amount or the 1,200 hours, if applicable, you will need to stop working for the rest of that calendar year, otherwise you will be considered an over-earner and have to pay money back to the PCRA.

Category: Disabilities
I am a retiree, why do I not receive a direct deposit statement every month?

Direct deposit statements are only mailed out if the amount of the deposit changes from the previous month. This typically occurs when your insurance rates change, you get a COLA or if the IRS tax tables are adjusted.

Category: Retirees
I am an inactive member. Can I set my date of retirement back to when I initially stopped working?

It depends how long you have been an inactive member. If you submit your application more than 60 days after you separate from service, your retirement date will be 15 days from the date the PCRA receives your application. If you submit your application within the 60 days, you can set your date of retirement to a previous date. 

Category: Active/Inactive Members
I am collecting Social Security. Does this reduce my unemployment, if I’m deemed eligible, or does my unemployment reduce my Social Security?

No. Social Security will not reduce your unemployment and unemployment will not reduce your Social Security benefits.

Category: Retirees
I am now receiving my retirement from the PCRA. Will my PCRA retirement be reduced if I collect unemployment?

No. You will always receive your full retirement from the PCRA. However, if you qualify for unemployment, your unemployment may be reduced because of your retirement.

Category: Retirees
I am thinking about taking a public service job outside of the PCRA. What happens to my service time and funds?

The PCRA is one of the total of 104 retirement systems in the Commonwealth. If you elect to take a job that is covered by a retirement board other than the PCRA, your service time and funds will be transferred to your new retirement system.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
I understand as a public employee that I do not pay into Social Security, but why do I have to pay into Medicare?

If you were hired on or after April 1, 1986, you are required to pay the 1.45% Medicare tax. While this does not earn you any Social Security credits, it does entitle you to Medicare coverage at 65

Category: Active/Inactive Members
I was laid off because of COVID-19 and I decided to retire. Does that mean that I do not qualify for unemployment?

No. You are not solely disqualified from being eligible for unemployment simply because you are receiving a retirement from the PCRA.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
I was working a part-time job for my municipality when I got laid off. Did working part-time exclude me from being eligible for unemployment?

No. You may still be eligible for unemployment benefits. Eligibility for unemployment is determined mainly by wages, not hours.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
Is my future PCRA retirement taxable?

Your retirement will always be taxable on the federal level, but if you live in Massachusetts, your retirement will not be taxed on the state level. If you are planning to move out of state, you should check with that state’s Department of Revenue to inquire about the taxability of your PCRA pension. 

Category: Retirees
Is the health insurance from my monthly benefits withheld on a pre-tax or after-tax basis?

As an active member, your health insurance premiums were withheld by your employer on a pre-tax basis. As a retiree, the IRS requires that a retiree’s insurance premium be withheld on an after-tax basis.

Category: Retirees
What are the benefits of Section 34 and Section 35 worker’s compensation?

Section 34 worker’s compensation benefits are 60% of your gross (pre-tax, pre-benefits) average weekly salary. The maximum that you can receive is the State’s Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) at the time of your injury. Section 35 worker’s compensation benefits provides a maximum compensation up to 75% of what your weekly total temporary benefits would be.

Category: Active/Inactive Members
What does the amount in the Employee contributions/Designated\Roth contributions or insurance premiums (box 5) represent on my Form 1099-R?

This amount is your non-taxable amount for that tax year as calculated by the Simplified General Rule or Method. It is the difference between your Gross Distribution (box 1) and your Taxable Amount (box 2a). This amount will be the same every year after the first year you collect 12 months of retirement payments.

Category: Retirees
What happens to my contributions if I do not complete ten years of service to become vested and eligible for a retirement benefit?

Your contributions are yours and you will never lose them. If, at the time you end your employment you find yourself not eligible for a future retirement, you can take a refund of your funds or roll them over into another qualified plan. 

Category: Active/Inactive Members
What is a Domestic Relations Order?

A Domestic Relations Order, otherwise known as a DRO, is a judgment, decree or order (including approval of a property settlement agreement) that sets out how a person’s retirement benefits are to be allocated between parties who are in the process of divorcing or who are already divorced. It may dictate what option you take, who the beneficiary is and so forth.

Category: Active/Inactive Members

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