MainePERS Employer Update

June 2024

Fiscal Year End Payroll Reporting Deadlines

Please submit your May and June payroll filings by the due dates below. Timely submission is important in preparing the actuarial valuation on which employer and employee contribution rates are calculated. If you anticipate a delay in reporting either your May or June payroll data, please contact Employer Reporting as soon as possible at 1-800-451-9800 or via email at employer@mainepers.org.

May’s Payroll Filing Due Date is: June 17th

June’s Payroll Filing Due Date is: July 15th

FY 25 Pension Contribution Rates

MainePERS publishes employer and employee contribution rate information on our website. Employer and member contribution rates for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2024 and ends June 30, 2025, are now available on the Employer Rates and Rate Setting page where you may select plan specific information.

Grant funded teacher rate information is included in the Teacher section. The grant funded teacher costs do not include the additional amount due for teacher retiree health. This is established by and paid directly to State Employee Health and Benefits. You will receive a separate notification from Employee Health and Benefits for the amount due to fund retiree health coverage.

Group Life Insurance

Premium Rates for FY25

There will be no change to Group Life Insurance Premium Rates for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024. Current rates are available on Group Life Insurance webpages. If you have any questions please contact Survivor Services at Survivor.Services@mainepers.org.

Insurance Levels

Life insurance levels have been updated for the coming year. Please review your invoice. If you have any changes or corrections, please contact Survivor Services.

Are you meeting your SSA-1945 Obligations?

Do you have positions covered by MainePERS and not covered by Social Security? Almost all teachers and State employees fall into this category, as do PLD employees if the PLD has not opted into Social Security.

Federal law requires you to use Social Security Administration form SSA-1945 when you hire a new employee into a position covered by a MainePERS plan and not by Social Security.

SSA-1945 notifies new hires that the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) may reduce the amount of any Social Security benefits they become entitled to receive. It is important for employees to understand this so they plan appropriately for their retirement income.

For positions covered by this requirement, federal law requires employers to:

Give the SSA-1945 form to the employee prior to the start of employment;
Get the employee’s signature on the form; and
Submit a copy of the signed form to the pension-paying agency (i.e., MainePERS).

An electronic version of SSA-1945 is available at on the MainePERS website and also contains resources for your employees who might want additional information. Signed forms may be mailed to MainePERS at PO Box 349, Augusta, ME 04332.

Disability Program Update

The Disability Program section of the MainePERS website has been updated!

The updated content is separated into two categories: information for applicants and information for recipients. The applicant section provides a wealth of information regarding benefit eligibility, what to expect during the application process and more. We hope this will be a helpful resource for employers who would like to learn more about the program and for employees who may be considering an application.

Employer Training Schedule

MainePERS offers a half day Employer Training Session each month via Zoom. The training can provide the basics to new staff or is an excellent refresher or opportunity to fine tune your understanding of Employer Self-Service (ESS). Topics include Accessing ESS, Understanding Eligibility and Enrollment, Navigating ESS, and Survivor Services and Group Life Insurance (GLI) Highlights. An online registration schedule is available through our website.

You may also request training on specific topics or group training for multiple members of your payroll and human resources staff. To request training on a specific topic, please contact Employer Reporting at 1-800-451-9800 or by email at employer@mainepers.org.

Online Educational Sessions Now Available for Your Employees

Do you have employees who want to find out more about their MainePERS benefits? We now offer several different planning sessions for State employees, Teachers and Participating Local District (PLD) employees. We have Introductory Educational sessions tailored to new and mid-career members. There are Ready to Retire sessions for our members who have already received an estimate from us and are planning to retire within the next year. Recently, we added a new Special Plan session geared toward mid-to-late career PLD employees who are participating in a Special Plan with their employer.

Since all of these sessions are offered virtually via Zoom, participation is easy and no travel is required. Please encourage your employees to sign up to learn more about their pension plan and how it can fit into long-term retirement planning. Employees can find out more and register to attend one of these 60 minute sessions 24/7 right on our website at the following locations:

State Plan Employees at www.mainepers.org/statesessions

Teacher Plan Employee at www.mainepers.org/teachersessions

PLD Plan Employees, including PLD Special Plans, at www.mainepers.org/pldsessions

Spread the word: A printable poster is available here or can be accessed later from the MainePERS website, just click on the Printable MainePERS Member Education Session Poster. Suitable for posting on Human Resources bulletin boards or including in your next employee communication or newsletter.

Earnable Compensation

Comp Time Changes Reminder

Last year, MainePERS updated and shared the Earnable Compensation fact sheet, to help employers accurately report common payment scenarios. The form received positive feedback at the time, so we are sharing it again for your guidance.

One particular area of interest for employers has been Comp Time cash outs – as it represents a change from past practice and prior guidance for employers. In the past, Comp Time cash outs not paid in the same pay period earned were not earnable compensation. Now, Comp Time cash outs are earnable compensation as long as they are accrued and paid in the same year^*. Comp Time cash outs paid after the year^* in which they are accrued are not earnable compensation. Please review your practice and update your reporting to reflect this change.

^*calendar, fiscal or school year

National Board Certification Salary Supplements for Teachers - Change to Reporting Stipends and Creditable Service

In order to more accurately reflect creditable service calculations, MainePERS is changing the manner in which stipends for National Board Certification Supplement payments are reported for teachers. These stipend payments should NOT be included in the employee’s normal contract earnings. Please report these stipend payments on a second row, separate from the normal contract wages. Use the same POS code, Pay rate CD and FTE amount as the contracted wages, but change the PSC to 17.

Should you have any questions about this change, please contact your Employer Reporting account representative for assistance.

Keeping Contact Information Current

Please remember to regularly review your contact information listed in the Employer Self-Service Portal (ESS). The next time you login, please take a few minutes to review the contact information (name, phone number, and email address) for each of your contacts and make any additions or deletions that may be necessary.

While you are there, you can also add your chief executive officer and chief financial officer for your organization. Occasionally, MainePERS needs to communicate information directly to the individuals in these positions. Having their contact information available in our records makes that communication process much easier. Common chief executives are Town Managers, School Superintendents, and Executive Directors; in ESS, select “Executive” as the contact role for this individual. Finance Directors, Business Managers, and Controllers are common “chief financial officers”; in ESS, select “Finance” as the contact role for this individual.

Please note that MainePERS and our vendor partner recently made changes to the contacts and roles in the ESS portal to correct issues that were preventing some contact information from being updated. If you have not reviewed and updated your contacts recent, please do so now. Should you have any issues making changes in the ESS portal, please report them to your Employer Reporting Account Associate.

Thank you for keeping this important contact information up to date!