Required documents include:

• Copies of birth certificates for:
  • Yourself
  • Your spouse (for Joint Survivor Plans A, C, D, or F)
  • Your non-spouse beneficiary (for Joint Survivor Plans C, D, or F)
  • Your spouse and dependents covered by SERS' health care
• Copy of your marriage certificate, if you are married
• Direct Deposit Form
• Health Care Application
• Partial Lump Sum Application
• Spousal Consent Form
• Copy of your and your spouse's Medicare Card

Be aware of these common mistakes that would make the application incomplete:

• The application was not signed.
• SERS received a copy of the marriage license instead of the marriage certificate. You can contact the probate court in the county in which you were married to request a copy of the marriage certificate. 
• An effective date was not included on application.
• A beneficiary was not named when selecting a plan of payment.
• The required spousal consent form was not completed and returned, and payment plans B, C, D, E, or F were selected.

If you are considering the buy-up option, you need to contact us immediately for an official cost. The payment for buy-up must be received by 4:30 p.m. on August 1, 2017. Remember, the buy-up option is not the same as a service credit purchase. A buy-up only allows you to retire under the current age and service credit eligibility requirements.

SERS is urging members and retirees to contact their U.S. Senators and ask them to oppose legislative efforts which:

1. Reduces Medicaid by capping or reducing the Medicaid subsidies to states because it will hurt people who need affordable health care the most. Medicaid is essential to older Ohioans in nursing homes, families whose loved ones are struggling with opioid addiction and low income retirees.
2. Cuts taxes on high income workers because it will result in less money being paid into Medicare. The solvency of Medicare is essential. Ending these taxes that support Medicare will place more financial burdens on seniors who are over 65 and can no longer work. 
3. Raises premiums and cost sharing for people between the ages of 50 and 64 because it will cause many to make a choice between paying for health care and buying other necessities like groceries.
4. Separate people with pre-existing conditions from the same insurance pool as younger, healthier people because it will make it more difficult for them to find affordable coverage. People with pre-existing conditions should not be treated differently because of their previous illnesses.

*Direct deposit notice or check stub will be mailed to all benefit recipients.

You will receive a check stub whenever there is a change to your benefit, such as health care premium change, a tax withholding change, or a bank account change.

SERS strongly encourages all retirees to have their pension payments paid directly to a bank or credit union. Direct deposit of your funds is the only way to assure that your payment will be available on the first of every month. Direct deposit eliminates any concerns about late, lost, or stolen checks. Since pension checks cannot be forwarded, direct deposit also eliminates delays when you travel during retirement. It is your responsibility to make sure the funds are in your account before writing checks against your account.

If you do not enroll in direct deposit, there is no guarantee that you will receive your payment right on the first of every month. Delivery delays might occur that are beyond SERS’ control, such as lost or stolen checks. You must wait 10 days after the expected delivery date before SERS can begin the process of stopping payment and issuing a new check. This delay will not occur if you have direct deposit.

The term for this Board seat runs through June 30, 2019. Click here to see the full Special Election timeline.

If you have questions about this Special Election, please contact Tim Barbour, External Communications Supervisor, by phone at 614-222-5901 or by email at tbarbour@ohsers.org.

The GFOA awards the certificate to government entities whose annual financial reports are judged to adhere to program standards. It represents the highest award in government financial reporting.

SERS received the award for its FY2016 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.

Unfortunately, some national studies, like the one the Mercatus Center released on December 13, fail to acknowledge these advantages and use unrealistic assumptions to make the case for a switch from defined benefit pensions to 401(k) plans. Here’s where their methodology fails:

1.  The authors of the study define Ohio’s public pension systems as “severely underfunded.”

According to our actuary, this is absolutely untrue. While SERS is not 100% funded (meaning we have all the assets we need to pay off every benefit earned as of today) we have enough reliable and consistent income to pay off all liabilities over the next 28 years. Not all pension liabilities come due at one time; they come due gradually over time.

2.  They make dire predictions about the solvency of Ohio’s plans based on the assumption that the plans will receive no future employee and employer contributions.

This is unrealistic because our employee and employer contributions are defined by state law and they have always been consistently received.

3.   They use a 2% investment return to calculate future investment earnings on current assets.

This is extremely low considering the 32-year history of investment returns for SERS is nearly 9% annually. While it’s possible that investment returns may be lower in the next few years, 2% over an extended period is improbable.

Ohio’s pension systems constantly undergo close scrutiny by independent auditors and actuaries. At SERS, we have always met or exceeded the state’s standards for pension funding and we take seriously our fiduciary duty to make sure the pension fund remains financially sound.