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The Employees'
Retirement System of Georgia is pleased to report the following accomplishments over the past
year:
As you know,
for the past couple of years ERS has been working on a new
Pension and Retirement Information System (PARIS). As a part of
that project, in December of 2006, ERS introduced on-line
account access for retirees. This access allows retirees to
make changes to their account, including address, direct
deposit, and tax-withholding, as well as viewing 1099-R
information. To date, over 2,500 retirees have registered. In
September 2007, ERS introduced on-line account access for active
members. With this access, members can view personal
information and an account summary, calculate refund payback
costs and generate retirement benefit estimates. As another
improvement in customer service, ERS plans to allow deductions
to State Employees Credit Union accounts from monthly retirement
payments and work is already underway to provide this enhanced
service for our retirees. ERS is excited about these
significant improvements to customer access and service for our
members.
Also as a part
of PARIS, our Employer Services Division has introduced a new
employer reporting website. The new employer web site was
implemented in September, 2007 and 15 pilot employers, selected
from all over the state, successfully used the site for their
September 2007 reports, files and contributions. The features
of the new site include summary report submittal, monthly
employee detail, detail file upload (FTP), and electronic
employer payments (ACH). Employer Services Representatives
began providing training to reporting officials on the new web site
in October 2007. The training will be conducted in
three phases at various technical colleges throughout the state
to increase employer turnout and reduce travel costs.
In 2007 the
state deferred compensation plans (Peach State Reserves - PSR)
were successfully transitioned to a new third-party
administrator, CitiStreet. With this transition, members of PSR
now have access to investment advice through Financial Engines®
and one-on-one consultations with plan representatives
statewide. PSR members can also download their account
information to Quicken® and Microsoft®
Money. ERS also provides statewide retirement and financial
planning seminars, which encompass both PSR and the ERS pension
plan. These seminars can help state employees better understand
how to create a solid foundation for their financial future.
Preparing for
retirement is an extremely important life goal, and one that
many people find confusing and intimidating. We are working to
improve this by making helpful information more available,
including personal account access, education and training,
assistance and advice. We look forward to finding more ways of
improving our service to employees and retirees of the state of
Georgia, while continuing to perform our fiduciary
responsibilities in managing your retirement plans now and in
the future.
We look
forward to significant accomplishments in 2008. You can
contact ERS with your questions or comments at 800-805-4609 or
(404) 350-6300.
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