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Ivy Tech is pleased to provide you with a retirement benefit
to supplement your retirement income. No one source of income by itself is likely
to be sufficient for your retirement needs at retirement. The income from your
Ivy Tech retirement plan will add to the income you will receive from Social
Security, retirement plan income from other employers, and any other investments
you may hold. Our tax deferred 403(b) Retirement Annuity Plan (RA Plan) offers
you many advantages in comparison to utilizing a typical savings account. With
the RA Plan, the money contributed on your behalf by the College is not taxed.
Additionally, the interest you earn on the money in your account grows without
being taxed, so the total grows much quicker than it would without this advantage.
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Eligibility
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All benefits-eligible administrative and faculty employees
are eligible to participate in the RA Plan after two years of continuous
benefits-eligible service. Positions classified E-3 or F-3 and above are
immediately eligible to participate. In addition, employees who already
have an active 403(b) account with TIAA/CREF or AUL from past employment
may be able to participate immediately. |
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Contributions
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The College contributes an amount equal to a certain percentage
of your salary directly to TIAA/CREF or AUL. Also, you can make contributions
of your own by salary deduction, on a non-tax-deferred basis under one of
the voluntary tax-deferred programs offered by the College. See Tax
Deferred Voluntary Plans. |
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Investments
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You direct how your contributions are invested on your application
to TIAA/CREF or AUL. You can divide your contribution between investments
within either company in any whole-number percentages. Once you are participating
in the plan, you can change the division of your future contributions at
any time by contacting TIAA/CREF or AUL directly. You will receive annual
and quarterly statements showing your accumulation of benefits. |
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Transferability
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Employees may transfer their CREF or AUL funds to College approved investment
vehicles external to TIAA-CREF or AUL.
All transfers from TIAA-CREF or AUL will be handled between the employee
and the applicable vendor, without any participation by the College. Transfers
can be made as often as TIAA-CREF or AUL will allow.
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Leaving Employment with the College
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If you leave the College, you may retain your TIAA-CREF and/or AUL accounts.
They will continue to earn interest and dividends. You also may continue
to make personal contributions to your account. If you are later employed
by an organization that offers TIAA/CREF or AUL, you may be eligible to
participate with your new employer.
Under certain limited circumstances, you may request the return of all
your contributions plus earnings when you leave employment with the College.
This is called repurchasing your contract. You may repurchase your contract
if you are not going to an employer that offers a TIAA/CREF or AUL account
for which you are eligible. When you repurchase your benefits, the amount
may be subject to a 10% tax penalty if the government considers it an
early withdrawal of your benefits.
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Receiving Your Benefits
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Generally, you will begin to receive your benefit when you retire. You
will pay income tax on the taxable portion of your benefit as you receive
it. Because the purpose of the RA Plan is to save money for retirement,
there are restrictions on when you can receive your benefits. Apart from
certain qualifying circumstances, after terminating your employment with
the College an early withdrawal of your money may be subject to a 10%
tax in addition to your regular income tax.
Distribution for disability or financial hardship is not available
on the RA funds which have been contributed by the College, nor the accumulated
interest earned thereon as long as you remain employed by the College.
If you die before starting to receive benefits, your beneficiary is entitled
to the full current value of your benefit accumulation. There are certain
rules and restrictions about choosing a beneficiary other than a spouse.
You may also ask to have part of your total benefit paid in one lump
sum. If you are married, your spouse will need to consent to this type
of distribution.
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Forms of Benefit Payment
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You have several options for receiving your TIAA/CREF and/or
AUL benefit payments. You may choose different methods of payment from each
organization, AUL, TIAA and CREF. In addition, under certain circumstances,
you may be required to begin the receipt of benefits. |
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Taxation of Benefits
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Consult your tax advisor and TIAA/CREF or AUL about taxation
of your benefit. The College does not presume to be a tax advisor. |
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