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PEAR Information
Information
about the GCCCD Pension-Eligible
Alternate Retirement
(PEAR)
Plan
The PEAR Plan is a Social Security replacement plan. The
wonderful thing about paying into PEAR is that you do not pay into
Social Security. Participants contribute 3.75% of their pay to an
individual retirement account and 100% is matched by GCCCD.
Participants save over 4% in contributions over Social
Security per month and have their own personal retirement account.
PEAR
Forms
·
PEAR
Beneficiary Designation Form
·
PEAR
Distribution Form for accounts at or under $1,000
·
PEAR
Distribution Form for accounts over $1,000
Some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about the PEAR Plan are:
Q: Who can participate in PEAR?
A: The PEAR Plan is available
to hourly non-student employees of GCCCD who work under 1,000
hours per year, and part-time faculty who work less then 60% across all
San Diego County STRS-eligible institutions.
Q: Can I choose to be in Social Security instead of the PEAR Plan?
A: No, it is not an individual
election, GCCCD created the PEAR Plan as an alternate plan for all eligible
workers. Social Security would take 7.65% form your paycheck; the PEAR Plan
only deducts 3.75% and is matched 100% (another 3.75%) by GCCCD. This money
goes into an account specifically held for you, unlike Social
Security. In essence, your paycheck has a lower deduction, and you have an
individual account to show for it!
Q: How does my PEAR fund grow?
A:
PEAR Plan funds are invested as a lump sum in several diverse, stable and
overall well performing funds in the stock market. This means the given
value of your money may go up or down as any money invested in the
stock market, but overall the PEAR funds have performed better then the
market average for the last several years.
Q: Can I set my own investments?
A: No, while you do have an
individual account the PEAR Plan money is invested for all participants
together to increase buying power for all participants.
Q: Can I get my money out?
A: Federal regulations dictate
when you may withdraw your money from pension plans. If you are currently
employed with GCCCD, even if you were once an hourly employee and are now a
contract employee, regulations prohibit withdrawing your funds. To access
funds, a qualifying event must occur; these include retirement or
termination of employment.
Q: I am no longer a GCCCD employee. How do I get my money out?
A:
Distributions from the PEAR Plan are made
monthly with the exception of January and July. To receive a
distribution, you must submit a distribution packet to the Employment
Services & Benefits Department at GCCCD. There is a separate distribution
packet for
accounts under $1,000
and accounts over
$1,000. You will receive your distribution approximately 45 to 60
days after your completed packet is received.
You may download a Distribution Packet linked above, or request one be mailed to
you by calling (619) 644-7678
Q: I was an hourly and am
now a contract employee with GCCCD. Is there a window of time where I can
access my account?
A: PEAR members can access their funds when they discontinue service
with the District, or reach age 62.
Q: Can I purchase PERS or STRS service credit with PEAR?
A: At this time you are not able to convert your PEAR funds to
PERS or STRS service credit.
Q: Can I roll my funds into an IRA or other retirement account?
A: If you are no longer a
GCCCD employee, you may roll your funds into another retirement account
(please see question above). If you are still employed in any capacity with
GCCCD you are unable to roll over your PEAR Plan funds unless you are over
age 62.
Q: How often will I get a statement?
A: To save costs, PEAR sends out only an annual statement.
The Plan year ends June 30th of each year, and your statement
will be mailed to you shortly thereafter.
Q: How do I get my current balance?
A: You may get your current account balance by
e-mailing
the GCCCD Benefits Department.
Q: Can I get a reprint of my statement?
A: Yes, you may get a re-print of your annual statement by
contacting
wendy.corbin@gcccd.edu.
Q: Why am I being charged fees?
A: There are many costs
associated with providing a pension plan, including costs to monitor
investments, maintain websites, provide statements, produce federally
required plan documents, and bookkeeping services provided by the
third-party administrator. These fees are split 50/50 between your
contributions and those made by GCCCD on your behalf. The fees previously
were automatically deducted from interest revenue, and are now included on
the statement detail.
Q: How much are the fees?
A: For people who no longer work at GCCCD, the fee is $10 every 6
months. Active GCCCD employees are charged fees on a pro rata basis
depending on the performance of the plan. For 2008, fees were 1.46% of your
account balance and 1.78% in 2009.
Q: Can my fees be waived?
A. No, the fees cannot be waived. They are a charge for plan
service including trust and recordkeeping.
Q: How do I change my PEAR beneficiary?
A: You can download a
PEAR Plan Beneficiary Designation
Form and submit it to the Employment Services & Benefits Department.
Q: I am a part-time faculty and have a choice between PEAR and
STRS. What is the difference?
A: If you work over 60% of
full-time a year with a combination of Educational employers, you will need
to be in STRS. If you work less then 60%, you have a choice. The table below
shows some of the differences.
|
|
PEAR |
STRS |
|
Employee Contribution |
3.75% |
8% |
|
Employer Match |
100% |
100% |
|
Vesting |
Employer match is yours immediately |
Employer match is yours after 5 years of full-time equivalent
service. |
Q: What does “vesting” mean?
A: When you are “vested” is
when the employer match becomes your money. For example, with PEAR if your
3.75% contribution was $75 one month, GCCCD put in another $75 dollars.
Since with PEAR you are immediately vested, that means the $75 from GCCCD is
already yours. With STRS, that $75 would not become yours until after 5
years of full-time equivalent service, so if you resigned prior to that
time, you would only have the money you contributed to take with you.
Q: I have an APPLE account in another district. Is this the same
thing?
A: APPLE and PEAR are similar.
They are both Social Security Alternative Plans and function under the same
IRS codes. The difference is they are sponsored by different employers with
different fund managers, so some of the fund investing may be the same, some
is different. The Plans do serve the same purpose.
Q: Do I have both a PEAR and an APPLE account?
A: If you work for multiple
employers, you may have both, PEAR with GCCCD and APPLE with your
other employer. However, if you worked at GCCCD before the PEAR Plan was
established and had an APPLE account with GCCCD, it has been converted to
PEAR.
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