Apr 16, 2020
TSP Fund Still Invested in Dubious Chinese Communist Affiliated Companies
"...Controversial decision for federal government Thrift Savings Plan’s International Fund to invest in an index including Chinese state-owned companies yet to be derailed by COVID-19-mired Congress..."
Apr 11, 2020
How CARES Act RMD Payment Waiver Affects Federal Retirees
"...On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. While the CARES Act provides a number of benefits for those individuals affected by the coronavirus, one is the suspension of required minimum distributions (RMDs) for defined contribution plans including the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and traditional IRAs during calendar year 2020.
This column discusses how the waiver of RMDs during calendar year 2020 affects federal employees and annuitants...."
Jan 18, 2019
Under Proposed Bill Federal Employees Could Withdraw from Retirement Funds During Shutdown
"...Representatives Pete Olson (R-TX), Don Beyer (D-VA) and Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) Tuesday introduced legislation that would allow federal employees and contractors to withdraw funds from their retirement accounts without being penalized.
The Financial Relief for Feds Act (HR 545) would let furloughed federal employees — “essential” federal employees working without pay — and contractors whose sole source of earned income is their federal contract to make a withdrawal from their retirement savings accounts without the 10 percent penalty that normally applies...."
Jan 4, 2019
Longevity and Retirement Planning
"...Longevity risk–the chance you will outlive your savings–may be the greatest risk federal retirees face today. Developing a sound financial plan is essential to ensure your “savings well” does not run dry too soon. The federal retirement system is both unique and complex for its 2.8 million current employees. This system includes the U.S. Postal Service, a quasi-governmental agency that employs the largest percentage of the civilian federal workforce.1 For optimal results, employees should begin planning for their retirement up to 10 years prior to their planned retirement date. It is imperative that federal employees understand their benefits and how each piece fits into their financial puzzle...."
Sep 26, 2017
6 Federal Retirement Myths
"...We all know how complex the federal retirement system is...
so it makes sense that many details are not fully grasped by the average civil servant.
These misunderstandings sort of take a life of their own, evolve and develop into myths. I’ve spoken to many federal workers contemplating retirement that have stated these myths as fact to me. These myths all have an element of truth to them which possibly causes people to believe them so readily.
Let’s take a look at these 6 common myths:..."
Sep 10, 2016
Explanation of Spousal Rights to TSP
"...Like all 401(k) type plans, the TSP provides spousal rights for spouses of employees and retirees. Interestingly, the rights granted to the spouse are different depending on whether the employee/retiree is covered under CSRS or FERS.
Under FERS, unless the spouse waives his or her right, they are entitled to receive a specific type of TSP annuity (i.e., joint-life with a 50% survivor benefit and no additional features). There are many different options offered in the current TSP annuity (which is offered by MetLife) and, in my opinion, this spousal default choice is one of the least appealing..."
Mar 26, 2016
Selective TSP Withdrawal
"...I hear a lot of complaints about the Thrift Saving Plan’s various limitations. One partial lump-sum distribution per lifetime and too few investment choices are probably the most common. But coming in third I’d guess would be that the TSP does not allow participants to select the exact source of funds used to fulfill a distribution request. TSP requires that any money distributed from your account come, proportionately, from each of the funds in which you are invested at the time the distribution is made..."
Sep 5, 2013
How Are Your TSP Funds Invested?
"...One of the more frequent questions we see from readers reads this way: “How should I spread my investments among the TSP funds?”...
...for federal employees, there are many variations of how to invest depending on individual circumstances. These circumstances include the retirement system in which you are enrolled, the length of time until your retirement, your overall financial situation including the amount of debt you have and the assets you have accumulated as well as your personal financial goals..."
Jul 1, 2013
TSP Stocks Down in June
"...Investors in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) would certainly like to see their investments go up each month. Unfortunately, that is not how the stock market works.
In June, for the first time since October 2012, stock prices for the C fund went down...
the F fund declined 1.53% in June and it is down 2.28% for the year. the C fund declined 1.34% but it still up 13.83% for the year. Here are the results for all of the TSP funds for June 2013 and..."
May 22, 2013
Treasury Taps Federal Retirement Funds Again
"...The Treasury Department once again is tapping federal retirement programs to buy the government more time to increase the nation’s debt ceiling.
Treasury Secretary Jack Lew on Friday announced the extraordinary measures the government will use to avoid a default through the summer, including tapping into and suspending investments into the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund and halting the daily reinvestment of the government securities (G) fund, the most stable offering in the Thrift Savings Plan's portfolio..."
May 15, 2013
Continued Growth in Roth TSP Investing
"...Federal employees are increasingly taking to Roth-style investing in their retirement savings program, although Thrift Savings Plan accounts remain heavily weighted toward traditional investments, according to the TSP.
The TSP says that in the year since Roth investing became available, both the number of participants using that option and the amount on investment have grown every month, to 188,000 accounts and $355 million through April..."
Apr 12, 2013
TSP Exams why Young Workers Stay in 'safe' G Fund
"...While automatic enrollment for new hires has increased participation in the Thrift Savings Plan over the last few years, a recent report suggests many of them are staying in the super-safe G Fund — instead of reallocating money into other funds.
"I think the big takeaway of what we saw is that the number of people that are the youngest that are invested heavily in the G Fund — the super-safe, never-has-a-bad-day G Fund — is higher than we expected," said Greg Long, executive director of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board in an interview on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin and Emily Kopp.
Unless new hires choose otherwise, their automatic enrollments default into the G Fund..."
Jan 30, 2013
Effect of Debt-ceiling Suspension on TSP G Fund
"...The pending debt-ceiling relief bill would end a financial maneuver under way involving the Thrift Savings Plan’s most popular investment fund, although the process might be repeated in a matter of months unless a longer-term fix is put in place, the TSP said Monday.
The Treasury has “disinvested” the TSP’s government securities fund, or G Fund, in effect taking that obligation off the books to avoid a default on the national debt. That maneuver has been used many times in similar situations; both the TSP and Treasury have said that as in the past, accounts continue to be credited with interest and there is no impact on loans or withdrawals.
“It is worrisome to the participants,” Executive Director Greg T. Long said at the TSP governing board’s monthly meeting. “The fund is made whole, but we would rather it not happen.”..."
Dec 17, 2012
TSP Roth a Popular Option
"...The Thrift Savings Plan now has nearly $100 million in Roth assets as a result of the retirement option’s increasing popularity among federal employees and servicemembers, according to the board that manages the TSP.
The amount of money in the Roth pool doubled in the last two months; in September the balance was $48.7 million and at the end of November it was $97.5 million, reported officials from the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board during its monthly meeting in Washington on Monday. “The pick up on Roth continues to be strong,” said Renee Wilder, director of the board’s Office of Enterprise Planning. There are 73,041 enrollees with Roth balances, up from about 40,000 in August.
The TSP Roth option, unveiled in May, allows beneficiaries to invest money that already has been taxed and cannot be taxed again upon withdrawal, unlike traditional TSP investments. With Roth’s addition, participants now can invest pretax or after-tax dollars in any of TSP’s offerings as long as their total contributions are within Internal Revenue Service’s limits..."
Dec 15, 2012
TSP 2012 Year-end Transaction Processing Schedule
The TSP processing schedule for the end of 2012 is shown below. The schedule includes information about when transactions (including withdrawals and monthly payments) will be processed, as well as when the TSP will be closed during the holiday season.
December 15 — The deadline for the TSP to receive a request for an annual change in monthly payments is December 15. This deadline applies only to participants who are in monthly payment status.
December 19 — TSP monthly payments that are normally scheduled to be processed between December 20 and December 31, 2012, will be processed on December 19, along with the December 19 payments that are regularly scheduled for that date. For income tax purposes, these payments will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service as income for 2012.
December 20 — Any residual 2012 required minimum distribution (RMD) amounts for beneficiary participants will be processed on December 20. For income tax purposes, these payments will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service as income for 2012.
December 21 — Any residual 2012 required minimum distribution (RMD) amounts for civilian and uniformed service participants will be processed on December 21. For income tax purposes, these payments will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service as income for 2012.
December 25 — Because December 25 is a Federal holiday, the TSP will be closed. Transactions that would have been processed Tuesday night (December 25) will be processed Wednesday night (December 26) at Wednesday’s closing share prices.
December 26 — Withdrawals processed through December 26 will be disbursed and reported to the IRS as income for 2012.
December 27-28 — Withdrawals processed on December 27 and December 28 will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service as income for 2013. The payments (checks and EFTs) are expected to be issued on January 2, 2013.
December 31 — Withdrawals processed on December 31 will be reported to the IRS as income for 2013. The payments (checks and EFTs) are expected to be issued on January 3, 2013.
January 1, 2013 — Because January 1 is a Federal holiday, the TSP will be closed. Transactions that would have been processed Tuesday night (January 1) will be processed Wednesday night (January 2) at Wednesday’s closing share prices
Dec 14, 2012
2013 TSP Contribution Limits Increase
"...You can contribute up to $17,500 in employee contributions to the TSP in 2013. The limit applies to the combined total of your tax-deferred traditional and Roth contributions.(This is an increase from the 2012 limit of $17,000.)
If you are a member of the uniformed services, you can contribute a total of $51,000 in tax-deferred and tax-exempt money. (The 2012 limit is $50,000.) Any participant who will be age 50 or over in 2013 can also contribute up to $5,500 in additional catch-up contributions, as long as regular contributions for the year are expected to reach the $17,500 limit.(This limit has not changed for 2013.)..."
TSP Annual Returns from 1987 - Today
"...The Thrift Savings Plan, the federal-employee 401(k), rolled out in 1987. Through the years, it's picked up some new fund options. In this interactive chart, track annual returns of all 10 TSP funds.
The G, F and C Funds launched in 1987. Later, in 2001, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board added the S and the I funds.
Finally, in 2005, the board added lifecycle options to the TSP. The L funds consist of a mix of the other funds that change over time as a participant nears retirement..."
Oct 27, 2012
Mutual Fund Option Examined by TSP
"...Just five months after the Thrift Savings Plan's new Roth option launched, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, which manages the TSP, is mulling whether to add a new offering to federal employees' (401)k-style retirement plan: a mutual fund window.
The board addressed that topic at its monthly meeting Monday, Kim Weaver, the director of external affairs, told In Depth with Francis Rose. However, the board is still studying the issue, Weaver said, and no changes are imminent.
The mutual fund window would allow participants to move investments out of the TSP funds they've invested in and into a private-sector suite of mutual funds..."
Oct 23, 2012
TSP Investment Limit Rises in 2013
"...Federal employees will be able to invest more in 2013 through their tax-favored retirement savings plan, the IRS has announced.
Due to an inflation adjustment, the dollar limit on investing in the Thrift Savings Plan will rise to $17,500 from this year’s level of $17,000, the second straight year of a $500 increase.
Participants age 50 or older will be allowed to make additional “catch-up” investments of $5,500, the same as in 2012..."
Sep 25, 2012
TSP Board Approves Fiscal 2013 Budget
"...The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board approved a $170.5 million fiscal 2013 budget Monday, a figure that exceeds last year’s budget by $27 million and could increase during the year...
The board said this summer that it anticipates managing an additional 4.4 percent in TSP assets by fiscal 2017 and growing the size of its budget by 25 percent to accommodate an increasing number of federal retirees, more investment options -- such as the new Roth offering -- and more participants withdrawing partial amounts from their accounts in the next five years."
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