Dear School District Superintendents, Charter School and Education Collaborative Directors, Business Managers, Town Treasurers, Personnel Administrators and Payroll Officers,

As you know, because of the extraordinary influx of §3 service purchase applications we received as a result of last year’s interest rate increase, our Board allowed individuals who had filed only the member portion of their applications by April 2, 2013 a six-month extension–until October 2, 2013–to submit their employer portion. However, as that deadline approached, we heard from many members and employers that, despite their best efforts, they could not obtain the required documentation in that timeframe. To ease employers’ administrative burden and allow those members still to qualify for the buyback interest rate of 4.125%, we then accepted from employers a list of members whose applications they had received before October 2 and that were “in process.”

In the nine months since October 2nd, a number of these “in process” applications have been completed. However, now, in order to bring this application completion period to a close, our Board has established a FINAL deadline for these members to submit their employer forms of August 31, 2014.

Please know that we have already notified the affected members of this final deadline. On June 6, we mailed personalized “FINAL NOTICE” letters to members whose “Section 3” service purchase applications were still incomplete to advise them that they must submit the missing documentation and information, postmarked by August 31, 2014. This deadline applies regardless of whether the member was on a list of “in process” applications submitted by an employer. There will be no exceptions to this deadline. Members who fail to complete their applications by August 31, 2014 may still apply for the service at a later date, but they will be subject to the higher interest rate.