RetirementPlus (R+) resource center
As you may know, recent changes in the law affected certain aspects of the RetirementPlus benefit. For detailed information about the changes, please take a look at these resources.
General RetirementPlus information
RetirementPlus contribution rates explained
Information for members who transfer in service from another board
RetirementPlus special election overview
In January, we mailed eligible members a one-time RetirementPlus participation ballot. If you received such a ballot, you may wonder about the next steps.
Video: Special election opportunity
Video: online seminar (02/23/2023)
Specific seminar topics (links will open in YouTube)
- The difference between 11% and 9%+2% contribution rates and how to calculate the additional 2% on earnings (14:46)
- How to check your MTRS contribution rate and R+ status in MyTRS (23:00)
- How to determine what contribution rate is being withheld from your pay (25:11)
R+ Decision Tree – How should I decide whether or not to participate?
First, determine if you are likely to work long enough to meet the service requirements for R+, which are at least 30 years of total creditable service, and at least 20 of which must be as a member of the MTRS.
You will be eligible for the R+ enhanced benefits and may want to elect to Participate in R+. First, you should determine if R+ is better than regular retirement for you:
- Go to the Retirement Percentage Chart for your Tier (1 or 2), find your age and service combination when you plan to retire, and compare the percentage under regular retirement versus R+.
- Then, compare your cost to participate in R+ to the increase in benefits.
- Select the button below that represents your contribution rate during all prior MTRS service to estimate any retroactive cost you may incur.
You will continue to pay 11% on all of your future wages, and your retroactive cost will be $0.00 as you have already been contributing at the rate R+ participation requires.You will pay 11% on all of your future wages, and your retroactive cost will be $600/year for each year of your MTRS service.For example*: If your Contribution Rate since you joined the MTRS is 9%+2% And you have 5 years of prior MTRS service You will owe:
$600 x 5 yrs = $3,000
And you have 10 years of prior MTRS service You will owe:
$600 x 10 yrs = $6,000
And you have 15 years of prior MTRS service You will owe:
$600 x 15 yrs = $9,000
*these examples are for illustrative purposes only. All final costs will be calculated once you have made your election and have been issued an invoice.You will pay 11% on all of your future wages, and your retroactive cost will depend on your wages during your prior MTRS service. For illustrative purposes, the chart below lists annual costs for average wages in $10,000 increments:
For example*: If your Contribution Rate since you joined the MTRS is 8% + 2% And your average salary during your MTRS membership was: Then, for each year you have been a member of the MTRS, you will owe: $40,000 $1,000/year $50,000 $1,100/year $60,000 $1,200/year $70,000 $1,300/year $80,000 $1,400/year $90,000 $1,500/year $100,000 $1,600/year $110,000 $1,700/year $120,000 $1,800/year
For example*: Sarah Teacher has 10 years of prior MTRS service and her average wages during that service were $70,000, thus, her retroactive cost would be $13,000 ($1,300/yr x 10 years = $13,000).
*these examples are for illustrative purposes only. All final costs will be calculated once you have made your election and have been issued an invoice.
Finally, please note: if you elect to Participate in R+ and retire before reaching the creditable service requirements, you will receive a refund of the difference between 11% and your former contribution rate.
The RetirementPlus election process
You can make your election either online or by returning the printed election form in the postage-paid envelope provided by our vendor. Online elections must be submitted by midnight on 6/30/2023, and paper ballots must be postmarked by 6/30/2023.
If you make your election using the paper form, you will receive a postcard acknowledging receipt of your election in 4-6 weeks. If you submit your R+ election online (recommended), you will receive an online confirmation upon completion of the process, as well as the postcard. Please retain copies for your records.
As you might imagine, this election requires a significant amount of work and coordination between the MTRS and your employer. After you submit your election, we ask for your patience until we finalize the remaining parts of the election process, which include, but are not limited to, the following:
Researching contribution rate histories for the 8,000 members eligible for
this R+ election.
Notifying employers of rate changes, as necessary, for members who have not contributed at the correct rate based on their R+ election, and confirming the rate changes have been implemented.
Sending member communications:
Calculating and issuing refunds to members who opt-out of R+ and have contributed at 11%; OR
Calculating and sending invoices, with installment options, to members who elect to participate in R+ and have not contributed at 11% (they are required to make up the difference between 11% and any lower rate); OR
Sending confirmations to members who elect to participate in R+ and have already made the required 11% contributions.
Eligibility
The new law provides a final, one-time opportunity to participate in the R+ program only to those members who:
- were not a part of the original election window prior to July 1, 2001, AND
- transferred into the MTRS from one of the other 103 Massachusetts public retirement systems between July 1, 2001 and June 30, 2022, AND
- did not yet submit an election.
Questions
Due to the anticipated high call volume, for the most efficient service we encourage you to email your questions to us at RetirementPlus@trb.state.ma.us. Please include the following so that we can better assist you:
- First name
- Last name
- Former name (if applicable)
- Date of birth
- Member number (listed on your paper ballot)
R+ replacement ballot requests:
The RetirementPlus (R+) special election for eligible members began in January and ends on June 30, 2023. On March 31, 2023, the halfway point of the election period, our election processing vendor will mail replacement ballots to all eligible members who, as of March 24, 2023, have not yet voted. Requests for replacement ballots typically take two weeks to process and mail; thus, we ask all eligible members requesting a replacement ballot to please wait for the March 31 mailing. If you do not receive your mid-point replacement ballot by Tuesday, April 18, please email RetirementPlus@trb.state.ma.us.
New address?
If you’ve moved since December 2022, email RetirementPlus@trb.state.ma.us so we can mail you a ballot ASAP. Please also log into MyTRS and update your address. Active MTRS members, it is critical that you also notify your district of the address change, otherwise, it will revert back to your old address with the submission of their March 2023 monthly deduction report.
Changes at a glance:
| Your MTRS Membership Date | Date the MTRS receives the transfer of your account from the other Massachusetts public retirement system | RetirementPlus Election |
|---|---|---|
| Between 7/1/2001 and 6/30/2022 | Between 7/1/2001 and 6/30/2022 |
|
| On or after 7/1/2001 with service starting in the other MA public retirement system prior to 7/1/2022 | On or after 7/1/2022 |
|
| On or after 7/1/2022, with service starting in the other MA public retirement system on or after 7/1/2022 | On or after 7/1/2022 |
|