SUNY Benefits

SUNY Voluntary Savings Plans

The State University of New York
Voluntary Retirement Savings Plans

2011 UNIVERSAL AVAILABILITY NOTICE

The State University of New York provides employees with the opportunity to save for their retirement through the SUNY Voluntary 403(b) Savings Plan and the NYS Deferred Compensation Plan.

Participating in a tax-deferred voluntary savings plan is a great way to build your retirement savings and reduce current taxes.

All employees who receive a W2 from SUNY are eligible to participate in the SUNY Voluntary Savings Programs. 

Voluntary Savings Plan Overview: 

• Comparison Chart - This chart provides a summary containing further details about some of the key features and differences between 403(b) and 457(b) plans to help you better decide which one is right for you. 
    

Maximum Contributions: 

For 2012, you may contribute up to $17,000 per year to either a 403(b) or a 457(b) account, or to both. 

Because 403(b) and 457(b) plans are governed by different sections of IRS Code, employees may contribute to both plans concurrently, allowing a combined deferral maximum of up to $34,000 per year. 

Contributions to all 403(b) and 457(b) plans are combined, so if you use multiple Investment Providers, or are also a participant in a 403(b) or 457(b) plan of another employer, your combined contributions cannot exceed the IRS limit for each plan type. If you do participate in more than one of each type of plan, you are responsible for tracking and reporting the amount of all of your contributions to the plans so that the total amount of all your contributions to all plans in which you participate do not exceed the IRS limit. Note also that the sum of all of your contributions, and those of your employers, to all 403(b) plans that you participate in are generally limited to the lesser of $49,000 or 100% of your annual compensation.

If you are age 50 or older any time during 2011, you can contribute an additional $5,500 to either type of plan, for a maximum of $22,500 per year. 

403(b) plans also allow employees with 15 consecutive years or more of service with the same employer to contribute up to an additional $3,000 per year ($15,000 max lifetime). Prior year contributions may limit this amount. Employees are eligible for both age 50 and 15 year catch-up contributions in the same year.

457(b) plans also allow those within three years of the plan’s normal retirement age (55), to contribute an additional amount of up to the lesser of twice the applicable limit or unused amounts from prior years.  Employees are eligible for the greater of the enhanced limit or the age 50 catch-up provision, but may not do both in the same year.

For more information about retirement plan contribution limits, please see the complete list of IRS 2012 Retirement Plan Limits.

Additional Information: 

You can learn more about the Voluntary Savings Plan options available to you by visiting the following links:

• SUNY Voluntary Tax-Deferred Savings Program Brochure
  
  
• SUNY Voluntary 403(b) Savings Program Investment Providers
  
  
• New York State Deferred Compensation Plan
  

Enrollment:

You can enroll in a Voluntary Savings Plan as follows:

• SUNY Voluntary 403(b) Savings Plan - Enroll using the materials provided online or by contacting your campus Benefits Office.
  
  
  
• NYS Deferred Compensation -  Enroll using the materials provided online or by calling 1-800-422-8463.

Once enrolled, you can review and change the amount of your contributions as often as once per pay period by submitting a new Salary Reduction Agreement form for a 403(b) plan or by contacting NYSDCP directly for a 457(b) plan.  The exact date your investment allocations will take effect may vary depending upon the policies of the Investment Provider managing the investment options you chose for Plan contributions.

If you have additional questions, require further assistance enrolling in the SUNY Voluntary Savings Program, or are enable to contact the Authorized Investment Agent listed for your campus, please contact the Benefits Office at your State-Operated or Community College campus.

*  A variable annuity contract is a hybrid investment containing both securities and insurance features. The securities feature of variable annuities provides investors with the opportunity to participate in potential capital appreciation and income through investments in the securities markets. These securities features will, however, subject the investor to market risks. The insurance features of variable annuities permit employees to “annuitize” their contracts, electing to receive a lifetime income option so that they are guaranteed a stream of income payments that they cannot outlive, much as with a pension from ERS or TRS. In exchange for this lifetime income option, however, variable annuities have an extra set of fees, known as Mortality and Expense (M&E) charges that given them higher annual operating expenses than mutual funds. Many annuities are actually funded by underlying mutual funds, which are “wrapped” into an annuity product to give employees access to a broader range of funds while still preserving the lifetime income option protection that annuities afford.

**  A mutual fund is a financial intermediary that allows a group of investors with predetermined investment objectives to pool their money together. By pooling money together in a mutual fund, investors can purchase stocks or bonds with much lower trading costs than if they could achieve on their own. Mutual funds have fund managers who are responsible for investing the pooled money into specific securities (usually stocks or bonds). When employees invest in mutual funds they are buying shares of these funds, becoming a shareholder of funds in which they invest. Mutual funds are very cost efficient and a very easy way for employees to invest in since they do not have to figure out which stocks or bonds to buy. Mutual funds also allow an individual investor to achieve much greater diversification than they ever could through the purchase of individual stocks or bonds.