2018 OPERS Board of Trustees Election

Elections for four seats on the OPERS and Ohio Deferred Compensation Boards of Trustees will be held this year. Those elected will serve four-year terms beginning Jan. 1, 2019. The four seats are:

  • Retirees – One of two seats representing approximately 179,000 age and service, disability and defined contribution plan retirees. This group includes re-employed retirees.
  • State Employees – Representing approximately 48,000 employees working at a job for the state of Ohio.
  • Municipal Employees – Representing approximately 59,000 employees working for one of Ohio's municipalities.
  • State College or University Employees – Representing approximately 51,000 non-teaching employees at state colleges and universities in Ohio.

Any active OPERS member, with the exception of one receiving a disability benefit, is eligible for election to represent the members of their employee group on the OPERS Board. This applies to three of the groups listed above.

Any OPERS retiree receiving an age and service retirement benefit, disability benefit or retirement benefits under one of the OPERS defined contribution plans is eligible to run for election. This group also includes re-employed retirees. Beneficiaries, who may include surviving family members, are not eligible to run for election or nominate candidates by signing a petition. Beneficiaries, surviving family members and powers of attorney also are ineligible to vote and will not receive a ballot. A retiree must reside in the state of Ohio in order to be eligible to run for a Board position.

Interested candidates

Nominating petition packets are available and may be requested by calling 1-800-222-7377. Packets are also available for pick-up at the OPERS office, 277 E. Town St., Columbus, and will be posted on www.opers.org/elections. Potential candidates can also pick up the packets from their employers.

State law requires candidates seeking election to an employee member Board seat to obtain at least 500 signatures from active members within their employee group. At least 10 different counties must be represented by at least 200 signatures each.

Candidates running for the retiree Board seat must obtain at least 250 signatures from OPERS retirees. At least five different counties must be represented by at least 10 signatures each.

Completed nominating petitions, biographical statements and certification by candidates must be received at the OPERS office to the attention of OPERS General Counsel Eric Harrell no later than 4:30 p.m. EDT, Monday, July 30, 2018. Petitions postmarked on or before this date, but received later, are invalid.

OPERS Board members are trustees of the Systems funds and are subject to strict fiduciary standards of conduct. The Board members must act SOLELY in the best interests of ALL the participants and beneficiaries. Board members should be prepared to spend an average of three days per month on Board business between attending meetings in Columbus and meeting preparation.

Voting Information

A ballot will be mailed to homes of eligible members in late August. All votes must be received by 11:59 p.m. EDT, Friday, Sept. 28, 2018. The results will be verified by the office of the Ohio Secretary of State Oct. 1, 2018.

GASB 68 and 75

GASB 68 net pension liability and the new GASB 75 net OPEB liability information is now available on ECS. If you're an employer who has registered for ECS and has been given the GASB role by the delegated administrator at your place of employment, you can now access the Dec. 31, 2017 information on the net pension liability and net OPEB liability.

If you have trouble accessing the information, contact Employer Services for assistance at 1-888-400-0965 or employeroutreach@opers.org.

Log in to ECS now

Tips for Completing Certifications of Final Payroll and Unreported Public Service

When completing Certifications of Final Payroll (LR-2, SRF85, and DRF85) on ECS, keep the following in mind:

  • Ensure that the Final Earnable salary date is the last day the employee earned wages
  • The Final Reporting Period End Date should equal the reporting month during which the final earnings will be reported.

There has been some confusion on the question, "The employee will terminate (or has terminated) their covered employment." We define termination of employment as an employee terminating all employment with the public employer. If your employee is still working for your entity but is no longer contributing to OPERS because they no longer have earnable salary or are now contributing to another retirement system, the employee has not terminated employment and you should respond No to the question.

The following tips may be helpful when completing Certification of Unreported Public Service (form AA) for exempt service:

  • If the member signed an exemption, the exemption form must be submitted with the Certification of Unreported Public Service (form AA). If you are searching for the exemption form, please hold form AA until you can send both forms together.
  • If the exemption form does not accompany the form AA, the employer will receive a bill for the unreported service and payment will be due to the retirement system.
  • If the exemption accompanies the form AA and the limitations for the exemption were exceeded, please provide the month, day and year this occurred on the form AA.

OPERS Offering Financial Wellness Education for Members

OPERS is hosting a new hands-on workshop called, "Bridging the Gap to Financial Wellness." During this workshop, OPERS educators will help members assess their financial wellness, review current spending habits and estimate retirement income so they can identify the "gap" between what they will have in retirement and what they will need.

This is the first workshop in a series of workshops that will offer real life training designed to help members gain a better understanding of their personal finances and make sound financial decisions that can lead to a more secure retirement.

Attendees have reported leaving the workshop with a better understanding of how much they'll need to save for retirement. In fact, after attending the workshop 94 percent said they knew how to calculate their gap and 97 percent said they left with a greater understanding of the difference between a reduced and unreduced retirement benefit.

The complete seminar schedule can be found on the Financial Wellness page of opers.org.

Colonial Life Offers Insurance to OPERS Members

OPERS has partnered with Colonial Life & Accident Co. to offer whole and term life insurance policies to active members, their spouses and children, as well as employer groups. The voluntary insurance is in addition to life insurance that employers might offer.

Enrollment is conducted directly with Colonial Life. Members will be able to enroll in a policy online or by speaking with a local Colonial Life benefits counselor in-person or over the phone to initiate coverage. Colonial Life staff will work with employers to help educate employees about the differences in the life insurance policies.

Policies are guaranteed issue, within certain limits, during this year's initial enrollment period. That means no health questions will be asked during the initial enrollment period which extends through Aug. 31.

A Colonial Life representative will contact employers to discuss onsite education and enrollment. In the meantime, contact Kevin Wrona with Colonial Life at 216-308-6665 or kwrona@ColonialLife.com if you would like additional information on Colonial Life visiting your location.

OPERS is making this coverage available to help members plan for their future and provide financial stability for their family when they pass away. OPERS wants to ensure all our members have access to a life insurance policy, since not all employers offer access to this benefit. One benefit of coverage through Colonial Life is that members will have the opportunity to continue with their policy even if they leave public employment. It is not intended to replace any life insurance offered through employers but is an optional offering available to members at their expense.

On June 18, Colonial Life mailed postcards to all active members notifying them of the opportunity. If your staff would like more information, they should visit the OPERS page on the Colonial Life website, at visityouville.com/en/opers. Or, they can call Colonial Life at 1-844-341-8803. Colonial Life representatives are available Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to noon and 4 to 7 p.m. EDT. All questions should be directed to Colonial Life.

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It is your responsibility to be certain that OPERS has your current physical and e-mail address on file. If OPERS is not made aware of address changes, we cannot guarantee that you will receive important information pertaining to your OPERS account. This publication is written in plain language for use by public employers who are subject to coverage under the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. It is not intended as a substitute for the federal or state law, namely the Ohio Revised Code, the Ohio Administrative Code, or the Internal Revenue Code, nor will its interpretation prevail should a conflict arise between it and the Ohio Revised Code, Ohio Administrative Code, or Internal Revenue Code. Rules governing the retirement system are subject to change periodically either by statute of the Ohio General Assembly, regulation of the Ohio Public Employees Retirement Board, or regulation of the Internal Revenue Code. If you have questions about this material, please contact our office or seek legal advice from your attorney. OPERS is not required to provide health care coverage to retirees or their dependents and will only do so at the discretion of the Board of Trustees.