As additional one-time funding is being disbursed to schools, new payments to faculty are being approved, and we are receiving questions about the creditability of this compensation. One of the more common types of payments offered are widely referred to as one-time off-salary schedule payments. These payments are called by a variety of names and have a variety of purposes but are generally limited-term payments that are not associated with additional service, are not scheduled to continue and are only being paid due to additional one-time funding.

This Employer Circular does not take precedence over the law; it is meant to clarify how school districts and county offices of education should report to CalSTRS.

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Throughout the course of a school year, employees may be required or offered an opportunity to participate in different types of training classes and programs. There may also be employees hired by an employer to provide training classes and programs to other personnel. When determining if and how the compensation paid for performing these activities should be reported to CalSTRS, it is important to establish whether the compensation is paid in accordance with the definition of “creditable compensation” and the creditable compensation regulations.

This Employer Circular does not take precedence over the law; it is meant to clarify when employers should report employee training to CalSTRS.

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The purpose of this circular is to inform employers of the 2021-22 fiscal year limit on creditable compensation for CalSTRS 2% at 62 Defined Benefit Program members and Cash Balance Benefit Program participants subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

The creditable compensation limit applies to compensation creditable to the Defined Benefit (DB), Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS) and Cash Balance (CB) Benefit programs.

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Supersedes Employer Information Circular Volume 25: Issue 3

While there is no state mandate to reduce school funds in the 2020-21 state budget, CalSTRS recognizes that some schools may be experiencing other reductions in school funds. Due to budget constraints, some school districts may be considering furloughs, salary reductions and retirement incentives. The following is information about the potential impact of furloughs, salary reductions and retirements to employers and CalSTRS members.

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CalSTRS understands the need for guidance as school districts, county offices of education or other governing bodies authorize school closures based on COVID-19 concerns. CalSTRS is committed to working with our employer partners during this time of uncertainty and will continue to monitor the situation and communicate updated information as it becomes available from the Governor’s Office, the California Department of Education and the California Health and Human Services Agency.

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The purpose of this circular is to inform employers of the 2019-20 fiscal year limit on creditable compensation for CalSTRS 2% at 62 Defined Benefit Program members and Cash Balance Benefit Program participants subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

The creditable compensation limit applies to compensation creditable to the Defined Benefit, Defined Benefit Supplement and Cash Balance Benefit programs.

The purpose of this circular is to clarify the options available to employers regarding the reporting and remitting of contributions and the impact to members.

Supersedes 2011 Employer Information Circular Volume 27, Issue 5
The purpose of this circular is to clarify the options available to employers
regarding the reporting and remitting of contributions and the impact to members.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers to the Internal Revenue Service pension plan limits for tax year 2018 and to inform employers of the creditable compensation limit under the Teachers’ Retirement Law for California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) members and participants who are subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA). CalSTRS is not authorized to give tax advice; accordingly, if you have any questions about these or any other Internal Revenue Code (IRC) sections, please contact your tax advisor or the Internal Revenue Service.

The following limits apply to benefits paid and compensation creditable to the Defined Benefit (DB), the Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS) and the Cash Balance (CB) Benefit programs.

The purpose of this circular is to inform employers of the 2017-18 fiscal year limit on creditable compensation for CalSTRS 2% at 62 Defined Benefit Program members and Cash Balance Benefit Program participants subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

The creditable compensation limit applies to compensation creditable to the Defined Benefit, Defined Benefit Supplement and Cash Balance Benefit programs.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2017 and to inform employers of the creditable compensation limit under the Teachers’ Retirement Law for California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) members and participants who are subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

The following limits apply to benefits paid and compensation creditable to the Defined Benefit (DB), the Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS) and the Cash Balance (CB) Benefit programs.

CalSTRS is not authorized to give tax advice; accordingly, if you have any questions about these or any other Internal Revenue Code (IRC) sections, please contact your tax advisor or the Internal Revenue Service.

CalSTRS 2% at 62 Members and Cash Balance Participants Subject to PEPRA

The purpose of this circular is to inform employers of the 2016-17 fiscal year limit on creditable compensation for CalSTRS 2% at 62 Defined Benefit Program members and Cash Balance Benefit Program participants subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

Supersedes Employer Information Circular Volume 25; Issue 11 (EIC09-11)

This employer information circular is to inform employers to discontinue the use of the CalPERS/CalSTRS Decision Tree.

The CalPERS/CalSTRS Decision Tree was developed as a job aid to help employers in determining if an employee is eligible to make a retirement system election or permissive membership election. It was not intended to take precedence over the law. CalSTRS does not rely on the scenarios outlined in the CalPERS/CalSTRS Decision Tree when determining retirement system election or permissive membership election eligibility; therefore, we are discontinuing the use of the CalPERS/CalSTRS Decision Tree.

The purpose of this employer information circular is to inform County Offices of Education, School Districts, Community Colleges and Charter Schools of common employer audit findings and provide guidance to avoid these findings in the future.

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The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2015 and to inform employers of the creditable compensation limit under the Teachers’ Retirement Law for California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) members and participants who are subject to the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).

Pension2, CalSTRS’ voluntary supplemental savings plan, is currently transitioning to its new recordkeeper, Voya FinancialTM, from TIAA-CREF. The purpose of this circular is to alert employers of the upcoming changes, in addition to providing information and resources to help make the transition easier for you and your employees.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that Governmental Accounting Standards Board Statement No. 68 (GASB 68), effective for fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2014, will result in significant changes to their financial statements as a participating employer in the State Teachers’ Retirement Plan (STRP), a cost-sharing, multiple-employer defined benefit pension plan.

The purpose of this circular is to provide guidance to employers in providing the right of retirement system election when a California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) member changes position that requires membership in another public retirement system.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2013 and to inform employers of the compensation limit for CalSTRS members and participants who are first hired to perform creditable service on or after January 1, 2013.

The purpose of this circular is to announce the formation of  a Compensation Review Unit in Member Account Services.

The purpose of this circular is to provide you with information regarding the retirement deadline for your certificated employees to participate in CalSTRS Medicare Premium Payment (MPP) Program of June 30, 2012.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2011.

The purpose of this circular is to provide guidance for employers regarding the importance of supplying substantiating documents used for the calculation of service credit and final compensation.

The purpose of this circular is to inform County Offices of Education, School Districts, Community Colleges and Charter Schools of common employer audit findings and to provide guidance on preventive actions to take to avoid these findings in the future.

The 403bCompare Web site has just completed a review and update of information listed on the web site, with special attention focused on the fee comparison section. During a routine review of vendor products and information it was determined that many vendors had not updated the fee
section of the web site.

It is important that CalSTRS maintain accurate addresses in order to mail important information to our members, such as the annual Retirement Progress Reports. In the past CalSTRS required employers to submit address file updates once a year.

The purpose of this circular is to provide guidance for community colleges regarding how to report earnings and contributions for part-time faculty.

The purpose of this circular is to retract the Employer Information Circular Volume 25; Issue 9 of May 29, 2009, as it contained an error regarding the Community College requirement indicating that participation could not be above that of a department chair.

Effective July 1, 2009, CalSTRS will require reporting of Classification Code and Base Hours on the Monthly and Supplemental Reports of Retirement Contributions (F496 files) for members employed by a community college in part-time (hourly or daily) or adult education assignments.

CalSTRS Sacramento headquarters is moving in June 2009. This circular shares with you and your employees, who are CalSTRS members, contact instructions for employers and CalSTRS member services and delivery of applications and forms.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2009. The following limits apply to benefits paid and compensation attributable  to the Defined Benefit (DB),  the Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS), and the Cash Balance (CB) Benefit Programs.

New federal regulations that became effective January 1, 2009, made significant changes in the way the 403(b) plans are managed. The new rules are complex. As a result, you may be facing unintended consequences and unexpected problems.

Effective with Release 3.0 of the Secure Employer Web site (SEW), scheduled for early December, 2008, the security forms required for access to CalSTRS information will change.

This circular is provided to update employers with information that was distributed to CalSTRS members the week of October 20, 2008, via My CalSTRS, regular U.S. mail, and email to approximately 250,000 CalSTRS members and beneficiaries.

CalSTRS 403bComply provides employers assistance with compliance of comprehensive IRS 403(b) regulations that become effective January 1, 2009.

The security of our member data is of paramount concern to CalSTRS. The Secure Employer Web site (SEW) provides additional security, but the successful protection of personal information also requires diligence on the part of both CalSTRS and employers.

With the availability of online reports through the Secure Employer Website (SEW), starting with fiscal year 2008-2009, CalSTRS will no longer be mailing hard copies of Source Variance Reports.

CalSTRS announces some important changes to the employer reporting process. Some of these changes were introduced in the Employer Information Circular, Volume 23; Issue 11, dated October 11, 2007.

The purpose of this circular is to alert employers that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced the pension plan limits for tax year 2008. The following limits apply to benefits paid and compensation attributable to the Defined Benefit (DB), the Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS), and the Cash Balance (CB) Benefit Programs.

The purpose of this circular is to inform employers of the availability of a new form titled Verification For Employers-Approved Leaves  (SC-1553 attached), which will be used to provide verification for the employer-approved leaves  eligible for service credit purchase by CalSTRS members.

The purpose of this circular is to  inform employers that the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) Pension2, our 403(b) (formerly known as the Voluntary Investment Program) and 457 Plan, has changed addresses for remittance of employees’ voluntary deductions and contribution detail.

The purpose of this circular is to inform  employers about the final 403(b) regulations on information sharing requirements and the change to the rules for “90-24 Transfers” in particular.

The purpose of this circular is to remind employers that pursuant to Section 22119.2 of the Education Code, any salary or other remuneration determined by the Teachers’ Retirement Board to have been paid for the principal purpose of enhancing a member’s benefits shall not be credited to the Defined Benefit (DB) Program. Instead, that compensation will be credited to the Defined Benefit Supplement (DBS) Program.

CalSTRS is implementing a new web site, Secure Employer Web Site, which will change the way you submit your files and receive reports from CalSTRS. The Secure Employer Web Site will be available on May 7, 2007 to County Offices of Education and any districts that are currently reporting directly (as a Report Source) to CalSTRS.

The purpose of this circular is to inform the  County Offices of Education, School Districts, Community College Districts, Charter Schools or other employing agencies, who report creditable compensation for an employee, of the legal requirements to deduct and remit the required employee and employer contributions to the system.

The purpose of this circular is to inform the County Offices of Education, School Districts, Community Colleges and Charter Schools (Employers) of the CalSTRS Billing Statement AR 1481 format changes implemented as of December 22, 2006 (previously identified as Form V0898).  This Billing Statement affects employers who participate in the payroll deduction program for member purchases of permissive and redeposit service credit.

The purpose of this circular is to provide information to County Offices of Education, School Districts, Community Colleges and Charter  Schools regarding their access to the Remote Employer Access Program (REAP) and CalSTRS’  continued efforts to improve information security.

On August 9, 2006, CalSTRS distributed Employer Information Circular-Volume 22; Issue 8 discussing changes for the employer remittance and variance processes in the 2006/07 fiscal year.  This Employer Information Circular-Volume 22; Issue 10 provides further clarification regarding the closing of fiscal year variances and any existing prior-year variances.