Blended Retirement System: Think now to plan for future Published March 13, 2017 By Staff Sgt. Katrina Heikkinen 434th ARW Public Affairs GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- The old adage, a penny saved is a penny earned will have a whole new meaning as a new Blended Retirement System becomes implemented January 2018. The system impacts every service member of the Department of Defense, and members are encouraged to prepare for an alternative retirement plan and research which system works best for them. To help navigate, Katina Dimitro, 434th Force Support Squadron Airman and Family Readiness Center personal financial counselor, is readily available for service members of the Hoosier Wing, to provide personal financial assistance for Grissom Airmen. All service members who join after Jan. 1, 2018, will automatically be placed into the Blended Retirement Program, but Airmen who have less than 4,320 Reserve points or active-duty Airmen with less than 12 years time-in-service by Dec. 30, 2017, will have the option to opt into the blended system until Dec. 30, 2018. Once opting into the BRS, the choice is irrevocable. Prior active-duty Reservists can calculate their retirement points at the rate of one point for each day on active duty. Traditional Reservists, on average, will earn approximately 75 points per year for attending monthly unit training assemblies and approximately two weeks of annual tour. The total retirement points are then used to calculate a Reservists’ monthly retirement plan. According to Dimitro, prior service Airmen who rejoin after Jan. 1, 2018, will have 30 days to decide to opt for the traditional legacy retirement system, or opt for the BRS. However, prior service Airmen with more than 4,320 retirement points are not eligible for the BRS. Under the traditional legacy system, only Airmen who served 20 “good years” are eligible to receive and/or collect a DoD retirement after the age of 60. The new Blended Retirement Program, however, offers a chance for Airmen who serve less than 20 years to still earn a retirement. The BRS, however, adjusts the years of service multiplier from 2.5 percent to 2.0 percent to calculate monthly retired pay. Moreover, because the BRS system also includes the Thrift Savings Plan, which includes an automatic 1 percent and up to 4 percent matching contributions to a service member’s TSP account, Airmen must be actively aware of their contributions and the status of their finances. To assist Airmen and their dependents on all matters regarding finances, Katina Dimitro is readily available to provide free, private and confidential financial counseling. “The role of the financial counselor is to provide financial literacy for service members to make sure they have the best possible information to the determine which retirement plan they want to opt for,” Dimitro said. “My job is to sit down, one on one with every service member and their family and explain the blended retirement system, educate them on what the difference are, then take a look at their current financial state.” The decision to either opt or not opt for the BRS is very individualized as there is no set criteria for determining the better choice except for a careful examination of personal finances and retirement goals, she said. Additional counseling is available that covers a wide range of financial aspects including budgeting, financial planning, investment options, debt solutions, increasing credit scores and more. “I highly encourage all Airmen to meet with me so that they can understand their options and see what’s going to being their best interest,” Dimitro said. “You don’t have to make the decision today, but the sooner Airmen start looking at it and have retirement discussions with their family and the people that retirement is going to impact, is crucial to making the best informed decision.” Airmen interested in learning more about their reserve points/history can do so by going to the virtual MPF on My.af.mil, then select Self-Service Actions > Personnel Data > PCARS. For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact Dimitro at (571) 419-2405 or email PFC4.IN.NG@Zeiders.com. The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Men and women from the Hoosier Wing routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission. Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter.
