MAJOR CHANGES TO CONCORDIA RETIREMENT PLAN

Effective July 1, 2014

 As workers and employers enrolled in the Concordia Retirement Plan are aware, there are some major changes coming to the Concordia Retirement Plan effective July 1, 2014. For some workers, this has meant looking more deeply into the changes in order to determine if they might wish to retire by June 30, 2014, in order to lock in certain benefits before the changes take place. Although the changes in the plans have been implemented in a way to have no effect on current retirees and little effect on those nearing retirement, there are two specific benefits that will be impacted by the chosen date of retirement that we want all workers nearing retirement to be aware of:

1. Death Benefit. Currently (and for all workers that retire before July 1, 2014), the retirement plan provides a death benefit payment of $10,000 for each retired member and $10,000 for an enrolled dependent spouse or child (up to $20,000 in benefits). The member and spouse post-retirement death benefit for active workers who retire after June 30, 2014, will no longer be available, except to grandfathered workers. A benefit of $10,000, payable only once per worker and spouse (after the death of the first to die), will be provided for active workers who are age 55 or older with at least five years of service as of July 1, 2014 (grandfathered workers). 
2. Monthly annuity payments from your SRA and RMS will be calculated using market-based rates. Some soon-to-be retirees have noted that this change is much more dramatic than it first appears in print. The Supplemental Retirement Account and Retiree Medical Supplement, when annuitized for retirees after June 30, 2014, will no longer use a fixed annuity rate of 8%, but rather a market-based rate which will be significantly lower. One retiree has indicated the calculations provided by Concordia Plan Services indicate a 30% reduction to the calculated monthly benefits when retirement takes place after June 30, 2014. Please note this change only relates to these benefits, and not the Primary Retirement Benefit (PRB). Retirees that choose lump sum or rollover options will not be affected by the change to market-based rates,as they take the investment return and risk upon themselves. Regardless of retirement dates, retirees have the option to take a lump sum distribution of their SRA accounts. Individuals who retire after June 30, 2014 will also be able to take the RMS in a lump sum distribution.

Each individual nearing retirement should look at his or her personal situation and seek independent advice as he/she weighs the benefits of retirement by or after June 30, 2014.

The benefits of working additional months or years may outweigh the changes listed above once additional salary, increased PRB due to additional months of service, health insurance benefits, etc. are considered. To inquire about your specific benefits, please contact Concordia Plan Services at 888.927.7526 or go to: www.concordiaplans.org  

Information for your schools subscribing to BrainPOP and seeking renewals.

Recently there have been changes made to both LCMS and BrainPOP regarding the pricing of your subscription. Due to these changes we can no longer offer the per-student price that you have received and now will be following a per campus model. 

Please email me at your earliest convenience so I can send you a quote with the updated pricing. This pricing will be discounted from the campus pricing we currently offer. In addition I am going to synch your account to a standard expiration date so that all LCMS schools will expire on September 30th. The change in expiration will not create any additional cost to your subscription. 

Moving forward all contact regarding your account should be directed to myself. I can be reached at aliciac@brainpop.com or 212-574-6035.  Feel free to contact me with any comments or concerns. We look forward to continuing our relationship with you. 

Best,

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