Retiree Cost of Living Adjustment for 2012

Based on the increase in the Consumer Price Index, there will be a 1.7 percent Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for retired pay and Survivor Benefit Plan annuities effective Dec. 1, 2012. Most retirees will see the change in their Dec. 31, 2012 payment. Annuitants will receive it Jan. 3, 2013.

However, those who retired between January 1, 2012 and September 30, 2012 will receive a partial COLA based on the quarter they retired.

• January through March retirees will receive 1.7%
• April through June retirees will receive 1.0%
• July through September retirees will receive 0.2%.

Those who retire on or after Oct. 1, 2012 will see no COLA this year.
Retirees who received a Career Status Bonus (CSB) will receive a 0.7 percent increase. This is because they accepted a $30,000 career retention bonus when they reached 15 years of service and agreed to reduced retired pay and COLAs as a trade-off for the bonus.
CSB recipients who retired between January 1, 2012 and June 30, 2012 will receive a partial COLA based on the quarter they retired.

• January through March retirees will receive 0.7%
• April through June retirees will receive 0.5%

CSB recipients who retired on or after July 1, 2012 will see no COLA this year.

The 1.7% COLA also applies to any Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pay retirees may be receiving.

Page Updated November 29, 2012

Original Article: http://www.dfas.mil/retiredmilitary/newsevents/newsletter/costoflivingadjustment.html

Paper checks to end

The Department of the Treasury has announced that all payments from the federal government must be made electronically and not by paper check beginning March 1, 2013.  This means most military retirees and annuitants receiving paper checks will be required to sign up for direct deposit.

With direct deposit, DFAS sends your payment straight to your bank account. Direct deposit gives you immediate access to your money on pay day, and it eliminates the risk of lost or stolen checks, forged signatures and identity theft.

Over 99 percent of military retirees and over 96 percent of annuitants already receive their payments through direct deposit.  If you’re one of the few still receiving a check in the mail, we’ll send you a notice in the coming months.  But you can get ahead of the rush by setting up direct deposit now.

How to enroll

There are three ways to start direct deposit. Before you enroll, you’ll need to gather information including your financial institution’s routing transit number and account number.  Then do one of the following:
 

• Send a signed Fast Start Direct Deposit Form to Defense Finance and Accounting Service, U.S. Military Retired Pay, P.O. Box 7130, London, KY 40742-7130;
• Use your myPay account to set up a direct deposit to your checking or savings account; 
• Or call the DFAS Retired and Annuitant Pay Customer Care Center at 800-321-1080. 

It can take 30 to 60 days from the day we receive your enrollment for direct deposit to start.  If after enrolling you receive a paper check, please cash or deposit it as you normally would.  We’ll send you a notification when we process your enrollment.

There are many advantages to eliminating paper checks. No more trips to the bank to deposit your check, no risk of lost or stolen mail, no waiting for misrouted or delayed mail, and your money is available to you the day it is due.  It also will save the American taxpayers about $120 million every year.

More Information.

Page updated September 12, 2012

Original Posting: http://www.dfas.mil/retiredmilitary/newsevents/newsletter/treasurymandateeft.html

DFAS to host first Facebook town hall meeting

CLEVELAND (May 2, 2012) – Questions and proposed topics have been pouring in for Defense Finance and Accounting Service retired pay experts who will host a live Facebook town hall meeting with military retirees May 8, 3 – 5 p.m. Eastern.

DFAS, the agency that pays the nation’s more than 2 million military retirees, is getting ready for its first live social media event by pulling together a team of retired pay experts and preparing to answer as many questions as possible during the two-hour meeting.

DFAS polled military retirees last month to find out what they want to talk about during the event. Forty-five percent of respondents said they wanted to know more about Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) and Combat Related Special Compensation (CRSC), while nearly 20 percent were interested in issues regarding waiving military retired pay in order to receive Department of Veterans Affairs compensation.

One Facebook user, for example, said she wanted to discuss "Medical retirees who cannot draw CRDP because they are short of their full 20 years." Another said, "I would like to talk about how my retired pay will affect my social security, if at all."

The town hall will be available online at www.facebook.com/DefenseFinanceandAccountingService. While anyone can view the town hall page, retirees and other interested guests must have a current Facebook account to submit questions or make comments.

DFAS representatives will not answer account-specific questions or issues during the town hall as these often involve revealing personal information and require time away from those questions of interest to most participants.

For more information about the event, visit www.dfas.mil/facebooktownhall. This page serves as a home base for town hall information and soon will be updated with bios and photos of the retired pay experts who will be online during the event.

DFAS launched its Facebook presence in May 2010 and now has more than 65,137 "likes." The agency regularly responds to inquiries and customer service requests via Facebook with an average turn-around time of two to three business days.

DFAS experts plan to answer as many questions as they can during the two-hour town hall meeting. Any retirement questions they can’t answer during the event will be answered within the normal two to three business days. Non-retirement related questions submitted during the live town hall session will be held until it is over and answered within the normal time frame.

Updated May 3, 2012

Original Article: http://www.dfas.mil/pressroom/dfasnewsreleasearchive/Release0512001.html