Human Resources
By Sally Loy
W-2 Now Available Online; To Be Mailed by January 31, 2012
January 20, 2012 | Source: UW Service Center
For tax filing, employees should use their W-2 form now available under the Tax Statements tab in the Payroll Information module in the My UW Work Record tab. W-2 paper copies wil be postmarked by January 31, 2012. Employees should not use their final 2011 Earnings Statement to file their taxes. Some employees have had adjustments made to their 2011 taxable earnings since the last 2011 payroll was paid. These employees will have an additional 2011 earnings statement with an earned date of 12/19/2011 reflecting the adjustments.
Tax Sheltered Annuity (TSA) Annual Fee Deduction: What is “TSA Fee?” and What does it mean to defer 100% of salary?
January 20, 2012 | Source: UW System Administration
Tax Sheltered Annuity (TSA) Fee
If you are currently contributing to the TSA 403(b) Program, your first paycheck in 2012 had a "TSA Fee" of $15.00. For unclassified employees this was the January 3 paycheck, and for classified employees this was the January 12 paycheck.
In years past, the fee was deducted on the paycheck payable in March in a batch process. With the new payroll system, it became possible to deduct the fee automatically on the first paydate of the year. Employees who start contributing after their first 2012 paycheck will have the $15 fee automatically deducted at the time of their first 2012 TSA contribution. This is a great improvement from the old payroll system, which required staff time to run the batch process and manual entry for every employee who began deferrals after the March deduction.
The TSA fee is deducted only once a year for each employee who contributes to the program. This very low administrative fee is used to defray costs of managing the program, including staying in compliance with IRS regulations.
100% TSA deferral
With HRS, employees are able to defer a percentage of salary to their TSA 403(b) account up to 100% of salary.
Warning! If you defer 100% – either on the Salary Reduction Agreement or through the online process – your paycheck will be $0.00. Please be sure this is what you really intend.
Once you begin a 100% deferral, your paycheck will continue to be $0.00 until you have reached the 2012 maximum allowable contribution, which is $17,000 ($22,500 for employees age 50 or older). If you have 15 or more years of service with the University of Wisconsin, you may have an additional "catch-up" opportunity allowing extra contributions of up to $3,000 per year to a cumulative maximum of $15,000 over five or more years. Your campus benefits staff can determine if you are eligible for this.
If you want to defer the 403(b) maximum for the year and have questions about how much that is per payroll, please contact your campus benefits staff.
Activate Your myFBMC Card for 2012 ERA Medical Expense Account
January 17, 2012 | Source: UW System Administration
If you enrolled in the ERA Medical Expense Account for 2012, you recently received a new myFBMC card. There is a sticker on the card instructing you to activate your card by visiting www.myfbmc.com.
The myFBMC Card® is a reimbursement option that allows FBMC to electronically reimburse many eligible expenses under your employer's plan and IRS guidelines. Because it is a payment card, when you use the myFBMC Card® to pay for eligible expenses, funds are electronically deducted from your medical expense account.
Participants must go on-line to www.myfbmc.com to activate the card prior to use. To activate the card on-line, please log onto the myFBMC site. If you need assistance, you can call FBMC Customer Care at 1-800-342-8017.
Any remaining funds in the medical account from 2011 will be available on the new card. Money remaining in a 2011 account will be used first when the card is used for payment. The old myFBMC card will not work after 12/31/11.
Thank you.
Sally Loy
UW HR Manager
SSEC room 329
