JKO Blended Retirement System (BRS) Financial Counselor-Educator Course

FC/Es need to apply enhanced knowledge and skills to support mandated financial literacy touch points with Service members. Those knowledge and skill areas include:

pre/post-deployment

transition to retirement

TSP vesting

promotion

When speaking with a Service member who is serving or had a contract to serve on and before December 31, 2017, it would be correct to say that the member is ________ into the "High-3" retirement system.

grandfathered

The formula for retired pay under the BRS is _____ x years of service x the average of the highest 36 months of the Service member's basic pay.

2.0%

Once made by the Service member, the decision to opt into the BRS is irrevocable.

True

Under the BRS, new Accessions who join the service after December 31, 2017 and complete at least 2 YOS will be eligible for _____.

matching Government contributions to a TSP account

AC members who have completed fewer than _____ and Reserve Component (RC) members who have fewer than _____ as of December 31, 2017, will have the opportunity to opt into the BRS.

12 YOS, 4,320 retirement points

Under the BRS, the defined-benefit annuity multiplier is _____.

decreased from 2.5% to 2.0%

Which of the components listed here are significant differences between the new Blended Retirement System and the "High-3" military retirement system?

Automatic and matching Government contributions to a Service member's TSP account

An RC member must be in a pay status and have _____ retirement points as of December 31, 2017 in order to qualify to opt into the BRS.

less than 4,320

Under the "High-3" military retirement system, _____ percent of Service members separate with retired pay.

The new Blended Retirement System, or BRS, requires Service members to serve _____ years of active duty, or the equivalent years of "creditable" service for the Reserve Component (based on creditable years of service), in order to qualify to receive the defined-benefit annuity retired pay.

A critical role of the FC/E is to advise opt-in eligible Service members which retirement system they should choose; the "High-3" military retirement system or the Blended Retirement System.

False

The effective date for the BRS is _____.

January 1, 2018

Service members who participate in the BRS may be eligible to receive Continuation Pay at the completion of _____ YOS based on pay entry base date (PEBD).

Under the BRS, Service members can achieve nearly the same or better total retirement funds as compared to the "High-3" retirement system.

True

When counseling a Service member, which term best describes an individual's rights to keep automatic matching Government TSP contributions (and their earnings) after the member has fulfilled specified time-in-service requirements.

vesting

The following Service members come to see you for advice about opting-in to the BRS. Which of the members will be eligible to opt-in?

a Reserve Service member with 15 qualifying years of service for retirement purposes and an estimated 3,950 points on December 31, 2017

When you are counseling a Service member about their decision to opt into the BRS, make sure that you discuss with the member the following:

automatic and Government-matching contributions

lump sum payments

Continuation Pay

TSP vesting

As of December 31, 2017, Reserve Component (RC) Service members with fewer than 4,320 retirement points will be_____.

grandfathered into the legacy "High-3" retirement system and are eligible to opt into the BRS

Opt-in eligible Service members who elect to remain in the legacy "High-3" retirement system are _____.

~not eligible to receive matching contributions from the Government for their TSP contributions

~eligible to participate in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)

Which of the following financial counselors are authorized to make your retirement plan decision for you?

Command Financial Specialist (CFS)

Personal Financial Manager (PFM)

Retirement Service Officer (RSO)

On average, the largest portion of the cost of living during retirement goes to _____.

Housing

The effective date for the BRS is _____.

January 1, 2018

Service members who elect to opt into the Blended Retirement System must serve _____ complete year(s) in order to keep the Government-automatic (1 percent) contributions.

Which of the following is NOT a retirement benefit under the Blended Retirement System.

Automatic 1% Government contribution to a TSP account

Up to an additional 4% Government-matching contributions to a TSP account based on Service member contribution rates

Continuation Pay

Service members who take the 25 percent or 50 percent Lump Sum Option will receive _____ than they would have gotten if their retirement benefits were spread out over normal monthly payments.

less in overall benefits

Which of the answers shows the correct retired pay formula for active duty Service members under the legacy "High-3" retirement system?

2.5% X YOS X average of highest 36 mo. of basic pay

The primary sources of income in retirement include:

All of the above

_____ allows you to not only make money on your contributions to your TSP account, along with any Government-automatic and matching contributions, but also on the money earned by those contributions.

Compound interest

Which of the options listed pertain to the Blended Retirement System, but not the legacy "High-3" retirement system? (Select all that apply)

~Retired pay formula is 2.0% X YOS X average of highest 36 mo. of basic pay under the BRS

~Automatic Government TSP contribution of 1% of a Service member's basic pay

~Eligible for Government-matching TSP contributions of up to 4% of a Service member's basic pay

As of December 31, 2017, Active Component (AC) Service members with fewer than 12 complete Years of Service (YOS) will be_____.

grandfathered into the legacy "High-3" retirement system and are eligible to opt into the Blended Retirement System (BRS)

Vesting is defined as _____.

the right an employee has to keep the money, and interest earned on that money, their employer contributed to their retirement account.

The BRS calculator enables Service members to _____.

compare potential retirement savings and income for different retirement system options, projected career progression, and TSP contribution rates

Active Component (AC) Service members who do not choose to opt into the BRS by December 31, 2018 will be_____.

choosing to remain in the legacy "High-3" retirement system

The Opt-In Election Period begins _____.

January 1, 2018

Service members may receive Continuation Pay _____, based on the needs of their Service, in return for their commitment to serve at least 3 more years.

mid-career (8-12 YOS)

A "working-age retiree" from the Uniformed Services is _____.

someone who retires from the service, but continues to work after separating

The Uniformed Services pension plans are based on _____.

creditable years of service - usually 20 years

A Pension is ____?

A retirement system in which an employee continues receiving regular income after he/she retires.

The following individuals can make the final BRS opt-in decision for you:

Only you can make this decision.

The legacy "High-3" retirement system for the Uniformed Services requires Service members to serve ____ years of active duty, or qualifying Years of Service for the Reserve Component, in order to qualify to receive the defined-benefit retired pay.

20 (years)

The Blended Retirement System (BRS) and the legacy "High-3" retirement system both require ____ Years of Service (YOS) in order to qualify for monthly retired pay.

20 (years)

The BRS calculator enables you to ____.

Estimate your potential retirement savings and income.

Money that is vested in a retirement account is ____.

The employee's to keep along with all interest earned and employer-matching contributions.

Before making a final decision on a Uniformed Services retirement plan, Service members need to consider ____.

(All of the above)
* Personal and family goals, plans, and obligation
* Career goals after separation from the service
* How long you plan to serve

____, is an incentive designed to encourage members to continue serving at critical points in their career and may be provided to you mid-career for your commitment to at least 3 additional years of service.

Continuation Pay

Which of the following are advantages to Service members who participate in the Blended Retirement System with respect to the Thrift Savings Plan?

Government-automatic (1%) contributions and Government-matching contributions up to an additional 4% of basic pay

You have the opportunity to opt into the BRS because you are either an Active Component (AC) member who will have completed fewer than ____ or a Reserve Component (RC) member who will have fewer than ____ as of December 31, 2017.

12 YOS, 4.320 retirement points

Under the BRS, the basic components of your retirement plan are:

* Eligibility for a Lump Sum payment option
* Automatic 1% Government contribution to a TSP account
* Up to an additional 4% Government-matching contributions to a TSP account based on Service member contribution rates
* Monthly retirement pay at 40% in return for at least 20 Years of Service

Service member decisions to opt into the Blended Retirement System (BRS) ____.

Cannot be reversed at any time once made

Financial experts advise you will need approximately ____ of your pre-retirement income in order to maintain your standard of living after you retire.

80%

The addition of interest added to the principal in a retirement account over time is called ____.

Compounding