Human Resources Fall 2024 Program Updates for Research Foundation (RF) Employees

The Research Foundation for SUNY (RF) provides employees with the opportunity to save for their retirement through the RF Optional Retirement Program. All regular (non-student) RF employees are eligible to participate in this plan.

If you are a current participant, review your contributions now to determine if you are on track to meet your savings goals for this calendar year. You can see your total contributions in your paycheck by reviewing your year-to-date (YTD) deductions for your plan(s).

For 2024, you may contribute up to $23,000 per year to a 403(b) account. If you are age 50 or older any time during 2024, you can contribute an additional $7,500, for a maximum of $30,500 per plan, per year.

The 2025 maximum contribution limits have not yet been announced by the IRS. An announcement will be forthcoming near the end of the calendar year.

Your current contributions will continue into the next calendar year. If you would like to keep your current contribution elections the same, no action will be required.

Enrollments and changes for the SUNY 403(b) Plan must be made through the SUNY Retirement@Work website and can be done at any time of the year.

Monitor your retirement benefit by using available online tools and calculators.

Consider reviewing your current beneficiary designations and update them as desired.

Eligible RF SUNY employees can manage their retirement account online:

• View your benefit information
• Update your contact information
• Receive email notifications for important documents
• View or update your beneficiaries
• Apply for a loan
• Manage loan and service credit payments

For Resarch Foundation employees that earn vacation time, the maximum accrual for vacation time is 40 days. The balance can go over 40 days during the calendar year but will be reduced to 40 days on January 1.

Review the upcoming holidays on the University's holiday calendar and your current accrual balances.

Provides partial income replacement for up to 26 weeks for an off-the-job illness or injury through The Standard (effective 1/1/24).

The Research Foundation offers eligible employees the option to purchase additional short-term disability coverage, beyond those provided by the New York State Disability Benefits Law (DBL).  The insurer is First Reliance Standard Life (for claims prior to 1/1/24) and The Standard (for claims on or after 1/1/24).

• You pay the full cost of this benefit. See the Enrollment Kit for an illustration of cost based on salary (rates subject to change).
• You may purchase a weekly benefit in $100 increments not to exceed the lesser of $2,000 or 60 percent of salary.
• Your benefit is offset by the benefits provided by New York State Disability (DBL), but the benefit will never be less than $25 per week.
• You can receive benefits up to a maximum of 26 weeks.

Provides partial income replacement for a certified total disability that prevents you from working for more than six months. Insurance is provided through The Standard (effective 1/1/24).

The Flex Spending Account (FSA) is an employee benefit that saves you money by allowing you to pay for certain expenses with pre-tax dollars. The FSA program offers two FSA benefits to employees:

• The Health Care Flexible Spending Account
• The Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account
  

You may choose to enroll in one or both benefit choices. To plan for the upcoming open enrollment period, estimate your out-of-pocket health care, dependent care, or adoption expenses for the calendar year. Based on your estimate, decide how much of your salary you want to set aside in each of the accounts.

If electing to participate in 2025, a regular portion of your election will be deducted tax-free from your biweekly paycheck. These deductions are taken from your gross pay before your federal, state, social security, and city (if applicable) income taxes are withheld. The deductions are then contributed to your FSA for your use on eligible expenses.

Review your current account balances and plan to submit reimbursement requests for eligible expenses within the 2024 plan year. If you would like to participate in 2025, you must elect to enroll during the open enrollment period. Reenrollment is not automatic.

According to IRS rules, you forfeit any funds remaining in an FSA at the end of the plan year. The RF’s FSA plan year ends December 31 each year; however, a grace period and run-out period help ensure you have the opportunity to maximize your FSA funds and avoid forfeiting them.

The grace period gives you an additional two months and 15 days after the end of the plan year to incur eligible expenses. Since the RF plan year ends on December 31, the grace period allows you until March 15 of the following year to incur expenses.

The run-out period extends the deadline for filing claims for expenses incurred during the plan year. The RF run-out period ends March 31. For example, if you enroll in an FSA for the 2024 plan year, you would have until March 15, 2025 to incur expenses and until March 31, 2025 to file claims. Remember, any funds left in your FSA at the end of the plan year will be forfeited. They will not roll over into the next plan year.

You may claim eligible expenses under the Health Care FSA program for yourself, your spouse, and qualifying children or relatives. Expenses are eligible for reimbursement if they are for medically necessary health care services. The expenses must be incurred during the plan year or during your period of coverage if you enroll after the plan year begins.

The Dependent Care FSA can help you save money by allowing you to pay for eligible dependent care expenses with pretax dollars.

An announcement will be made when the open enrollment period begins in November with instructions to enroll. In the meantime, you can review FSA information available on the Research Foundation for SUNY website.

The New York State 529 College Savings Program allows participants to save money for their selected beneficiary's (child, grandchild, self, friend, etc.) qualifying higher education expenses. New York State taxpayers can deduct up to $5,000 of contributions toward their 529 account on their state income tax return each year.

NYS-Ride is a pre-tax benefit that helps NYS employees save money on public transportation costs and contributes to a greener environment. You can use your commuter benefit to pay for a variety of public transit costs with pre-tax dollars.

During the Open Enrollment Period, active RF employees are eligible to:

• Choose a new health insurance provider.
  
• Enroll in or add dependents to your health, dental, or vision coverage.
  
• Voluntarily cancel or remove dependents from your health, dental, or vision coverage
• Enroll in a Health Care FSA or Dependent Care FSA for 2025
  

More information on the Open Enrollment period for 2025 will be announced near the end of October 2024.

You may change your withholding online or download a PDF form to complete and submit to HR. 

Submit Online:

• Online portal for RF employees

Download a PDF Form:

• Complete and Submit a New Federal W-4 Form
• Complete and Submit a New State IT-2104 Form